Going in Deep (Billionaire Bad Boys 4)

She took Lauren into the back, and they strode down the walk with the cages on either side. She stopped at each crate, paying attention to the individual dogs. Most were mixed breeds, some fluffy, others flat-haired, all sweet and looking for homes.

“As soon as we’re in our new house, I’ll bring Brian back,” Lauren promised.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.” Lauren paused, leaning against the metal grating.

“You’ve known Julian for a while now. Nick said he’s changed a lot in the last yea

r, and I see it, too. But do you think it can last? That I can trust the man I see now?” Kendall bit the inside of her cheek.

On the one hand, it seemed like a betrayal to talk about Julian to his friend’s wife. On the other hand, who knew him better than his sponsor’s family? And ever since she’d considered confiding the truth to her sister about her relationship with Julian, one thing nagged at her. Trusting her own instincts. They’d betrayed her in the past. And it wasn’t just her instincts involved now, it was her heart. Much more than before.

Lauren met her gaze. “You care about him a lot.”

There was no point in denying it. “I do. And honestly he hurt me before. I’m afraid I’m listening to my heart too much.” But her head was telling her she could believe in him, too.

“Here’s what I know, from someone who’s dealt with an addict their whole lives. The man you’re seeing now, the sober, in control man who has learned his lessons, he’s real.”

“But he was sober when he hurt me last.”

Lauren inclined her head. “I know. I think everyone’s rock bottom is different. For some it happens when their family walks out and they realize they have to get sober because they’ve lost everything. For others it happens because they end up hurting someone else. A drunk driver can kill or injure someone in an accident.”

Kendall winced at the realities and nodded her understanding.

Lauren went on. “In Julian’s case, he held on to bad behaviors that probably preexisted the addiction. It took hurting and losing you for him to see who he’d become. He didn’t like that man and he decided to change.”

“Just because of me?” she asked.

“You were the catalyst that forced him to see himself.” She shrugged. “Is it that simple? I guess in his case it was.”

That, along with his life events that had shaped the man he was today, Kendall thought.

“Thank you, Lauren. I’m so glad you came by.”

Lauren pulled her into a hug. “Me, too. Maybe we can get lunch one day?”

For other people, the offer might not mean much, but for Kendall, it meant she had something precious. It meant she had a friend.

Chapter Nine

Over the next two weeks, Julian fell into a routine he could get used to. He woke early, worked from home as usual, then often met up with Kendall, spending his evenings at her apartment with the dogs until nearly midnight, at which point he headed home. He didn’t want to leave Alex alone overnight.

In the time she had been staying with him, she’d been a model houseguest. She went to school in the morning and worked in the afternoons. Occasionally she made dinner for them both or accompanied him to Kendall’s to eat. Or Kendall came up to his place and the three of them hung out for a while.

Julian admired how quickly and easily Kendall had taken to Alex, and vice versa. Kendall’s new easygoing personality, her calm, caring demeanor had brought Alex out of her shell. It was obvious she hadn’t had a mother figure in her life, and she looked up to Kendall.

On the nights he and Kendall were alone, they made the most of their time. There was plenty of talking and getting to know one another better, but there was also sex. Which was coming to feel like a lot more than just satisfying an itch with a woman he desired. It wasn’t something he dwelled on, not when things were going so perfectly. He just wanted to indulge and enjoy.

Tonight he wasn’t seeing Kendall, so he turned into bed early. He couldn’t sleep, and it wasn’t because Steve’s body was aligned with his, pushing him to the edge of the bed.

Needing a distraction, he reached for his phone and called the one person who always made him smile.

His sister. “Hey squirt!” Julian said, pushing himself up in bed, resigned to a sleepless night.

“Hey, pain in my ass.” Alyssa laughed.

“Is that any way to talk to your older brother?”