“Cash out?”
“Yeah, cash out. Marry you.”
Her hand flew to my face, cupping my jaw as she stared at me exactly the way she did when we first realized we had absolutely no control over what was happening between us.
“Funny way of putting it, but I think I get it,” she said with a laugh.
“It’s good seeing you again,” I said. “The real you. Not the crazy you.”
“Same here. I was worried about you for a little bit. You get kind of scary when…”
“When the things I love have been ripped away from me? Yeah. It goes way back. I’m sorry.” I pulled her close, kissing her soft lips again and reveling in their sweet taste.
“What are we going to do until our parents’ divorce?” she asked, her face suddenly falling.
“Let’s not worry about that.” I stroked the side of her cheek. “Let’s just enjoy this. Right here. Right now.”
She lay in my arms all night, and we talked until two or three in the morning, keeping our voices low. At some point I must have fallen asleep in her bed, because the next thing I knew someone was knocking at her door.
“Addison?”
I popped up. “Shit, Addison. Your mom’s out there.”
“Fuck,” she said, springing to action. We both glanced down at the floor where our clothes were strewn. “Get in the closet.”
I flew to the closet, sliding one of the mirrored doors aside and stepping in, pulling it shut slowly and quietly.
“Addison, are you awake?”
“Hold on, Mom. Coming,” I heard her yell back. A minute later, her mom’s voice grew closer, as if she were seated on Addison’s bed.
“It’s nine o’clock. Aren’t you going to get up? I think Coco talked about going for a jog on the beach. It’d be nice of you to join her.”
“I will,” she said.
“Have you seen Wilder?” I heard Tammy Lynn ask. “He wasn’t in his room this morning.”
Shit.
“Um, no, I went to bed last night after the game. I haven’t seen him. Sorry.”
“Mmhm.”
“What?”
“It’s just that every time you’re around him, you just act so strange. I can’t put my finger on it, but I have noticed it. I don’t know him well enough yet to know if he’s always so smart-mouthed, or if he’s pulling out all the stops for us.”
I stifled a laugh.
“You sure nothin’s wrong, baby?” Tammy Lynn asked once again. “You know you can tell me anything.”
Come on, Addison. Tell her. Now’s your chance.
“I’m sure, Mom. Everything’s fine.”
“What do you think of Vince, sweetie?” Tammy Lynn asked, her tone suddenly chipper. “You like him so far?”
“Yeah. I mean, he seems to make you happy.”
“You think we’re a good match? He’s just so different from my usual type.”
“He’s not covered in leather and tattoos and he doesn’t drive a motorcycle, but I think it’s safe to say he’s a step up. Why? Are you having doubts?”
“No, no,” Tammy Lynn insisted. “I was just curious as to what you thought.”
Silence filled the space between them for a little too long before the sound of shuffling feet moved toward the door.
“Get washed up, sweetie, and come down for breakfast. Hopefully Wilder shows up around here somewhere.”
“Maybe he passed out on the beach. He seemed kind of drunk last night,” Addison said.
“Who knows?”
The click of the door shutting brought Addison over to the closet. “Oh, my God. That was close.”
“You should’ve told her.”
“What are you talking about?”
“About us. She asked if you were okay. You should’ve been honest.”
Addison’s shoulders fell as she clasped her hands across her heart. “She’s so happy. I can’t ruin that for her. I’m sorry. It doesn’t change how I feel about you. Nothing could change that.”
The euphoric high from the night spent holding her in my arms evaporated into thin, sea salted air. I didn’t have a right to be mad at her. She hadn’t made any promises, and I’d hushed her when she tried talking about the future.
“Don’t be mad.” Her blue eyes pled with mine as she reached for me, placing a warm palm on my crossed arms. She drew near and leaned up on her toes, planting a soft kiss on my lips. “Please don’t go home today. You’re here. Just stay. Let’s make the best of it. We’ll figure things out when we get back home.”
