Page 49 of Cocky M.D.
“No, thanks. Too many of us might scare a kid.”
Nicole walked with me out the door.
Georgie called, “Good luck. We’ll be right behind you.”
I guessed I needed to work on asking for help still and not just taking care of myself. Maybe that was how I’d lost Johnny. I was too full of pride. I slipped into the ride and forwarded the message from Bradley. Then I wrote,Johnny, check on Bradley. He texted me he’s going to my apartment. Please text me he’s safe.
Once I hit send, the driver stepped on it to get me there fast. Hopefully we would find Bradley quickly, then I would get one more face-to-face with Johnny. I wasn’t sure what I would say, though, and my skin had goosebumps at the thought.
Chapter Eighteen
Johnny
Adrenaline coursed through my blood,and my heart raced. The second Olivia had texted me, I’d rushed into an empty bedroom. My son had left. His phone had a tracker, so I saw that he was on the move, and I ran out of my house without even grabbing a pair of shoes or a shirt.
No one stopped me. As I drove, I swallowed my pride about heading toward Olivia’s house.
If something happened to Bradley, it was my fault. I’d been an idiot. I’d pushed Olivia out the door and made my son hate me.
The tracker showed his phone stopping at her apartment complex. My head pounded. My phone didn’t beep with messages from either of the people I loved.
I didn’t care that music blared from the other apartments as I parked and jumped out of the car. I scanned the area, then I took a deep breath when I saw my son knocking on her door on the second floor.
I ran toward him and called, “Bradley.”
He turned toward me as I darted up the stairs. When I got to him, I expected him to tell me to stop, but he hugged me and said, “Dad.”
I had no idea why Olivia hadn’t opened her door, but in that moment, I had half of my heart back. I would never let my son leave me like that again.
As the hug ended, I heard her voice from below as a car pulled out of the parking lot. Her eyes glistened as she stumbled up the steps. “You found him.”
In her inebriated state, the driver or anyone else might have hurt her. As she made it to us, I reached for her just to ensure she was safe. “You weren’t home?”
She fluffed hair away from her neck, and the motion caused her tits to bounce. “No. I was… with my sisters, who flew in for our… wedding.”
I could smell alcohol on her breath. If anything had happened to her in that state, it would be my fault. “And you’ve been drinking.”
Her eyes widened, and she said, “Are you suddenly against drinking? I didn’t drive home, and I’m an adult.”
Logically, she was right. She lifted her chin like she expected me to argue. My gut twisted over the fact that she could have been in danger, which wasn’t rational. I kept my feelings to myself.
I lowered my head and said, “Because you make it harder to apologize to you this way.”
She reached for my arm, and her voice was low as she said, “Look, Johnny, I shouldn’t have gotten so angry and stormed off.” A tear escaped her eyes. “I want you to give me a chance despite what you said about not believing in love.”
I absolutely didn’t deserve her. I hugged her and said, “I care about you, Olivia, and all my life, I’d been told never to even look for someone like you.”
She let me go and tilted her head. “Huh? Like me?”
I checked that my son was still beside me then said, “You’re honest, sweet, and comfortable being who you are. Our house is empty since you left, and I want you back.”
Bradley jumped and squealed, “Dad!”
She shook her head, and her face pinkened as she said, “That’s sweet, but—”
“Wait.” I felt jumpy, and the hairs on my arms stood on end. I would lose any chance I might have with her if I didn’t tell her the truth. “My heart is yours if you want it. I love you.”
She took my hand, and I saw that she still had on the ring. I hoped that meant she would give me another chance.
