“Better. Nothing that rest and a little peace and quiet won’t cure. Which is why I’d appreciate it if you’d go bother someone else.”
“She hasn’t returned any of Jackson’s calls.”
“Maybe she doesn’t want to talk to him.”
Nick ran his hands over his hair. “Is she even getting his calls?”
Raina thought about lying, but knowing him he’d already figured out what she’d done. Part of the reason they loved to hate each other so much was because they were alike in a lot of ways.
“Not unless he knows her new number. I had it changed before she even left the hospital.”
Nick shook his head. “I figured it was something like that.”
“I’m just trying to protect my sister. She’s been hurt enough.”
“You’re right. She’s been hurt and it’s mainly my fault. My fault. Not Jackson’s. I screwed this up because of what happened between us. But unlike us, Jackson and Ridley are good for each other. Let’s fix this.”
Raina squeezed her eyes shut against a sudden rush of emotion. She whipped around, horrified when tears welled in her eyes.
“All my life, I’ve worked so hard to make sure that we’re safe and we’re never vulnerable again. I thought if I had enough money, everything would be perfect. But everything I have wasn’t enough to keep the only person who loves me safe.”
The hand that settled on her shoulder was as unexpected as it was comforting.
“She’s not the only person who loves you.”
She shivered and tried to pull the emotion back in, to lock it up before she became an inconsolable, sobbing mess. It actually hurt to tamp it back down, a literal crushing pain in her chest, to ignore his offer of comfort. But if she ever made the mistake of allowing anyone in, she feared she’d simply break apart—all her insecurities and fears spreading her into a million tiny fragments.
“You’re right,” she admitted, “Jackson and Ridley do belong together. So, just tell him to come over and I’ll let him in. Someone deserves a happy ending.” She wiped her cheeks and faced him.
Nick went to the door and opened it. A second later, Jackson appeared.
He waved from the doorway, a sheepish smile on his face. “I was hoping you’d say yes.”
Raina shook her head, unable to resist smiling back. “Let me just go see if she’s awake.”
There was a loud crash right above them. Raina looked up, dread racing through her.
“What was that? Ridley!”
* * *
Ridley fell against the dresser and dropped her head down to the wood. Going to get her man was not supposed to be this hard.
The door flew open and she was scooped into a pair of strong arms. Her gaze met Jackson’s. Everything that had happened over the past week fell away and suddenly all the pain, fear, and heartache didn’t exist. There was just the pure, incandescent joy of being in the arms of the man she loved.
“This reminds me of how we met,” he said.
Ridley sucked in a breath, suddenly overcome with some emotion she couldn’t define. It seemed crazy that she could be so happy to see him after only a week apart. How could someone she hadn’t even known existed last month suddenly hold the difference between happiness and misery?
“Yeah, except this time we don’t have an audience.”
“Well, not exactly.” He looked over his shoulder and turned slightly. Raina and Nick came into view. Nick waved.
She smiled through her tears. “Oh, you’re right. This is just like old times.”
He carried her to the bed and put her down gently on top of the covers. “Are you hurt?”
She shook her head. “No, but that picture frame can’t say the same. Sorry, Ray.”
Raina knelt and picked up the pieces of the frame that had broken when it fell. “I never liked this one anyway. I’ll just go throw this away and leave you two to talk.”
Ridley watched as Raina left the room and Nick followed, pulling the door shut behind him. For a long moment, they sat in silence just gazing at each other.
“What? You’re staring,” she whispered.
“I am. You’re beautiful.”
She smiled at the familiar words.
“I just want to look at you for a minute,” he continued. “I thought I was never going to see you again.”
She understood. It felt as if she could look at him for hours, just soaking up his scent and memorizing the lines of his face.
“I came to apologize. When you didn’t answer any of my calls I figured you meant what you said when you left. That after you proved you were innocent, you never wanted to see me again.” His bowed his head for a moment.
“Wait? You called me?” Ridley pointed to her phone on the nightstand. “I never got any calls.”
Jackson picked up her phone and handed it to her. She tapped the screen a few times and then showed him the missed-calls log. His number wasn’t there.
“I probably called a hundred times. Wait, call me.”