A week had passed since we all returned from Florida. I’d yet to show Wilder a property, but I’d seen him once in passing on the street. I was headed back to the office from a client meeting and bumped into him, so we stopped into a little coffee shop and got a warm beverage and had a friendly chat.
After our week together at the beach house, we both agreed we had to keep each other at arm’s length. No more secret sex sessions. No more stolen glances. We promised one another to keep things professional, no matter how much it hurt. And we promised not to see other people, which was extremely easy on my part since I didn’t have time to date anyway.
I slid into my leather office chair on a balmy May morning and checked my email, smiling when I saw one from Wilder declaring he wanted to make an offer on one of the warehouses I’d shown him a few weeks back. Having him for a client meant I could scale back a bit on my workload and still come out on top professionally, which was wonderful. I’d been burning the candle at both ends for as long as I could remember.
Kyle seemed to be losing clients left and right, and I wasn’t sure whether or not Brenda Bliss had a hand in it or if somehow Wilder was working a little behind-the-scenes magic. He knew a lot of people in the industry and was one of the most well-connected investors I’d ever come across, though he never acted like it. I neglected to ask Wilder about it, not wanting to know the truth. Though if he did have something to do with the gradual demise of Kyle’s career, he probably wouldn’t admit to it anyway.
My phone buzzed on the table. Mom was calling.
“Hey, Mom, what’s up? I’m at the office,” I answered.
She sighed, long and heavy, into the phone. It was never a good thing when she did that. I’d heard that sigh before. Several times, actually. “I’m leaving Vince.”
I thanked God that she couldn’t see the enormous grin forming across my face in that moment. “Oh, no, Mom. Why? What happened?”
“I’m just miserable with him, sweetie.” She sounded like a deflated balloon, and the nasally sound of her voice suggested she was lying down on the sofa at home. I could just picture her with her left arm draped across her forehead as if she were sick.
“You two seemed so happy, though. In New York and at the beach. I’d never seen you like that before.” I scratched my head. Nothing was adding up.
“He’s a nice man, Addison, don’t get me wrong. He just bores me to tears with how everything has to be so perfect all the time. Perfect wife. Perfect little life. Perfect family. If he buys me another twinset from J.C. Penney, I think I’m going to die.”
“But I thought that was what you wanted? A perfect nuclear family kind of life?”
“I thought maybe that would make me happy. It didn’t. I was still just as miserable as I was before. I never should’ve married him,” she groaned. “When am I going to learn, huh? I’m fifty-three years old.”
“Fifty-eight.”
“Fine. I’m fifty-eight years old, and I’ve got four failed marriages under my belt.”
“Five.”
“Five, whatever. I’m so embarrassed.” I heard her sniffle, though it seemed like her hand had covered the receiver for a brief second. “God, he’s a horrible kisser. He doesn’t have a single tattoo anywhere on him. He goes to bed at nine o’clock every night. I’m surprised he doesn’t suggest we have separate beds, for Christ’s sakes.”
Funny how Wilder could come from a man like that. “I had no idea
he was that vanilla, Mom.”
“Well, lesson learned,” she said. “I think I need to be single for a while.”
She’d said that very phrase a million times before. It’d lost its meaning years ago. “Yeah, maybe you should be single for a while.”
“Besides,” she sighed, “Dakota told me everything.”
“Excuse me?”
“I know all about you and Wilder.”
My heart raced and my response lodged itself in my throat.
“It explains a lot,” she laughed. “I mean, the behavior, you two running off together at the restaurant. The Uno debacle. I guess I was too blind to see it. Dakota filled in all the blanks for me.”
“She always did have a big mouth,” I mused, secretly thankful.
“Anyway, I had a long talk with your sister about everything the other day, and it just sort of finalized my decision to leave Vince. I’m not happy with him, and you want to be with Wilder. It’s a no-brainer, sweetie. You have no idea what it means to know that you were going to put your happiness on hold for me. You’re a good daughter, and I don’t deserve you.”
