Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 59445 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 238(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59445 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 238(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I slipped it out, answering it after reading the screen.
“Congrats on the win,” Ethan said once I answered.
“Thanks,” I said.
“You out celebrating?”
I glanced around the lonely bar and shook my head. “Had dinner with Gareth, Brynn, and some of the guys.”
Ethan laughed. “Did Gareth make you pay?”
“Course he did,” I said.
“It was a close game. Fun to watch.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“You all right?” he asked after a second’s pause. “I called for a quick congrats, thinking you’d be out celebrating, but you sound down. Need to talk that shit out?”
I huffed a laugh, messing with my tonic with my free hand. “Is it that obvious?”
“Only because I know your tones,” he explained. “What’s up? Lena digging into you about an engagement still? Thought you handled that?”
“I did,” I said. “It’s not that. It’s not her.”
“Ah,” he said, a little too much understanding in that simple response.
“What would you do if you had a chance at gaining everything you ever wanted, but the price was fucking steep if you failed?”
There. I asked the question, but it could be about a business deal. He didn’t know I was talking about Brynn.
“Anything in life worth something doesn’t come easy,” he said. “But if it’s what I really wanted? Like, end-all-be-all wanted? What wouldn’t I do to get it in the end?”
“Even if it could ruin everything if it went south?”
“If it’s all you’ve ever wanted, who gives a fuck about the future? We’re not guaranteed a tomorrow, man. Especially you and your adrenaline-addicted ass should know that.”
I laughed at that. He wasn’t wrong.
“So fuck it,” he said. “Live in the moment. There is plenty of time to worry later.”
“Never knew you had such good advice to give,” I joked.
“Never knew a congratulatory call would end up a therapy session,” he fired back. “I’ll send my bill to Brynn.”
I laughed again. “See you next month,” I said.
“Yeah, good luck with all that.”
We hung up, and my chest felt a little lighter. Ethan may have just put my entire life into perspective. After all, worrying about the future is what kept me from ever allowing myself to really feel things with Brynn in the first place. I was way too focused on losing her before I’d ever really even had her.
I threw back the rest of my tonic, pocketing my phone and heading to the elevators. There was no point denying anything anymore. If she didn’t want me, I’d respect that and give her all the space she needed, but I couldn’t stand living in the unknown for a second longer. I wanted to know what happened next, one way or another.
My heart thudded heavily against my chest as I slipped my key in the penthouse door, closing it behind me. It opened to a living and dining room, the kitchen off to my right, and the bedrooms on opposite sides, separated by a long hallway.
Brynn’s room was shut, but a gold glow came from underneath the door, so I knew she was still awake.
I walked down the hallway, and each step I took felt like a movement toward the brightest future or the biggest heartbreak.
I stood outside her closed door for way longer than I’d like to admit, hand poised and ready to knock.
Fuck me, what if she told me she was done?
What if she told me she only wanted me as a friend?
What if she told me to leave her alone and never come back?
What if—
The door swung open, a very confused looking Brynn staring up at me, her feet bare and the softest looking set of pajamas hugging her body.
“Wes?” she asked, concern lining her features. “What’s wrong?”
I braced my hands on the doorframe to stop them from reaching for her.
“I don’t want to wait anymore,” I said, my voice scraped raw.
“What about waiting a full two weeks?” she asked. “It’s only been one.”
“I know what I want,” I said. “And that’s you.”
She visibly swallowed. “Despite the risks?”
I nodded, adrenaline surging through my veins as she held me there in this charged moment.
“I can’t guarantee tomorrow, Brynn. I can’t tell you that being together won’t somehow change our dynamic. The only thing I can say for certain is that I want you,” I said. “I want this. I want us.”
Slowly, Brynn stepped forward, reaching out to grab a handful of my dress shirt, tugging me down to her level until our lips were only an inch apart.
“Then what are you doing still standing in the hallway?”
Her words cracked something open inside me, and she was in my arms in an instant. I hauled her off her feet, hiking her up to my eye level so our mouths were even. “Tell me you want me,” I demanded, needing to be crystal clear on the terms.
“I want you, Wes,” she said, slamming her mouth against mine.