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Chapter 1
Rivers
I stand before the house that I grew up in, staring up at it and hoping that what I’m about to do isn’t going to cause any problems.
Shit. Who am I kidding? Of course it’s going to cause problems. Big fucking problems.
It’s Noah and Henley’s wedding day, and me showing up out of the blue after four years of radio silence is bound to cause a stir. I just hope it’s going to be the good kind. Noah is going to have something to say, Henley will be more shocked than anything, and Tully…fuck. I’m in for a world of hurt.
Tully is a fucking mystery. I don’t know how she’s going to react. It’s been four long years since I saw her, and not one minute of that time has passed without me thinking about her. Thinking about what she’s doing with her life, if she ended up going to college and opening that flower store that she always wanted, or if she met someone and moved on.
Fuck, why am I so sweaty?
I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s with someone else. She’s the kind of girl who would have guys lining up for her attention, and in high school, I loved being the one who had hers. She was always mine, and not knowing if she still is has weighed on me every single day.
I’d be a fool to assume she sat back and waited for me, and she’d be a fool if she actually did. I was the idiot who told her to move on, I was the one who told her that I wouldn’t be coming back, and I was the one who told her goodbye.
I never came home, and that decision haunts me every moment of every fucking day.
That wasn’t part of the deal, and I know that must have cut her, but Haven Falls…this place is full of darkness, a darkness that I’ve worked my ass off over the past four years to forget about.
But how could I not come home for this? It’s Noah and Henley’s wedding day, for fuck’s sake.
I knew this day would come right from the very start. My best friend fell for her hard and welcomed her into our lives with open arms, but not me. I made her work for it and prove to me that she deserved my loyalty. Naturally, it didn’t take long. Henley Bronx is a force to be reckoned with. She was a fucking machine, and I don’t doubt that she still is.
But what was better was finding out that the little she-devil is my sister. And not just my half-sister like we had thought or my pack sister, but my full on, blood-sharing, irritating little sister. Well…OK, maybe she’s not irritating, but she’s had some shining moments.
I walk toward the house. I can’t put this off any longer.
Man the fuck up, Rivers. You’ve got this.
I don’t know what I was thinking coming here, but I’ve got nowhere else to go. I don’t know what to expect or who’s inside the house. It could be Noah and his boys or Henley with the girls. All I know is that there’s a shiny black limousine waiting out front telling me that no matter what, there’s going to be someone on the other side of that door that’s been dreaming about kicking my ass.
As desperately as I need it to be the girls in there, I’m kind of hoping it’s Noah. I need to handle shit with him before anything else, but the black limo has a sinking feeling settling in my gut. I should be running for the fucking hills. I’m not ready to face her, not yet at least.
What the fuck am I supposed to say? “Hey, Babe. Sorry for leaving you high and dry for the past four years, but I’m here now. Want to be my date?”
There are no words that I could say to her that would make any of this OK. She’s going to need time, and unfortunately for her, I’m not a very patient man.
Shit. Tully’s going to tear me a new asshole, and she’s going to enjoy doing it. Maybe I’m lucky and she’s already at the wedding. Yeah…that’s wishful thinking.
With Noah, he’d knock me out, wait until I regain consciousness, and then repeat it over and over again until he gets it all out of his system, but Tully…she’s a mystery. You never know what you’re going to get. All I know is that the outcome of this one is not going to be good. I deserve the fucking worst from her, and that’s if I’m lucky. There’s a good chance she won’t even give me the time of day.
Why the fuck am I being such a pussy? Knock on the door already. It’s not that fucking hard.
I let out a tortured sigh and drop my bag beside me. I got off the plane and came straight here. If I had gone back to my place, that would have just brought up a shitload of memories that I’m not ready to begin dealing with, and besides, it’s not as though I had the time. I’m cutting it pretty fucking close. I’m surprised the limo is even still here. They must be late themselves.
