Holly was nowhere to be seen. “Where is she?”
Leo, who was sitting with Bernie on the sofa, got up. “Don’t worry, Jake. She went to her room. She’s not going anywhere, she just needs to digest all of this. It’s a blow for her, too. For the past four years, she believed you didn’t want them and now, with you being here…I can’t be easy for her.”
Jake nodded, biting the inside of his cheek. “This weekend never should have happened. I’m sorry I made you come.”
He felt their eyes on him, but he couldn’t bring himself to look at them.
“What are you saying?” Bernie asked.
“I’m not going to ask Kate to marry me tomorrow night. It’s over.”
“What?” Leo sputtered, astounded.
Jake finally looked Leo in the eye so his friend could see he was serious.
“Finally!” Bernie yelled.
Leo glared at his wife. “Bernie.”
Jake shook his head.
“What? She’s a bitch. Sorry, Jake, but it’s the truth. I tried to show you that so many times.”
“That is not the reason, Bern. Listen, I need to speak to Holly. I need to fix this. I can’t live without her.” His voice was thick with emotion.
“I’m sorry, bud.” It was all Leo could say.
“Promise me you won’t let her leave.”
“I promise. Frank has her number.”
Jake looked unsure, a myriad of expressions flitting across his face.
“No, bud. Please, I’m begging you. Just stay here. Today is not the day to talk to her, or your mother. Just crash on the couch. I’m sure there are blankets around here somewhere.”
“Okay,” he sniffed. “Do either of you have her number.”
“No,” Leo shook his head.
“No,” Bernie finally said. “She’s not leaving this time. Frank knows her Jake,” Bernie reassured him. “I’m sorry about tonight. I should never have said those things, and I shouldn’t have told Leo to keep this to himself, either. I should’ve known he wouldn’t be able to keep a secret.”
“Bern,” Leo said, looking shocked.
“It’s the truth. It’s one of your flaws, babe.”
“Well, I love his flaws,” Jake said. “I’m glad Leo is who he is, who you guys are—good friends. Thank you. If not for you, Leo, I would never have known she was here.”
Bernie got up off the sofa and went to give Jake a hug. “I should never have doubted you. Now I feel like shit. I doubted two of my best friends. It will never happen again.”
“Promise?”
“Yeah, I promise. It’s a mess, though.”
“A big fucking mess.” Jake sniffed.
His phone rang again. He pulled it out of his pocket and threw it onto the coffee table.
“Do you want me to answer it for you?” Bernie asked.
“Maybe you should just let them know where you are. They won’t stop calling, otherwise,” Leo said.
“No.” He picked up his phone and turned it off. “They have all the right to worry, at least until I find out who all played a part in this. I doubt she was in it alone.”
“Dude, your father was just as broken up.”
“I’ll find out tomorrow. Maybe he’s just a great actor. I mean, if my mother pulled it off, who’s to say he couldn’t?”
* * *
HOLLY
The moment she stepped into their cabin, her mother closed the door behind her.
Jane rushed to wrap her arms around Holly as she was crying, holding her tight.
“What happened?” Jane asked softly.
“We spoke.”
“Who?”
“Me and Jake, Mom. Leo phoned him and told him he never wanted to see him again. As a result of that, Jake showed up, wanting to know what was going on. He didn’t act like someone who was lying. It was all her.” Holly sobbed. “My what if exists.” Her sobs were muffled on her mother’s shoulder.
“But you told me you spoke to him that day.”
“According to Jake, it seems like his mother must have recorded him.”
“Does he know everything?”
“Only about Romalia. I’m not ready to tell him about Jamie. I need to think on it some more.”
“Sweetheart…”
“I know, Mom.” She went and sit down on the couch.
Her mother followed, the silence lingering for a few short moments.
“It all feels so unreal.”
“What did he say happened?”
Holly relayed everything she had learned, adding that she should never have run away. If she’d stayed, chances were that Romalia would still be alive. She should have stayed and confronted Jake in person.
She wept into her hands, her body shaking uncontrollably.
“Oh, this is such a big mess. You need to tell him about Jamie, Holly.”
“I don’t know how. Tonight, I was just as cruel as Mara. I watched him break down over Romy, yet I couldn’t bring myself to tell him he had a living daughter.”
“You are nothing like that woman!” Jane got up and went to the window. Her eyes took in the gorgeous pool. “It’s fairly quiet out there. Do you think he’ll do something awful to her?”
“Mom! Don’t even think it. He already voiced his rage earlier by saying he was going to rip her heart out, which at the time, I thought he was talking about me. He’s really angry with her.”
“I would be, too.”
“Shit.” Holly grabbed the sides of her head.
Jane turned to face her “What is it?”
“I don’t have Leo’s number.”
“Maybe Bernie’s hasn’t changed.”
“I don’t think I remember it anymore,” Holly said.
“Should I wake Frank?”
“And let him wake up Gus and Mara? No, Mom.”
“Right,” Jane said.
Holly tried her hardest to remember Bernie’s number. She’d known it off by heart once upon a time. But now, she failed to recall it and ended up dialing random people.
