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CHAPTER TWELVE
JULIAN
I sat in the living room, looking at the fireplace, a drink in my hand, and my heart slamming against my chest. They said it was a simple procedure. They would go into her brain using a minimally invasive retromastoid craniotomy, and she would only be down for a couple of days. I knew they were great at what they did, but complications were always a possibility with any surgery.
My phone rang against the table in front of me. I was not going to pick it up, but I was too worried and needed the distraction.
“What happened?!” Marissa’s worried voice came through the phone. “I heard something happened to your bodyguard. A shootout? I went by your house, and it was a mess, like some tossed it. I couldn’t even find Juanita who is always there.”
“I’m fine Marissa. How’s the company?”
“What’s going on? Where are you? I’ll leave right now.”
“I’m at my cabin. I’m fine, really.”
“Dylan called,” she sighed. “I said have a conversation with him, I didn’t say knock his teeth out. Wait, did he send his goons after you? Do you want me to deal with him?”
“No Marissa. It’s more complicated than that.”
“Jesus Christ, just tell me what’s going on Julian.”
“Not right now,” I stood and started pacing. “You mentioned something about The Wonder Project. You couldn’t talk about it. You have to tell me.”
Silence hung thick and I could hear her breathing.
Finally, “I can’t talk about it over the phone. Can we meet? I’ll come to you.”
“That’s a bad idea right now. I’ll come to your house.”
“Fine. Have you told her about me, about us, yet?”
“Don’t be petty right now Marissa. I can’t.”
“Well, this little baby isn’t going anywhere and it’ll get pretty obvious soon.”
“This entire situation has given me great clarity on my life. I can’t believe I got sucked into your drama. I must have been pretty low.”
“I’m serious Julian. You’ll see soon enough.”
I went to check on Gia. I lightly tapped on the door and a woman in scrubs squeezed through, shutting the door behind her.
“She’s almost finished.”
“Thanks. I have some business to take care of. When do you think she’ll be fully awake?”
“She’ll probably be out of it for the next day or so. Go do what you need. She’s in good hands.”
I thanked her and left.
I started the car that I kept in the shed. It was not anything fancy as I did not want to bring any attention to myself when I went into town. It might look like a pile of rust, but it sure was reliable.
The entire drive to see Marissa I kept thinking about what Rylie and I were before it all went bad. I wondered if we would ever be able to get back to that place.
I got to Marissa’s house and rang the doorbell. Taking a deep breath, I prepared myself for what kind of conversation this was going to be. I was not expecting the person who opened the door.
The woman who opened the door reeked of desperation, not the confident woman I had known. Her cleavage was the first thing that greeted me all plumped up in a sexy piece of lingerie. Her makeup was perfect for being so late at night and her hair perfectly fell at her shoulders.
“Hello Julian,” she purred. “Please, come in.”
