Page 45 of I Never Stopped Loving You

“She doesn’t remember me,” I finally say.

“How? I thought you said you two were close when you were younger?”

“I don’t know. Every time I ask about her childhood, she finds some way to shift the conversation.”

“Why don’t you just come out and ask her? Maybe she does remember you, but she thinks you don’t remember her. Have you ever thought about that?”

I pause for a moment. The glass of water rests for a moment against my lips before I finish taking a sip. The cold feels good.

“No…”

“Jesus Christ, dude. You seriously suck at this shit.”

“Suck at what, motherfucker?” I snap, slamming my glass down.

“People.”

“I do not. I’m one of the best goddamn lawyers at our firm. I graduated top of my class. I’m…”

“A loner who’s been obsessed with a woman you only knew when you were kids. You date, but it never goes longer than a month. You don’t bring them around. You don’t get serious.”

“Because they were never her!” I snap.

My breath is coming out in rapid pants, and my heart is racing. Yes, it’s no secret that every single one of the women I have dated over the years look similar. I have never stopped loving her. Never stopped searching for her because no matter how many women I dated, they would never be her. No one could ever replace that woman in my heart.

“Fuck, dude. I get it, but…”

“I’m not a loner. I have you,” I cut him off, smirking as I toss the leftover burgers into the fridge.

“Oh yeah. Cause I’m such great company. Jeremy, the fucked-up cousin that his mother never wanted, his father ignores, and the one who lives in this delusion that every woman I meet will be the one I marry.”

“At least you can admit you’re fucking delusional.”

“I’m delusional. You’re obsessive. We’re a match made in Hell, brother. Speaking of Hell…When you left earlier, your dad ambushed me!”

“What did he say?”

“That’s the other reason I wanted to see you in person. I think he’s looking into your girl more.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know, man. I was waiting for Veronica when he stomped up to me and dragged me into another room to demand who the hell she was.”

“I told him not to lay a finger on her or I’d kill him…I also may have told him if he even looks at her, I’d rip his eyes from his skull.”

“Fucking hell, Noah. Could you be any more obvious?”

“Willow is mine. I won’t let him lay a finger on her.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Your true love, I know. I’ve heard you talk about her for the last fifteen fucking years. It’s funny, though, you’ve never said her name until now. She was always just your little rabbit.”

“Because I didn’t want you to be…well…you.” I laugh when he gasps while I grab down two glasses and a bottle of bourbon.

“ME? What the fuck do you mean?”

“You’d want to join in on the search. You’d probably set up a 1-800 hotline for any woman named Willow to call and then interrogate each one like they’re on trial for murder just to find the right one.”

“Whoa! Okay, you’re not wrong. But I’d only do those things out of love.”