Garret clears his throat. “Darling, I don’t think that’s a—”
She shoots him a cool look. “It’s an excellent idea.”
“No,” Brooke growls, “it’s not.”
This woman is off her damn rocker if she thinks I’ll walk away and leave her daughter alone with them. Garret seems like a decent enough guy, but it doesn’t escape me that until now, he’s sat by silently and allowed Elaine to dictate the conversation.
Before the discussion has a chance to escalate, Brooke swings toward me. “I’m ready to leave.”
We haven’t even sat down and this dinner has already imploded. With my arm wrapped protectively around her, we walk past Andrew. Our gazes lock as he knocks his shoulder into mine.
“This isn’t over,” he growls so only I can hear.
No, it’s not.
34
BROOKE
I’m so fucking angry. I can’t believe my mother had the audacity to invite my ex without telling me.
What am I saying?
Of course I can. She’s been hounding me since the breakup to give Andrew another chance. Honestly, I should have expected her to try shoving us together at some point.
“Hey.” Crosby squeezes my fingers as he shoots a concerned look in my direction. “Are you okay?”
My other hand drifts to my lips as I shake my head. “I don’t think so.”
“That was…” His voice trails off before he clears his throat. “Something.”
Laughter bubbles up from deep within my chest. “Yes, it was.”
“If you’re looking for any silver linings, it’s doubtful your mother will try that again.”
Hopefully.
“There is that.” A heavy silence falls over us before I add softly, “But now you have to work everything out with Andrew. I’m sure that wasn’t the way you wanted him to find out.”
A muscle in his cheek twitches as his jaw tightens. “No, it wasn’t, but I’ll deal with it.”
When he doesn’t say anything more, I continue. “I know you’ve been friends for a long time. It was never my intention to get between you two.” Even though it’s painful, I force out the rest. “If this has become too complicated, we—”
“Don’t you dare say it.” His gaze narrows, flicking to mine and holding it for a quick second before returning to the dark road stretched out beyond the windshield.
I swallow down the lump of sawdust that has settled in the middle of my throat. It takes effort to keep my voice light. “I just want you to know I wouldn’t have hard feelings.”
“Really? Because I’d be fucking furious if you ended this over Andrew.”
The deep scrape of his voice and bite of his words leaves me faltering. “I don’t want to be the one who destroys your friendship.”
Silently, he swings into my building parking lot before pulling into a space and cutting the engine. Only then does he swivel around, trapping me in place with his furious gaze.
“Don’t you get it?” His dark eyes scrutinize me, pushing past the surface to the emotion simmering below. “Andrew had his chance and blew it. That’s a truth he needs to reconcile and live with. But I’ll be damned if it ruins what we’ve found.”
His words leave me reeling. I don’t understand how Crosby can choose me over someone he’s so tight with.
My tongue darts out to moisten my lips. “But you two have been friends for so long. You’re teammates,” I add stupidly.
“You’re right, we are. And we’ve played ball together for years. I’m also sure I don’t have to tell you that Andrew can be a selfish prick. As much as I love the guy, I’m unwilling to walk away from something I’ve wanted for so long. If he can’t understand that, then fuck him. Not once did I involve myself in your relationship. In fact, I did everything I could to keep my distance. Even after you broke up, I had to fight myself to stay away.” He looms closer until the world shrinks around us and he’s all I can see. “But you’re mine now, and I refuse to let you go. Do you understand that?”
Everything he’s just declared swims viciously around in my brain. My teeth scrape against my lower lip as I nod. “I don’t want you to resent me if Andrew can’t accept that we’re together.”
And my guess is that he won’t. My ex is unable to see past his own wants and needs. I wish it hadn’t taken me so long to see the character flaw. Especially when it was staring me right in the face the entire time.
“Trust me, that won’t happen.”
“How can you be so sure?” I persist, unable to believe that I could mean that much to him.
He tugs me closer until his mouth can settle over mine. The slide of his lip ring makes my knees weaken. Somewhere in the far recesses of my brain, I realize it’s the last thing I should be focused on.
“Because I’ve waited too damn long for this to happen,” he murmurs. “And maybe you’re forgetting that I’m the one who came after you. Now let’s go inside.”