The Right Kind Of Wrong Series: Books 1-3

by L. B. Reyes

  She’s never asked that before.

  “I’m fine, yeah,” I lied. “You?”

  She laughed softly. “It’s boring, really. Nothing to do here.”

  We both paused. I didn’t trust myself to say anything else. Hannah, on the other hand, laughed once again.

  Was she nervous?

  “I, uh, I need you to come visit. There are a lot of things we need to discuss.”

  I shook my head, knowing that she couldn’t see me. It was one thing to hear her voice through the phone. I couldn’t do it in person. I wasn’t prepared.

  “I know it’s probably the last thing you want to do,” Hannah said, and I could have sworn she sounded sympathetic. “But there are things I need to tell you.”

  “About?”

  She hesitated. Was she thinking of a lie? Or would she opt for telling me the truth?

  “It’s about Derek Hensley.”

  My eyes widened, and I took a seat on one of the chairs on the balcony. I felt like she’d directed a punch to my stomach. Was she the one who had asked him to hurt me? I let out a shaky breath, closing my eyes as the words sunk in. There would be no other way for her to know that Derek was around, unless she was spying on me.

  “Evie?”

  “Still here,” I choked out. “What about him?”

  “There’s things about him you should know,” she said.

  “Why can’t you tell me through the phone?”

  Maybe not wanting to see her made me a coward, but the truth was that I was terrified. If she was pretending to be nice and then it was all some sort of plan, I didn’t know that I would be able to handle it.

  “It’s better to do it in person. I know it’s a lot to ask, Evelyn, but trust me on this. Can you do that? Just this once?”

  I looked up at the star-filled sky, hoping that somehow one of them would guide me to right answer because I didn’t know.

  “I need to think about it,” I replied.

  She sighed, and I could almost picture her rolling her eyes or even glaring at the phone. Maybe she’d tell me to fuck off and make it easier for me.

  Instead, Hannah made it more complicated by saying, “It’s okay. I understand if you need time to think about it.”

  I let out a shaky breath, standing up and running my hands through my hair. I needed a minute to assimilate everything. “Thank you.”

  “Okay, Evie. I’ve got to go now. I hope to hear from you soon? Take care, okay?”

  I squeezed my eyes shut. She’d never told me to take care before. Simple words with so much significance.

  “You too,” I replied, hanging up the call.

  I rested my hands on the balcony, and my eyes fell onto the city lights, a welcome distraction to my troubled mind.

  She wanted to talk to me now. Before, I would have jumped at the opportunity. Years ago, I would have given anything to have a conversation like this with her, but things changed.

  I couldn’t avoid it this time. I had to talk to her if I wanted to learn more about what was happening. How did she know? She was in jail. The one way she could know something was if either she had been the one to plan it or Hensley had family in jail.

  Whatever it was, though, I knew my life would change forever.

  ***

  Nathan

  She seemed lost.

  Evie stared blankly at her phone for a few minutes after they hung up the call. I didn’t know who it was that she had spoken to, but unless it was regarding Derek or Hannah, I doubted she would be so distraught.

  This moment in our lives was without a doubt one of the toughest ones we would have to get through. Problem after problem, we would have to keep proving our strength. While I had no doubt that Evelyn was the strongest person that I knew, all of this was too hard on her, especially with the pregnancy. I couldn’t imagine everything she felt, all the conflicting thoughts running through her head.

  It would be easy to just run the hell away, leave everything behind, and try to start over. That would also mean never confronting our problems, though, and that wasn’t an option.

  I could take her somewhere else, though, help her clear her mind.

  After a while of her not coming back inside, I slowly slid the door to the balcony open. Evie turned around with a small smile on her lips. Her eyes were sad, and she just looked tired.

  “I need a break,” she confessed. “I feel like I hardly get a chance to recover from one thing and then get another problem thrown at me. I just…I need a break.”

  I could have easily asked what happened, but in that moment, I figured it could wait. What could not wait was getting her out of here.

  I opened up my arms, and with a sigh, Evie buried her face in my neck, her arms wrapping around my waist as my own wrapped around her body.

  “I’m so tired, Nathan,” she whispered softly. “I’m just so tired of everything, of feeling so helpless all the time. It’s getting so hard to get back up every time I’m knocked down.”

  Seeing her sad was one thing, but hearing her so defeated was something that tore at me. She never gave up, yet now it seemed like she just wanted to disappear.

  “Are you too tired to go out right now?” I asked as an idea came to me.

  She pulled away from me, tilting her head to the side curiously. “It’s getting late. Where do you want to go?”

  I grinned at her. I wouldn’t tell her the place, yet I knew she’d love it and serve as a distraction.

  “Don’t worry about that.” I brushed her hair to the side as she smiled, biting her lip. “What do you say we go out on an adventure tonight, baby?”

  She flushed, and her eyes took on the sparkle they always had. “Let’s go.”

  ***

  Her expression said it all. For the first time in days, Evelyn’s face showed nothing but pure joy. Her lips parted, an awestruck gasp leaving them as we got on Staten Island Ferry. We were lucky enough that it was night time, so it wasn’t crowded, and she could enjoy the view.

