AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Rush: Kruger, I should apologize for being pissed about you sniffing around Landry when she first got to town.
Landry: Jay, that wasn’t an apology.
Rush: I said I should, not that I was going to.
Rory: I think you and Jess make a great couple.
Madison: Me too! So why haven’t you made it official?
Kruger: The point is, as far as all of you are concerned, we’re engaged. We’ve been engaged a couple months. We’ve been dating longer. Okay? And don’t be pulling all this bullshit around her. The doc said no stress.
Ryan: You have Elite’s word.
Lars: I have a question.
Win: The chat is yours, angel.
Lars: What’s your type, Prism?
Prism: *monkey with hands covering his mouth emoji*
Kruger: This chat is going to self-destruct in thirty seconds.
Jamie: Okay, James Bond.
*Kruger deleted chat thread*
*No messages to show*
Nervous energy was making me sweat and my cell slip through my unsteady, damp fingers. We all know you’re in love with her.
It wasn’t that damn obvious. Just because I wasn’t a manwhore, I must be head over heels for someone? Or gay? With Prism? Look, P was my best bro. I’d do anything for him. Hell, I was walking around in pants he usually keeps his dick in. But I didn’t swing that way.
I couldn’t.
The only direction I could ever swing was toward her. Abandoning the cell in my lap, I glanced at the bed where Jess slept. The room was dark, the only light from the hall filtering in through the window in the door. The chair I occupied was close enough to the bed that I could make out her features even in the lack of light. Her lashes fanned across cheeks that were still too pale for my liking. The length of her brown hair was tangled around her shoulders and was a stark contrast to the white bandage circling her head.
Her forearm draped over her middle, hand completely lost inside the sleeve of my hoodie. God, she looked fucking precious swallowed up in my clothes. Just seeing her all bundled in my red fabric sent a fierce streak of possessiveness through me that was shocking in intensity.
I was off-balance. Usually an even-keel type of bro, nothing much rattled me. I didn’t see much point in stressing about everything because it seemed like a waste of time. If something did ruffle my good mood, then I made a plan. A man with a plan was in control. I’d figure out how to get from A to B, and then I’d execute it. I was patient too. Good things take time, right?
Swimming takes practice. Day after day, I have to show up at the pool.
A degree in economics takes years. One class at a time builds a foundation of knowledge.
And then there were the stocks. Risky, yes, but a calculated risk, one I measured daily.
All of these things are micro plans that add up to a bigger picture. A bigger goal. But this shit right here? A trip to the ER, a little white lie, and a side of amnesia… This shit was not part of my plan.
No wonder I couldn’t sleep. I thought checking in with Elite, making sure they knew to keep my lies on the down-low, would make me feel a little more in control.
Should have known talking to that peanut gallery would only make this shit show smellier.
“We know you love her,” I muttered to myself. “Ryan always acting like he’s the Dalai Lama of fish. Just announcing shit like it’s no big deal.” My lips curled. “Asshole.”
Maybe it wasn’t a big deal. You know, if I hadn’t spent the last four years of my life trying to prove my love was worthy. And now she doesn’t even remember who the hell I am.
A small sound from the bed brought my head up, and I noted the tightness to Jess’s previously relaxed features. The creases in her forehead, wrinkled nose, and stiff lip had me up out of the chair to lean over the bed.
