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COREY: TODAY
(Present Day)
San Francisco, California
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I BARGED INTO JONATHAN’Soffice Friday afternoon and slammed the door shut, narrowing my eyes at him.
“Yes?” He narrowed his eyes right back. “Is there a problem, Mr. Walters?”
“Yes. There is a fucking problem.”
“That’s a very loaded sentence, don’t you think?”
“Greg is not going to be the best man at your wedding, Jonathan. I am. And if you have a problem with that—”
“I do have a problem with that.”
“Greg isn’t your best friend.”
“Greg isn’t sleeping with my little sister.”
“Neither am I, not like that.” I clenched my fists. “I like Hayley—a lot. Actually, I’m pretty sure I love her, but we’ve never had the chance to truly see what we could have together. What I feel for her isn’t anything like what I felt for the other women.”
“Other women you’ve been with total or other women you’ve been with over the past couple years? You have a higher body count than me.”
“I know that.”
“Does she?”
I glared at him. If it wasn’t so close to his wedding I would punch the shit out of him right now so we could settle this that way.
“I’m not Hayley’s guardian anymore,” he said finally. “I can’t tell her what to do or who not to date, but you’ve known her for years. You protected her right there with me some of those years. So, surely you can see why I would have a problem with her entertaining the man who previously promised to A) Never commit to one woman B) Fuck as many women as possible and C) Live life with no attachments. Forever. Childhood past with her aside, you want me to believe that you’ve changed your current lifestyle overnight?”
“Jonathan...” I tried to keep my tone sincere as possible. “I’ve never not told you about a woman I was with because I didn’t care. I’ve never cared about any of them or their feelings. I care about Hayley. I always have.”
A thick silence hung in the air between us, and I waited for his next dose of sharp words, but all I got was a deep sigh.
“Corey,” he said, his voice firm. “If you break my little sister’s heart, if you are responsible for one fucking tear that comes out of her eyes, I will have you murdered. And then I’ll really go to work on you.”
I blinked. Then I smiled. “How long have you been working on that speech?”
“All week. Too strong of an emphasis on the really?”
“No, that part was good.” I was impressed. “It was the last clause that threw me off. Say it a little slower next time so it sounds more threatening. It was a little too fast for me.”
“I was serious about having you murdered.”
I nodded and walked over to him, shaking his hand. “I won’t hurt her. Now, where is the best man’s box for this weekend?”
“It should be at your house already. Angela had it delivered this morning.”
