He gathers me in his arms, and I go readily, clinging to him.
“You’re hurting me now, Aurora, by not being happy. I have seen you smile more in the past three weeks since JD has been back than you have in five years. And as much as I want to be the cause of that, I have to accept that I’m not.Youhave to accept that I’m not, hood rat. I love you and loving someone means you want them to be happy even if it’s with someone else and not with you,” he adds, and my lips tremble with crushing sadness.
“I wish with everything in me that I could love you the way you need me to. I’m so sorry, Knox. You deserve so much better than I’ve given you.”
He wipes a few errant tears from my cheeks. “No regrets, Aurora. We’ll always be friends. I wouldn’t trade our friendship for the world. Fallon gave me and my mom a second chance at a home and a good life. You showed me that I’m capable of loving someone. Honestly? I always thought I’d turn out to be like my old man.”
I reach up on tiptoe to wrap my arms around his neck. “Knox, you willneverbe like him. Ever. You are good and kind, not to mention talented and smart. I’m the lucky one to have you in my life, not the other way around.” I press closer. “Why does this feel like goodbye?”
“In a way, it is.”
My tears flow freely now. Regret and guilt pour out of me like a waterfall. And just like he’s been doing the past five years, Knox is there to hold me up.
Chapter 55
Ialways thought the Montgomery mansion was like one of those funhouse mazes where you turn a corner and find yourself right back where you started.
Connor and I arrived a half hour ago. He’s been playing with Lillie, so I came inside to grab a beer. I saw Aurora round the corner of the living room and walk down the hallway, Knox hot on her heels. Knox didn’t look happy, and the protective part of me can’t stop myself from following. Aurora invited us to the party yesterday, saying Ben would be bringing Lillie. Connor has been bouncing off the walls all day, excited he gets to see his new friend again.
Speaking of yesterday, the unexpected phone call from Austin still has me scratching my head. He called my personal cell and invited both me and Connor out for a day on his boat. I was about to politely decline—because let’s face it, Austin and I have never been friends—when he added that Aurora would be there. My no changed to an immediate yes. Like last time, Connor followed Austin around like a puppy, soaking up everything he taught him. The highlight of Connor’s day was when Austin let him steer the boat for a while. The highlight of my day was being with Aurora.
We’ve spent weeks step-dancing around each other, pushing and pulling, running away and running toward. I’ll do our little dance of back-and-forth for as long as I have to in order to get to the endgame—the result being Aurora back in my life and back in my bed for good.
I walk down the hallway in search of where Aurora and Knox went. I go down a short hall to the right and have to backtrack. I’m finally able to pick up voices coming from somewhere on the left. If memory serves me correctly, it should be the library. I slow down when I hear Knox ask Aurora if she loves him. I know I shouldn’t be standing out here eavesdropping like a fucking thirteen-year-old, but that doesn’t stop me. I wait on bated breath to hear her answer, but Knox cuts her off.
Taking another step forward, I inch closer to the open door.
“Is it because of JD, or is it because of what happened to you?” Knox says.
What happened to Aurora? Then I hear what she says next.
“Why would you think it had anything to do with what Blaise, Will, and Luke did to me? I sat through two years of therapy to help me deal with it. I’m at a good place now.”
Blaise, Will, and Luke? Therapy?What the fuck?
I recall something Aurora said when she came to my condo that second night. I remember thinking something was off by the way she stopped mid-sentence and appeared to tense up.
“I haven’t touched alcohol since the night Blaise tried to ra—”
Tried to what? It doesn’t take a genius to figure out the last part of the word she refused to say out loud.
Rage like I’ve never felt has me storming outside in search of the man I’m going to pound into the ground. Dustin spots me, smile on his face, as soon as I step out onto the back patio, but all I see is red.
“Hey, JD. I was wondering where you were. I saw Connor—”
“Where’s Austin,” I growl, fists clenched tight. I’m probably breathing smoke and fire at this point.
Dustin backs up. “Uh, he’s over there.” He points.
Charging forward, I push Austin’s shoulder.
“JD, what the hell, man?”
“Follow me.Now,” I command, not waiting to see if he does. If he doesn’t, I know where to find him. I’m not above showing up at his house.
I fling open the door that leads from the back patio to the kitchen. Austin walks in right behind me, as do Dustin and Prez.
Prez is still pissed at me, so it doesn’t surprise me when he leans against the doorframe, arms crossed, watching. I know if things go south with Austin, Prez will be the first one to jump in and help me. He may be angry with me, but he’ll always have my back.
