Matt stared at me, blinking, for what seemed like forever. Then the corners of his mouth tilted, and I was certain it’d all be okay. “To be honest, I thought you had a thing for her. I noticed it at the barbecue at Lakes Park. But I didn’t think you two had actually done anything about it, and when she left, I assumed that was the end of it. I had no idea about any of the other stuff.”
“No one did. She didn’t want anyone in the family to be told.”
He nodded but kept on. “I get it, but I really wish I would’ve been informed. Ya know? You’re my best friend, and she’s my little sister. Of course there’s no one who could take care of her like you, and I’m more than excited about you actually being my brother. What upsets me is the not being made aware of it. Since Christine and I got married?”
I nodded and shrugged, hoping this was something we could get past rather soon.
“So this means you guys have the same anniversary as we do?”
“Technically, it’s the next day, because by the time it was all said and done, it was after midnight. But yeah, one day later. You can see why we never said anything to anyone, right?”
Matt came around the desk and clapped me on the back. “You should probably go get your wife. A week in New York City is a horrible idea for anyone, let alone Janelle. And you better make it grand. No fucking knocking on her door and giving her some lame excuse for your dickless decisions. Man the fuck up.”
I couldn’t help but laugh and shake my head. “I will. I promise you, I won’t leave until she’s mine again.”
As I ran out of the office, Ronnie called out after me, “Where are you going?”
“To rescue my bride.”
21
Holden
In the movies, when someone makes such a profound statement about chasing after the woman of their dreams, even flying across the country to do so, it looks like it takes maybe an hour, two at the most. They don’t show all the hoops you jump through and red tape you have to tear down just to get there. Flights into New York at the last minute were outrageously expensive—if there were any seats available. Finally, after getting everything in order, I landed in New York almost nine hours later.
Then again, if the movies showed the reality of the trip, it wouldn’t be as romantic.
Even though, in my opinion, any woman who didn’t find a man spending half a day and a good chunk of his credit card limit just to get to her as being romantic had no heart.
However, the hours and hours of either waiting or waiting to wait gave me plenty of time to track her down. I wasn’t sure how I managed it, but after many phone calls and more than my fair share of favors, I had gotten the information I needed regarding her whereabouts. The last thing I wanted to do when I landed was wait for a bag, so I hadn’t packed one. I had everything I needed with me, and in the event she turned me away, I wouldn’t have anything to drag back home.
I ran outside the airport and fought to find a cab to take me to her hotel. And as soon as we got close enough, I paid the man and hopped out, unable to handle waiting in traffic any longer. Even the ride up in the elevator was torture, and by the time I made it to her door, I pounded on it frantically with my fist because I couldn’t waste another second before telling her how much I loved her.
How much I needed her.
And how fucking sorry I was.
But she didn’t answer the door—he did. I shoved past him and invited myself in, ignoring the smug grin I was about to wipe off his ugly face. The sight of the room had me frozen in place after only a few steps inside. A bra hung off the back of the couch, clothes strewn all over the room. My gut twisted and knotted, and I feared I’d vomit all over myself.
“She’s a feisty one, isn’t she?” he asked with wagging brows.
My arm, as if having a mind of its own, extended out, delivering my fist straight into the center of his face. It happened so fast it even surprised me, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t the one with the bloody nose. Nor was I the one who screamed like a girl.
“Where is she?” I demanded, a sudden fierceness coming over me. The thought of him touching her bothered me more than I could comprehend, but I had to remind myself I had no right to complain. I’d pushed her away and straight into his arms, so I deserved to suffer the consequences.
“Probably cleaning my come out of her pussy.”
It seemed as though my leg and arm ran on the same circuit, because while he remained hunched over, his hands covering his nose and mouth, my knee jerked up, right into his bloody face. This time, he fell to the floor, and I was pretty sure he started to cry.
“Oh my God!” Someone came running out of the room to the right. She had blond hair, but not like my Janelle. It wasn’t the color of honey. It was almost white like she’d washed it with bleach repeatedly. Naked as the day she was born—which by the looks of it, wasn’t that long ago—she ran to Pencil-Dick’s side and began to fawn all over him.
I stared in confusion for a moment before I bent over and picked up the lacy black bra. It reminded me of some of Janelle’s I’d seen around my room at home. Except when I did a double-take, this one had a lot of extra fabric in the cups, and I knew there was no way this would’ve fit her. She didn’t have large breasts, they were the perfect size for me, and this bra was made for someone who more than likely had—
I peered over my shoulder and assessed the blonde who offered first aid to Connor and tried to frantically stop his bleeding. The first thing I noticed were her obviously fake tits. From a quick guesstimation, it seemed as though this bra belonged to her. After tossing it back onto the couch where I’d found it, I heard a gasp that drew my attention to my left, and that’s when I finally found her.
“Janelle,” I whispered, followed by a confident, “baby.” My heart began to beat in a steady rhythm and my mind seemed to settle. It felt as if years had passed since my last interaction with her, instead of only one week. But one week had even been too long. I never wanted to be without her again. I was done wasting time on what ifs, could’ve beens and should’ves. No doubts remained that she was my forever.
However, she tried to slam the door in my face once I reached her.
“Come on, baby…please open the door. Let me in.” I hoped smooth-talking her would do the trick. When it didn’t seem to be working, I decided to go with force and apologize for it later. I shoved my shoulder into the door and pushed against it with caution to prevent hurting her in the process.
“Go away, Holden. I don’t want to see you.”
“Too bad, Jelly. Because I want to see you.”
And just like that, the door flew open, almost causing me to fall on my face. Once I righted myself, I flung the door closed behind me, trapping the two of us in the bedroom together and blocking out the bleeder and the naked one tending to him.
“Hear me out, Janelle. Please.”