“You’re leaving Vince for sure?” I asked. With my brain suspended in a state of shock and disbelief, I could hardly process the life changing magnitude of our conversation. Something about me being a good daughter. Perhaps I should’ve focused on the kind words she was sharing, and any other day her words would’ve gone down in history. Tammy Lynn never paid compliments, not ones that exposed her innermost feelings.
“For sure,” she said.
“You’re not going to change your mind?”
“Never. My mind’s made up.”
“Mom?” Hot tears fogged my vision as I let them pool and fall onto the desktop below me.
“Yes, baby?” she drawled.
“Thank you.” I hung up with her and immediately dialed Coco. “I can’t believe you!”
“What?” Coco drew the word out, and I could only imagine the mischievous look on her face.
“Mom just called me. Said you told her everything about Wilder and me.” I wanted to hug her, but making her squirm a little was more fun.
“Yeah?” Coco said. “I did.”
“Why?”
“I did it because you’re my sister and I love you more than words, and I want you to be happy,” she said. “You deserve to be happy, Addison. You should be with Wilder.”
“Have I told you how much I love you lately?” My mind whirred and whizzed in fifty different ecstatic directions. The second I had a chance, I was going to find Wilder, wherever the hell he was, and jump into his arms. “Did Mom tell you she was leaving Vince?”
“She mentioned it, yes. But she wanted to be the one to tell you, so I didn’t say anything. You know, after everything Mom put us through when we were younger, I figured it was her turn to make a sacrifice so that one of us could be happy.”
“That’s one way to look at it.”
“I knew you were too nice to say anything, so I had to intervene. I couldn’t stand her prancing around like Betty Crocker on Vince’s arm while you were crying yourself to sleep every night.”
“Thanks, Co. I mean it. Thank you.”
“Just doing my job,” she laughed. “That’s what big sisters are for, right? To get in everyone’s business and right the wrongs.”
“You’re the glue, you know that? You’ve always been the glue in our little family.”
“All right, enough of this sentimental bullshit. Hang up with me so you can go find him.” Coco couldn’t help being bossy. It was just the way she was made.
* * *
“Call me as soon as you get this.” I left a quick voicemail on Wilder’s phone. He didn’t answer when I called. I drummed my fingers against my desk. I was as good as useless the rest of the day.
I gathered my things and told Skylar I was headed out to meet a client, though really I was headed to Wilder’s office. I’d only been there once before, when we first started seeing each other. He had to stop by and grab a document, but it was after hours and we decided to get frisky on his desk, only to be interrupted by the cleaning lady.
I smiled as my heels pounded the pavement toward his work.
“I’m here to see Wilder Van Cleef,” I said to his assistant when I checked in a short while later.
“He’s on a conference call right now,” she said, clicking around on her computer screen. “It looks like he’ll be free in an hour. You can wait here, if you’d like?”
“This is extremely urgent,” I said with a kind smile. “Can I just go in? I won’t interrupt his call. I just need to—I need to see him.”
“I’m very sorry. I can’t let you go in there,” she said.
“I’m his girlfriend,” I said.
Her lips curled into a smile. “Mr. Van Cleef doesn’t date. Nice try.”
I drew in a sharp breath, telling myself she was just doing her job. “I promise you will not get in trouble if you just let me go in there.”
“Mr. Van Cleef is very particular about—”
“Trust me, honey, I know how particular he can be.” I didn’t feel like standing around arguing with his pit bull any more. Clenching onto my purse, I turned on my heels and headed straight for his office.
“You can’t go in there!” she yelled from her desk.
I barged into his office, where he was leaning back in his chair while a man on the other end droned on about beginning market values and a potential bidding war.
“Addison?” he mouthed. His brows met in the middle and he cocked his head to the side.
I jumped up and down like a giddy school girl, flapping my hands and smiling like a damn idiot. I didn’t care though. I was about to deliver the best news of my life to my favorite person in the whole world.
