Page 135 of The Exception

“I got something similar from Pierce,”Graham said. “Do you want me to get rid of your family? We could have Hudson throw them off the grounds.”

I barked out a laugh, surprising myself and feeling a little lighter somehow. Graham was on my side—I knew that.I did.

Auntie Jackie had always said that people showed you who they were through their actions, not their words. And Graham had always shown me—in ways both big and small—that he loved me. From fresh bouquets of flowers bursting with symbolism to helping out with anything and everything at the château, his acts of service were a testament to his love and commitment to me and our relationship.

“As amusing as that would be, it wouldn’t be a good look for us.”

He cupped my cheek, his expression full of tenderness and love. “It’s good to see you smile.”

I leaned into his touch, feeling a little calmer. More centered. Now that I wasn’t freaking the fuck out, I could recognize that I’d been going to the worst-case scenario, when I needed to have faith in us and in our relationship.

“What are we going to do?” I asked, trying to focus on the problem at hand.

“What do you want to do?” Graham asked, dropping his hand from my cheek but continuing to touch me.

“What do I want to do?” I laughed. “I want to tell them to go fuck themselves.”

“You could,” he said. “But what if they came here genuinely wanting to make amends? It has to mean something that they traveled all this way.”

At Graham’s family’s expense.

But I didn’t point that out. He wouldn’t understand. How could he, when his family had never treated him like mine had me?

My inclination was to continue to avoid my family, but Graham made a good point. They had come all this way. I wanted to believe that had to mean something. That they’d wanted to see me and not just get a free trip.

“Cutting off a relationship, especially with family, is a big deal. It might be worth hearing them out.”

I wanted to keep an open mind, but if the past was anything to go on, I had a feeling I’d regret it.

CHAPTERTHIRTY

“Why do you really want me to do this?” Lily asked.

My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I ignored it. This was more important.Lilywas more important.

I frowned. “Do what?”

“Talk to my family.”

“I know I don’t understand the circumstances behind the rift in your family, and that’s fine. But I don’t want you to have regrets.”

I couldn’t imagine not talking to my family. Sure, we’d had our differences. But they were my family. Cutting them out of my life would be like cutting off my own hand.

Even though Lily hadn’t told me her reasons for ending communication with her family, I trusted that she’d made the best decision for herself. I was grateful I couldn’t imagine a situation with my own where I wouldn’t find a way to fix it.

“There’s no other reason?”

Her question felt like a trap, and I wasn’t exactly sure why. What was I missing? Where was this coming from?

Before I could ask, my phone vibrated again. When I glanced at the screen, Jasper’s name flashed across it. I was tempted to ignore his call, send it to voice mail, but it was the second time in a span of minutes that he’d called. A niggling in my gut told me to answer it. As soon as I did, I could hear a siren in the background, and I realized how close it sounded.

“What’s wrong?”

“Sloan,” he rasped, and panic raced through my veins at that one word. At the tone of his voice. “Sloan collapsed, and she’s being taken to the hospital.”

“What?” I barked, trying not to freak the fuck out.

“Jackson is with her in the ambulance, and Pierce is driving me over now.”

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