Page 119 of So Not Meant To Be
“What?” I answer.
“How did it go?” Huxley asks.
“Don’t you have a life?”
“I’m worried about you.”
“About me or about your business?”
“Our business,” Huxley says. “And I’m worried about you. You sound like you’re in a dark place. What’s going on? Breaker suggested you have feelings for Kelsey.”
Jesus Christ.
I drag my hand over my face. “Are we in some fucking gossiping schoolyard I don’t know about? Breaker needs to keep his mouth shut, and I swear to God, if you say anything to Lottie, I’m going to actually murder you.”
“I wouldn’t,” he says. “But is it true?”
“I don’t fucking know, okay? I don’t fucking know anything. And it’s not like it matters anyway. I’m not her type. I’m not someone she’d go for, that’s evident, because she’s out with Derek Toney right now and he couldn’t be more opposite of me. And where the fuck did he come from, anyway? Why is he going out with Kelsey?”
“Lottie set it up,” Huxley answers. “Dude, listen, I’m going to send the plane tomorrow. I want to have this conversation with you in person.”
“I’m not going to leave Kelsey up here by herself.”
“You’ll be back. But we have some business to talk about.”
“Can you not?” I ask as I press my fingers to my brow. “Please, for the love of God, don’t. Not right now.” I tip back my beer. “And I’m not leaving tomorrow. Send a plane all you want, I’m not getting on it. Actually, I have to go. I can’t fucking deal with this right now.”
“JP, whatever the hell is going on, you need to talk to us.”
“Yeah, I know, but I can’t right now.” I shake my head even though he can’t see me. “I just fucking can’t.” And before he can respond, I hang up on him and toss my phone to the other end of the couch. “Fuck,” I mutter, sinking into the fabric.
This itchy, uncontrollable, debilitating feeling starts to consume me. Like I’m caught in a tornado of weary emotion and no matter what I do, I can’t get out of it. It just keeps swirling around me. I have no control. I feel like everything is slipping through my grasp.
My sanity.
My job.
Kelsey...
I’m not even sure what I’d do if she looked my way and saw me as more than just JP, how I’d handle the things she needs in her life but, fuck, I want to try. Because when she called me Jonah last night, nothing had ever sounded more right. For a moment, I wasn’t just JP, one of the Cane brothers. I was Jonah. A man who likes a woman. A man who’s ready for change.Ready to start my own life... whatever that actually means.
ChapterFifteen
KELSEY
Oh my God.
He’s so cute.
Derek, that is.
I mean... really cute.
Thick hair, just short of fluffy, but that’s okay. And his style is kind of preppy, but in a cute way, not in a wears-a-cardigan-over-his-shoulders way. His smile is adorable, his eyes are beautiful, and he has a lovely, deep voice.
Lottie was right... this guy is a catch.
“I don’t think I’ve ever eaten as much as I have tonight,” Derek says, patting his stomach. “I hope I didn’t gross you out or anything with the way I took down that crab.”