“Sorry,” she kept apologizing to people over and over.
“We are stupid, I swear.” Jane walked to where the room’s phone sat on a side table. “What’s their room number?”
“I didn’t check.”
Jane dialed the concierge desk and asked for their room number. “One second,” she said, looking at Holly, eyebrows raised in question.
“Stutton.”
“Stutton,” her mother repeated. “Thank you.” A second later, she dialed the number she was given and spoke into the phone.
“Bernie? Hold on.”
Jane handed the phone to Holly.
“You okay?”
“Yeah, I can’t remember your number, sorry.”
“It’s okay. I don’t have yours, either.”
“Is Jake still there?” Holly asked.
“Yeah.”
“Don’t let him leave, not tonight, okay? He might really harm his mother.”
“Yeah, I know. He’s passed out on the couch. Believe me, it took a lot out of Leo to keep him here.”
“What’s going to happen, Bern?”
Bernie chuckled. “He wasn’t planning on going after his mother, at least not yet. He wanted to find you. He kind of panicked when he came out of the bathroom to find you were gone. We told him to give you time. You need to tell him about Jamie.”
“Leo didn’t?”
“No, I’d kill him, and he knows it. But tomorrow is going to be hard. So just keep her away. I’ll help.”
“Okay. Thank you, Bernie.”
“Your number, please.”
Holly laughed tiredly and recited her number.
“Sleep tight.”
“I’ll try.” Holly sniffed. “You, too.” She put the phone down and found her mother’s gaze on her.
Her bottom lip trembled.
“Oh, baby, I’m so sorry.”
Did she really mean that much to Jake? Why hadn’t she known that? She s
hould’ve known that.
And now it was too late.
Six
HOLLY
At two in the morning, Holly was still wide awake. No matter how hard she tried, she just could not fall asleep.
The moonlight shining in through the crack in the curtains illuminated Jamie, who was snoring softy, her arms stretched over her head.
Holly got up, pulled on a pair of leggings and a light sweater over her tank top, and slipped her feet into her slides.
Fresh air, that’s what she needed.
Grabbing a set of keys, she let herself out and made her way to the pool, all the while thoughts churned in her head.
She had to think of a way to tell Jake about his surviving daughter. And she had to somehow come up with a way to apologize for her cruelty—something she felt horrible about.
Was he really telling her the truth? She was always berating herself. Every time she asked herself that question, she saw him breaking down. He couldn’t be that good of a faker. Surely? His grief and his emotions had been so raw. She’d never wanted him to go through that.
Kicking her shoes off, she rolled up her leggings until they were just below her knees, then she sat down and dropped her legs into the water, sweeping them back and forth.
She’d loved that man so much, and now, it felt as if she loved him even more. As hard as it was for it all to sink in, everything made sense in a fucked up way.
His so-called ‘acting’ that had made Leo and Bernie believe he was lying, hadn’t been an act at all.
She couldn’t believe Mara was behind this whole mess…the lies. That someone could think to do such awful things to someone else, going so far as to record a conversation, only to tweak it to say what they wanted it to say in order to get rid of someone they didn’t like. And the worst part was, Mara had done it to her own son.
Bernie had said that even though Mara had been believable, had cried even, that she’d told Jake his mother’s tears were crocodile tears. That no matter what, Holly would never, not in a million years, get an abortion, not even if her own life was at stake.
Bernie knew her so well.
She should have phoned Bernie.
This whole situation was a mess, and one she didn’t know how to sort out.
There was no doubt in her mind that Jake would become a part of their lives now. But at what cost?
What was going to happen, though, was that she was going to break her little angel’s heart. Jake wouldn’t be sharing a home with them.
“Why aren’t you sleeping?” Jake said from right behind her, making her yelp with fright as she whipped her head around. He sat down next to her, dunking his feet into the water while balancing the drink in his hand.
Without a thought, she grabbed the drink out of his hand and took a huge gulp.
She felt his eyes on her, but she didn’t look at him. As the liquid traveled down her throat, she shivered, handing it back to him.
He chuckled.
“I don’t know how you can drink that,” she said, her voice raspy from the strong alcohol.
“It takes pain away,” he mumbled, putting the glass to his lips.
Fuck, she needed to tell him. She just didn’t know how.
“What happened, Holly?”
“I don’t have the strength to talk about that. Not tonight.”
“I need to know. When was she born? When did she die? How did she die?”
She gave a slight shake of her head. “I’m sorry. It’s just too hard to relive it tonight. Too much to take in.”
He nodded and took another sip of his drink.
“Why aren’t you sleeping?” she asked.
“I can’t. Too many images going through my mind.” There was a slight pause before he added, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have given up.”
“It’s not your fault.”
“Yeah, it is.” He sniffed. “But I can’t tell you about that, either, not tonight.”
Holly said nothing. She just wished she had her own drink.
“Why didn’t you get in touch with me when she died, Holly? Why didn’t you crap on me, call me names…anything?”