  I stood next to her at the edge, taking in the view of the city lights, a view I hadn’t seen since I was just a kid, before we moved to Pennsylvania.

  “I can’t believe in the time I have been here, I’ve never visited the ferry.” She interlocked her fingers with mine, her eyes never abandoning the view.

  “You’re missing out. When I was a kid, my parents would bring me to the ferry every weekend. Sometimes we would get on several times in one night, but it was always fun.”

  Evie smiled back at me. “Do you want to do that with our kids?”

  “I don’t see why not.”

  She rested her head on my shoulder, and my arm draped around her waist. She finally relaxed, the thoughts in her head disappearing as quickly as they’d shown up.

  “I used to bring Cheetos on board, throw them at the seagulls, and wait for them to catch them.” I chuckled, thinking back fondly at the memory I made with my parents. I was thankful that I’d had the opportunity to do such things, enjoy my childhood.

  “Did they follow you?”

  “Oh yeah,” I snorted. “I fucking ran one time because I thought they were all planning my kidnapping.”

  Evie laughed, shoving me to the side with her body. “You’re so silly.”

  “Babe, I’m serious. They love their Cheetos. They were the drug; I was their dealer. I stopped giving them Cheetos. It was obvious they were going to go against me.”

  Rolling her eyes, Evie surrounded my neck with her arms, her already crazy hair floating around with the gentle night breeze. Other times she would have complained that it was a mess; now she didn’t seem to care.

  “I’m glad the seagulls didn’t steal you away,” she teased with a raised brow. “Then who would have helped me relax right now?”

  I shrugged, going along with her playfulness. “You never know. They may recognize me.”

  Evie snorted, then busted into full-blown laughter, her eyes crinkling with the action. Once her laughter died down, she remained
smiling and then looked over to the ocean surrounding us as the ferry passed the Statue of Liberty.

  “You always know what I need.”

  “That’s a good thing, isn’t it? It should avoid us many problems once we’re married.”

  She snorted again, looking up at me with a loving expression. Yes, I’d wanted her to relax, but more than anything, I had wanted to see her happy. Everything that happened had been so stressful for her; Derek’s situation still affected her deeply. Not to mention the impending conversation I needed to have with Jessica that still loomed over us like a rain-filled cloud. Evie needed to get her mind off of all that. She should be able to enjoy her pregnancy without so many things going on.

  “Happy wife, happy life.” She winked.

  “Words to live by.” I captured her lips with mine. She sighed, as if all was right when we were together, and kissed me back, not caring if anyone was watching.

  Losing myself in her became my hobby, and I didn’t care to be found. Her lips parted slightly, and I tasted her, eliciting a small whimper from her. My grip tightened around her waist as the kiss turned from gentle to hungry in a matter of a few seconds.

  “I think we should go back home,” she breathed against my lips. Her eyes fluttered open, hazy with lust and need. “I haven’t welcomed you like I should have for a man who has just left jail.”

  She had a way of looking so fucking innocent and yet so tempting at the same time.

  “What do you say?” she asked, swallowing.

  I pressed my lips to hers once again, murmuring against them how much I would love that.

  Chapter 37

  Evelyn

  Nathan ran his fingers down my arm while he pressed his lips on my shoulder. I smiled, my eyes closing with the more than welcome caress.

  “I could lay like this with you every day.” He spoke against my skin. As if thinking through what he had said, he corrected his words. “I will be in bed with you like this every day, for the rest of my life.”

  I couldn’t see his smile, but I felt it.

  This was the perfect way to start the day, especially after all the craziness that awaited. He would be talking to Jessica, and though he wanted me to go with him, I decided not to. I would be having a conversation of my own with her.

  I knew it hurt Nathan. He did consider her his friend. It was never easy to turn your back on those that you cared about, even if they’d been in the wrong.

  “Are you feeling better?”

  How couldn’t I feel better when he treated me like a queen? We’d gotten home, made love; he gave me a massage, spoiled me with endless snacks, and then we made love again. And now, the sun was up, and we still lay in bed, cuddled up, and he kept showering me with kisses.

  For that moment, life was perfect.

  “I feel great.” I turned on my back to look up at him. His hair was a tousled mess, and he grinned down at me, gray eyes sparkling with amusement.

  “What?” I furrowed my eyebrows, not understanding why he looked at me that way.

  “You have sex written all over your face,” he said, throwing his head back in laughter.

  I ran my fingers through his hair, messing it up even more. “So? We’re together and having a baby. This is normal.”

  Nathan nuzzled my neck, and I felt a shiver run down my body as he nipped at my skin gently. My eyes fluttered closed as his tongue slid out, igniting every sense in my body yet again.

  I truly had no one else to compare sex with, but I doubted it would ever be any good with someone else. Nathan was the only man in my life, the only man I ever wanted with me.

  It dawned on me how lucky I was to have found him without even trying. I didn’t have to do the whole “search or wait for the love of your life” thing.

  I moaned softly when his hand tugged gently at my overly sensitive nipples, toying with them as his lips traveled down my neck, while my own hands traveled down his back, feeling his muscles tense with the feel of my touch.

