Making Up (Shacking Up 4)

“Can I take a picture of that?”

“I need to ask you something before you do.”

“Sure. Anything.” All I want is to get to Cosy.

“What happens if she tells you she still doesn’t want you back?”

I exhale a long breath and rub my chest. “Then I’ll disappear from her life. I won’t keep trying if there’s nothing to try for, but I think there is, and I’m going to do my best to convince her we’re worth another shot.”

“Good answer.”

“Great. Can I see that now?”

“One more question.”

“Lay it on me.” It’s very clear Cosy and Nev are related.

“This baby mama drama, ex-fiancée BS is where it ends, right? Your family doesn’t have mob ties? You haven’t been convicted of a heinous crime?”

“No mob ties. Once I was arrested for protesting the use of animal-tested products in my university with my cousin, but other than that, my record is clean and the baby mama drama is over. For me, anyway.”

“I still don’t know. She’ll be super pissed at me for this. What if you fuck it up even more? I’m the one who will be over here, picking up the pieces.”

I pull my wallet out of my back pocket and riffle through my cash. I have a couple grand.

“Are you trying to bribe me?” Nev sounds slightly offended, but she’s also eyeing the money.

“If it will work, yes.”

“How much you got?”

“About two grand.”

She holds out her hand.

“Trade at the same time?” I arch a brow.

“Deal.”

I pass her the money, and she passes me the itinerary. I snap a few pictures while she counts the bills. “Thank you.”

“No problem. I would’ve given it to you without the bribe, but extra cash is always great to have, so thanks.” She folds the bills and slides them down the front of her shirt. “It’s as much for me as it is my sister. She was miserable before she left, and she’s been miserable the entire time she’s been away, based on her Spotify playlists.”

“I hope I can fix that soon.” I make my way back down the hall, resisting the urge to peek into Cosy’s room or bathroom just so I can smell her. That’s serial-killer creepy, and I think Nev might not appreciate it.

Nev follows me to the door. “You wouldn’t happen to have any single brothers, or even close relatives?”

“One of my brothers is married and the other one is engaged.”

“That’s too bad. Oh, by the way, we never slept together. I already told Cosy, but that was a while ago and I don’t know if she had a chance to tell you or not. You passed out before anything could happen.”

“I’m not sure if I should apologize for that or not.”

“You don’t need to apologize. I knew you were dead drunk when I followed you to your car. Anyway, good luck winning my sister back.”

“Thanks, Nev.” I’d like to say that news makes me feel better, but I’m not sure it changes anything now.

Despite having just landed in Vegas, I book a flight to Nassau, then head back to the hotel to brief my team and let them know I have an emergency situation I need to take care of.

The conversation with my dad is not quite so smooth.

“If you need time off, Griffin, then take it. Considering what you’ve been through, it’s completely understandable.”

“I don’t need time off, Dad. I just need to take care of something. It’ll take a couple of days max, and then I’ll be back to Vegas and focused on the project.”

“I understand that you’re a private person, Griffin, so I don’t pry into your life and I let you tell me what you want in your own time, but the fact that you want to take an impromptu trip to the Bahamas for two days and are reticent to go into specifics is concerning.”

I’d mentioned in passing that I was seeing someone in Vegas, but I hadn’t gone into detail. I’d told my mother it was causal, that we’d gone on a few dates and she was fun. I love my mother, she’s an incredible woman, but after Imogen broke off the engagement, she’s been dropping datable women options like candy. So telling her I was involved with someone seemed smart, but if I’d made it out to be anything other than causal, there was a good chance she’d be planning a family dinner around meeting her. So I kept it vague, and the fact that I was dating at all seemed to placate her.

“I’m not sure if you’re aware, but I was seeing someone out here in Vegas.”

“Your mother may have mentioned that.”

“Yeah, well, the whole thing with Imogen blew it all apart.” I run a hand through my hair, thinking about how different things might be right now if she hadn’t come barreling back into my life and flipped it upside down. Cosy could be in New York; maybe she would’ve stayed with me.