Oliver stops just before hitting the man. “I messed up. I need to talk to Poppy. I need to make it right.”
My heart trips, giving an extra beat that makes my chest feel weak and fluttery. “You do?” I ask, looking past Joey.
“Poppy, who is this?” Uncle Bill asks, standing next to me protectively. He’s barely five-eight, but right now, he has an energy much bigger than that.
“Yeah, everything okay, Gracie Lou?” Mike asks from my other side.
Oliver’s face snaps between the men, and then I notice Miguel, Mikhail and every other returned citizen in the room gather round me. Like protective uncles.
Like family.
My eyes well with tears.
“Do, uh, do we need to hurt this guy?” Joey asks, leaning toward me.
I laugh. “I don’t think so.” But then I look at Oliver, who has lost every ounce of confidence he had remaining. “Do they, Oliver?”
He holds his hands up, looking disheveled and devastatingly handsome in his tux. “No. No you do not. I am not here to hurt Poppy Grace. I just want to talk to her. Can we go somewhere private?”
“Not a chance,” Uncle Bill says. “Whatever you need to say to my niece, you can say here.”
Never has someone had my back like these men.
I had no idea it could feel so good.
A grateful tear rolls down my cheek, but it’s white noise at this point. I’ve cried so much today, I don’t know how I’m not hooked up to an IV for dehydration.
Joey gives Oliver a long look. “You said you messed up. Did you hurt her? Is that why she’s crying?”
“Not like that!” Oliver says in a rush before they rushhim. “Listen, I suck at words. I’m here because I’m in love with Poppy, but I was too stupid and scared to admit it, so I let something get in the way. I fell in love with her online over a year ago when I was just some angry idiot on a forum. And then I fell in love with her again in person. And when I found out she worked on a case involving my brother, I walked away. But I was wrong.”
“And now?” Uncle Bill asks.
“Now I’ve come to tell her how sorry I am. To beg her to take me back.”
His words are like a hug, but Mike folds his arms, unimpressed. “Yeah? So?”
“So … what?” Oliver asks, trying to see me past my personal bodyguards.
“So where’s the apology? Where’s the begging?” Mike asks.
Oliver runs a hand through his hair, which is reaching for the ceiling at this point. “Poppy, I am so sorry. I’m beyond sorry. Ishould have listened instead of talked. I should have appreciated how amazing you are for helping Darren and so many others instead of feeling like his gain was our loss. It wasn’t. I was wrong. Darren—” He gives a breathy laugh. “Darren is a good guy. He deserved all the help you gave him.”
“So you forgive him?” I ask, my throat tight.
“I needhimto forgiveme.” His voice is thick with emotion. “And I promise I’ll ask him soon. But I had to ask for your forgiveness first. Please forgive me, Poppy. Please take me back.”
The room is silent except for the music.
Joey looks at Mike. Mike looks at Uncle Bill. Uncle Bill studies Oliver for what feels like an eternity.
Then Mike breaks the silence. “That was a pretty good apology.”
“I’ve heard better,” Joey says, his arms still crossed. “Where’s the grand gesture?”
Mike shakes his head. “You read too many romance novels in prison, man.”
I laugh. Happiness is bubbling in my chest like soda, but Oliver’s brow is furrowed, like Joey’s words have left a mark. He takes out his phone, makes a couple of swipes, and then holds it up.