“Hey, Darryl, can I call you back in a bit?” Wilder interrupted him. “Something urgent came up that I need to deal with. Just give me a few minutes, okay?”
Darryl grunted into the phone. “I don’t have all day, Wilder.”
“I know, I know. Give me a few.”
Wilder ended the call and replaced the receiver as I climbed into his lap and straddled him.
“You going to tell me what’s going on?” he asked, slipping his hands around my waist.
I smirked. “It’s happening. Vince and Tammy Lynn are divorcing.”
“Are you kidding me?” He cupped my face and brought it toward his, pressing his lips hard onto mine. “So, what does this mean?”
“Everything, Wilder. It means everything.”
He stood up, cupping my ass as he sat me on his desk and pressed his hips into mine. “So, this is it? We can finally be together?”
“Mmhm.” I nuzzled into his neck, inhaling the clean scent of his aftershave as he buried his fingers into my golden waves.
He gently gathered my hair into his fist, guiding my head away from his neck until ours eyes met. “There’s something you should know about me right now.”
My eyes squinted as I silently prayed he wasn’t about to drop a bomb on me. Not now. Not when everything was going so well. “What’s that?”
“I’m never letting you go, no matter what.”
“Ladies and gentleman, may I have your attention please?” Brenda Bliss stood up at the podium in front of a gathering of thousands of Manhattan real estate agents. It was the annual end-of-year gala for the Manhattan Association of Listing Professionals; the time of year when the top ten agents in the city were announced. Brenda was the secretary of the association, but she loved to have all eyes on her, so she volunteered to emcee that year. At least that was what she’d told me when she made it clear my attendance was required.
The banquet hall silenced save for the rogue clinking of silver as attendees turned their focus to Brenda. Wilder reached beneath the tablecloth and grabbed my hand, squeezing it tight. I’d worked my ass off that year, making Wilder’s investment company my main priority. I scoured the city and investigated leads and tips, finding him qu
ick flips and a few great long-term ventures.
“Thank you all so much for being here with us tonight,” Brenda said as microphone feedback stung our ears. “I know we all have a million and one engagements this time of year, and it’s snowing pretty good outside. We’d all rather be cozied up in our brownstones and condos with a glass of brandy and a warm fire. Perhaps you’d rather be looking out from the windows of your pied-a-terres as the sparkling snow decorates the city we all hold dear.”
The crowd erupted in polite laughter.
“But at the end of the day, we’re all here for a reason. We love what we do, and we want to honor our best colleagues. Each year, only a select few can hold the coveted title of top one percent, and even a smaller few can be recognized as the top one percent of the top one percent. This year, I am pleased to announce that the top agent in all of Manhattan is one of my own.”
Wilder squeezed my hand, and I glanced down at our interlocked fingers, the brilliant, cushion-cut stone on my left ring finger catching the dimmed light of the flickering candles that donned each tabletop around us.
“I’ve worked with this young woman since she started as my assistant a few short years ago. They always say the cream rises to the top, and ladies and gentleman, let me tell you, Addison Andrews is the crème-de-la-crème. Everyone, please give a warm welcome to the Manhattan Association of Listing Professionals’ agent of the year, Addison Andrews!”
Wilder released my hand and rose to a standing position as I swept my long gown behind me and headed up to the podium to accept my award. I was convinced I wouldn’t receive the award that year. There had been rumors of a few other agents sealing last-minute contracts that would blow my final numbers out of the water, but they must’ve fallen through.
“Wow,” I said, clutching the polished gold in my sweaty palm. The small award, a gold depiction of a high-rise building, felt heavier than I imagined it would. “Thank you so much, everyone. I did not expect this.”
The applause ceased and my eyes searched the dim room for my Wilder. He took his seat and leaned back, watching with a proud smile across his sexy lips.
NEVER KISS A STRANGER (A Stepbrother Romance) Page 14
