“Yeah, how’s that working for you and Bobbi?” Griffin says.
“Unfortunately, Bobbi doesn’t want my kidneys,” Noah says.
“Doesn’t seem to want any of your other body parts, either.” Sebastian takes a swallow of his liquor. “Especially the ones around the pelvic region.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Don’t worry. I have a new plan.”
I knock the whiskey back. The fire burning down my throat and in my gut doesn’t do anything to soothe the ragged pain. I wish I had Noah’s boundlessly optimistic enthusiasm, but I’m too drained to muster much. “I couldn’t tell her. Every time I do something nice for her, she’s happy. But then she gets this look like she doesn’t think it can last. Or that it isn’t really real. I don’t think I could deal with it if she looked at me like that after I told her I loved her.”
Grant nurses his drink. “Maybe she needs some distance to process her feelings.”
“And let some asshole snatch her away?” When she and Owen broke up, I wasted no time swooping in because I was tired of giving her “space” and “time”—only to have some other guy ask her out. I thought I had a solid plan to show her how we could be together. I don’t want to regress in our relationship, so we’re back to what we were before, sending gift cards on birthdays and saying polite hellos when we run into each other. Nor can I bring myself to beg her to come back. It isn’t a matter of pride. I can’t tolerate the idea of her being with me out of obligation or pity. That would eventually make me loathe myself and resent her, too.
“Nah. She won’t let that happen.” Grant ponders, swirling the amber liquid in his glass. “I’m sure you’ve treated her like a princess—and I don’t mean just giving her stuff. I know how you are, Nicholas. You probably did things to make her feel special, and whether she told you overtly or not, she loved it. Right?”
I grunt morosely, since what I did wasn’t enough.
“I don’t know what her issues are, but she might need some time to sort things out and admit to herself how much you mean to her,” Grant says.
“Giving her some space is good advice. Let her experience what life is like without you in it anymore. I learned very fast I’d rather jump off a bridge when Luce and I went through that rough patch.” Sebastian shudders, then takes a large swallow of his drink.
“But you need to stay strong. Stay the course. She has to come to the conclusion she wants you, too. Otherwise, she’ll end up feeling trapped,” Griffin says.
I stare at my grumpy brother. When did he become the love expert?
“What?” he says. “I’m not stupid. No woman wants to feel manipulated or cornered. Besides, it isn’t like you can serenade her to convince her. Your singing voice is terrible.”
“I’m not that bad,” I mutter, although…compared to Griffin, I sound like a tone-deaf frog. For some reason, God gave him the voice of an angel, probably to make up for the fact that he also received the disposition of a honey badger with an achy tooth.
I reach for the bottle of whiskey, but Huxley pours me another glass and keeps the bottle to himself. Bastard.
“Thanks for coming over, but I need you to go home now. Say hello to your wives and babies.”
“Looks like you need a few other things, too,” Noah says, glancing around. “Like a fresh change of clothes. You bring anything?”
“No, but I’ll ask Cody,” I say. “He’ll have to cancel my meetings tomorrow anyway.”
“I’ll stop by your place,” Noah says. “You just take care of the other stuff.”
“Call if you need us. Twenty-four seven,” Sebastian says.
I give my brothers a halfhearted grin. “I’m fine.”
Nobody believes the lie. Not even me.
Chapter Forty-Three
Molly
I stare at the floor numbly, feeling like I’ve just come through a tornado and am sitting in the wreckage of my home.
Why was Nicholas so upset?I wanted to make things okay for him—erase the pain in his eyes like he’s always done for me, but I didn’t know how. I can’t even figure out what I did wrong.
He was obviously angry that I didn’t call, but… Why was that such a problem? I was being considerate. I didn’t want to bother him when he had other things to do. It isn’t like I was planning to hide what happened at the gym with Jack.
Where did Nicholas go, anyway? He didn’t ask me to move out. On the contrary, he told me to stay here, so maybe that means he’s coming back…?
I pick up my phone and start to text him.Hey, I know you’re upset, and I’m really sorry. Can we talk about this? I want to understand how I can make you feel better.