“What good would it have done?”
“I can’t believe you’re asking that. All this would’ve come out sooner. Not four fucking years later.”
“I’m sorry. I wanted to call you. Believe me, I was ready to tear your head off, but my parents advised against it.”
“You made peace with your mom, too?”
“Oh, yeah. Haven’t you heard? She and Frank are quite the item.”
That brought a tinge of a smile to his lips.
Holly pursed her lips. “How do you know him?”
“He’s my godfather.”
“No way!” she gasped.
Jake laughed, but it wasn’t a proper laugh. “Yeah, small world.”
“Well, now it makes sense why he continuously asked me who her father was.”
“What?”
“He was her doctor, Jake.”
“Frank knew her?”
“He tried everything he could think of. In the end, nothing worked.”
“So, he doesn’t know.”
“What can I say, I was a bitch.” She looked at her feet in the water.
“What did you tell him about her father?”
“That he wasn’t applicable.”
A pained look flitted across his face, and in what Holly thought was an attempt to hide it, he brought his glass to his lips again.
“I should’ve just told him.”
“Yeah, you should have, and in turn, he would’ve told you I am not the type of person you believed me to be.”
Holly bit down on her lip. “Why would your mother do this?”
He shook his head. “She’s psycho. I probably stepped out of line to her way of thinking. Who the fuck cares? What I do care about is the fact that she did it at all—she’ll pay for it tomorrow.”
“You won’t really rip her heart out, right? I mean, hypothetically, you might, but not in reality.”
“I want to, because she killed a part of me, a big part.”
Silence weighed heavy in the air.
“I need the facts, Holly, if I’m going to speak to her tomorrow.”
“Leo didn’t tell you?”
“No, he just said I needed to speak to you. So, please, you have to tell me. I know it’s hard. Do you want something to drink? I’ll get you whatever you want, but I need you to talk to me…I need to know.”
His eyes were blue. She huffed under her breath. He had the same eyes as Jamie. They turned blue when she was sad, upset, frustrated. It had scared the living crap out of her the first time.
“Please,” he begged again.
“Okay, but no drinking. It’s easy to lose oneself in alcohol when you feel this way.”
“You are so much fucking stronger than me.”
“If you tell me you are an alcoholic, I will drown you in this pool.”
“Not there yet, but I do drink more than before.”
“Please don’t. It ruins lives.”
“What does it matter, anyway?” Jake asked.
“It does. A lot.” Her voice cracked “To me. Quit while you’re ahead.”
He stared at her, his eyes roaming over her face. And then, before she could do anything, his lips were on hers.
Her system went into shock. She had not expected that. It was too soon, but oh, to have Jake’s lips on hers again. She couldn’t help it. Jake made her weak. It had always been like that. Giving in, because she wanted to, she kissed him back. Their lips devoured one another’s, nipping, pulling, licking, their tongues dueling. But her mind kept telling her to stop; she needed to stop kissing him. She had to, but she didn’t want to.
He’d never been the guy she was led to believe. He’d wanted them. And by his actions that very moment, it was evident he still wanted her.
Suddenly, she found herself on his lap, not knowing how she got there. Her hormones were run
ning at an all-time high; she was ready to pull off his shirt and dispose of his shorts, but she managed to stop.
“Jake, stop. Please.”
“Sorry,” he whispered against her lips. “I can’t help myself with you.”
“Remember why you’re here,” she said, referring to his impending proposal.
“I don’t,” he said simply.
“Don’t make me spell it out, Jake.”
He gave her a sad smile. “You really think I’m still going to propose to someone I’m not in love with? I know you heard what I said, Holly. It’s the truth. I can’t marry her. I also know that a part of you will never forgive me, but I’ll wait. I’ll do whatever it takes for that day to come.”
“What?”
“I can’t marry Kate, let alone even think about it. Not when you are right here. I love you, woman…I never stopped. Don’t make me propose to her tomorrow night.”
The way he said it broke her heart. She couldn’t and would never say that to him, or even make him.
She lowered her lips to his, flicking her tongue out, probing his lips until he opened for her.
He was going to leave Kate, she had to believe it.
The kiss intensified, her blood pumped vigorously in her veins, and her ears were ringing.
She’d missed this feeling. Nobody had ever kissed her the way Jake did. Nobody would ever fill his shoes.
Maybe this was fate finally intervening, making them cross paths again.
They ended up on a recliner under the cover of darkness, stoking the heat inside each other even more.
“Jake,” she muttered through their feverish kissing. “Jake, please, we need to stop.”
He growled, none too pleased.
She chuckled softly. “Don’t be mad at me for putting the brakes on. It’s inappropriate. I’m not having sex with you out in the open, and definitely not while she still thinks you are hers, okay?”
“Fine. Do you want me to go wake her up now?”
“No. You can’t do it tonight. You need to calm down…think things through carefully.”
“Holly, I’ll never calm down, and there’s nothing to contemplate.”
“Well…well, you just have to. Ugh, I can’t do this anymore, Jake.”
Luck Page 6
