Page 105 of The Boss

“It sort of just happened. At first we got close working on finding you, and she started getting these messages. I suggested we pretend to be in a relationship to get the messages to stop⁠—”

He cuts me off. “What messages?”

“At first they seemed to be someone trying to help, but then she started getting threatening ones. Eventually they stopped, and she hasn’t gotten a message in months,” I tell him.

“Did you find out who it was?” he asks, seeming fully invested now.

“No, now that we found you, we’re going to figure it out. We tried, but every lead didn’t work, and then they eventually stopped. Juliet is convinced it’s two people, which seems likely considering the tone in the messages was different. And when Drew tracked them, one was pinging all over the place upstate, where the other was somewhere in the city.”

“Any ideas or theories on who they are or their associations?” he queries. Sometimes I hate that he’s a lawyer. He sometimes asks too many questions.

“The aggressive one seemed to be either very in tune with Lorenzo or was on his team. He sent a message to her saying they knew where you were. She tried to get more from them, but then they stopped. They must have known we weren’t going to stop looking,” I say.

“Good, but that still doesn’t explain how you two got together for real.”

“Uhh, well, a few months ago, right before the twins were born, I kissed her in the kitchen and⁠—”

“So you finally listened to everyone for the first time?” he smiles at me.

“Shut up, asshole, but sure, I finally listened. I did fuck up.”

“When do you not?” he jokes with a smile.

“Are you here right now to just fuck with me about my mistakes?” I ask.

“That’s why I’m always here.”

I roll my eyes. “You know I couldn’t tell you any of this and tell you to go home, right?”

“You do that, and my wife will come over here and yell at you; we both know that,” he says.

“Is she still mad at me?” I ask.

“No, she’s frustrated, though. She feels like you don’t trust her. I know how much you wanted siblings and parents and all of those things. Those people are all here in different ways. My parents raised you; we acted like brothers. Now you have a sister you begged for, and you continue to keep secrets from her. You got what you wanted for so long, so don’t keep fucking it up. And stop assuming you know what everyone wants.

That’s not just about Vanessa; it’s about everyone here. Juliet, the rest of the guys, Kevin, Lucy, everyone. You need to stop concerning yourself with what you think people want and listen to what they’re saying.”

That’s the second person to tell me to listen.

I swallow. “I know, Juliet told me last week I need to listen better.”

“I bet you listen to her better than anyone,” he says.

I look at him. He may have been gone a year, but he doesn’t forget shit.

“I know you. You’re into her bossing you around,” he adds.

God damn it. We talked about that once in college when both of us were drunk, and he remembered that.

“I think it’s my turn to punch you,” I say.

He huffs out a laugh. “So I’m right?”

I stare at him, confirming without saying it.

“Can we move on, please?” I ask.

“No, I like seeing you squirm,” he laughs out.