  “Shouldn’t you start to get ready?” I asked him, though I didn’t want him to leave.

  “Yeah,” he replied, lowering his lips further down my belly and then even further. My eyes widened slightly when I realized his intentions, and the devilish smirk on his face made my heart beat faster.

  When his tongue met my heated flesh, I moaned, throwing my head back as he buried his face between my legs, making me forget completely about everything else.

  ***

  The water cascaded around us in the shower while Nathan kept spoiling me, this time lathering me up with soap. He’d already shampooed my hair, but he kept getting distracted, his hands trying to do the job that my own could do in the first place.

  This is just a way for him to keep touching me.

  I didn’t mind. He would have a long day at the gallery, and deep down I knew this was his way of easing his concern before confronting Jessica. Knowing Nathan, he would step back and leave the gallery because that was just who he was. My heart hurt for him. His dream had finally come true, and now it was all slipping through his fingers, as if he had worked for nothing at all.

  He didn’t deserve it.

  However, I had my own plans to help Nathan keep the gallery. Something told me that Jessica wasn’t too interested in art before she met him, so I didn’t think she would mind selling her part to me…or him.

  “Who called you last night?” Nathan’s question made me tense, as I was still unsure what to make of anything myself.

  Regardless, he deserved to know.

  “Hannah.” Scowling, Nathan leaned his head back on the shower wall, clearly disapproving even the mention of my sister’s name. I placed my hands on his chest, getting his attention once again. “It’s okay, I’m okay.”

  He sighed, shaking his head.

  Of course he didn’t. Not after everything we’d been through because of her. If I told him about Hannah’s connection to the events with Derek, he would surely disagree with me going to meet her. I would have to tell him after I had the full story. If not, I’d need to prepare for another argument.

  He’d get mad, but this was something I had to do. Nathan would understand. Eventually.

  “She wants me to visit her.”

  His head snapped in my direction, his piercing eyes almost intimidating. Almost. He was furious, and though he didn’t direct it towards me, it was clear nothing would come out of this conversation.

  Later, Evie.

  Take your time.

  “I don’t think it’s a good idea, Evie,” he cautioned, shutting the water off, a sign that, just like the shower was done, so was the conversation.

  I couldn’t drop the subject, not without trying to get more insight into what he thought. “Why?”

  He snorted, opening the shower door and furiously taking the towel in his hand.

  Stupid question, Evie.

  Everyone knew exactly why I shouldn’t talk to her, shouldn’t even consider it. I was sure if I told Carter he’d have the same reaction. I had to do this on my own.

  “You know what?” I said as Nathan wrapped the towel around my body. He raised an eyebrow, not saying a word. “Let’s talk about this later. You have a lot on your mind right now, okay?”

  He nodded, agreeing with me. We wouldn’t discuss this, though. Not until I had my answers.

  ***

  Nathan

  Going to the gallery to clear shit up with Jessica was the last thing I wanted to do. I was ready to give it up to avoid any more problems with her, salvage a bit of our friendship. She was a good person, had been through a lot, but dealing with this situation wasn’t on my list of priorities. If she didn’t understand that, there was nothing else to do.

  My main worry now was trying to keep Evelyn out of trouble, away from Hannah. Her timing was suspicious, and the last thing I wanted was her to hurt Evelyn yet again. It was too much for her, and I was afraid that it was all going to add up potentially affecting the baby.

  Just as I arrived a
t the gallery, my phone buzzed, and when I read the message, it took all my control not to drive back to Evie.

  Evie: I’m going to visit Derek. Don’t be mad.

  I saw Jessica speaking to someone by the office, and she offered me a shy smile, one I didn’t return at all. We wouldn’t talk about anything until closing time, except I wasn’t sure that I should linger with her there.

  It was going to be a chaotic day.

  Other than brief conversations regarding clients or purchases, Jessica and I didn’t talk. It was safer—she couldn’t misunderstand my intentions that way.

  By the time we closed, and all the clients had left, Jessica was already in the office probably on the laptop evaluating purchases. Deciding to not prolong the inevitable, I went to the office to discuss the future of the business we had started together.

  It was a shame it had all come to this.

  I opened the door to the office quietly. “Jessica?”

  There was movement inside, yet she didn’t call out for me to come in.

  What I didn’t expect was to see her in a bright red robe that contrasted her against her pale skin in the most daunting way.

  Or the way she opened the robe and let it fall down her otherwise naked body.

  Chapter 38

  Nathan

  I took a step back while Jessica took a step forward, still naked and with clear intentions as far as what she wanted to happen. My gaze fell on the bottle of wine that was open on the desk, and my fists clenched. She was drunk.

  Those few seconds were enough.

  Jessica took the opportunity to step directly in front of me, pressing her body to me and her hands on either side of my face, locking her lips with mine. I stilled my hands, not wanting to touch her waist or any other part of her body. However, when I took hold of her arms, my hands accidentally brushed the sides of the breasts, and she giggled, stumbling backwards.

  “See,” she smiled lazily, her blue eyes sparkling, “you want me too.”