Page 14 of Revived
“Yeah, well I’m pissed that they inadvertently killed the love of my life. So they can deal with it, or I’ll cut them off completely. Makes no difference to me.” He shrugs like it really is no big deal for him to do.
Flynn’s tried extremely hard to leave Jersey in Jersey. He rarely answers calls from anyone except for the girls and the kids. I guess I’m not much different in that department, but our reasons are different. I’m trying to keep them away from the life I built here so it can’t be ruined. Flynn’s running from the ghost of Annie and every single person who had a connection to her, with the exception of me and our best friends.
“It’ll be fine. Elle and I will be there, and you won’t have to be alone with any of them.”
He smiles sadly. “Thank you, Sul. I honestly couldn’t have asked for a better spare.”
And just like that… Moment ruined.
“Shut the hell up. You’re two minutes older. I don’t think that calls for anheir and a spareanalogy.” I playfully push his shoulder. He’s such an asshole when he’s trying to lighten the mood.
“Two minutes or two years. Older is older, brother-man.” He quickly skips out of the way of my fist swinging out half-heartedly. “No, but seriously. You look good, Sul. Elle will be drooling over you all night.”
I can’t help the laugh that bubbles out. “You’re an idiot. It’s just a black suit, and have you met her? She’s going to go all out for this because she loves dressing up.”
The ringtone that’s set for Elle’s dexcom goes off, drawing both of our eyes to each other.
“You got this?” He asks cautiously.
“Yeah, we’re good. Get to the rink before you get in trouble. We’ll be there.”
We leave my house together, but I jog over to Elle’s house, where Flynn runs over to his vehicle to get to the rink in time. DC traffic is a bitch on its best days, so he better hope it isn’t too bad, or he’ll be late. I fling myself into Elle’s front door and immediately begin calling out for her.
“Elena? Elena! Where are you?”
My heart rate speeds up at an alarming pace. Sweat beads on the back of my neck, and the next five seconds feel like hours until she calls out to me from her bedroom. I jog through her living room and down the hall until I push open her bedroom door and find her standing in front of a floor length mirror. She’s fighting back tears as she holds her sensor applicator to the back of her left arm. Her watery eyes meet mine just as she bites her lip in concentration.
“It’s giving me a hard time. I just wanted to do it myself and be ready before you got here.” She sniffles, careful not to release any tears. I'm sure out of fear of ruining her perfected makeup.
I keep her emerald gaze hostage and give her a gentle smile. “So, you will. Eyes on me, baby girl. You already have it in place. Just press the button.”
Her eyes never stray from mine as she presses the button on the applicator, and it sets in her skin for the next ten days. My feet carry me until my chest presses into her back, and I take the applicator as well as the cover for the sensor from her. Setting the applicator on her bed, I peel off the back of the adhesive and gently place the navy cover with daisies around the sensor to keep it in place. Once that’s on I look at her in the mirror and finally take her in.
Elle’s lavender dress fits her like a damn glove. She looks every bit of the mafia princess that she is. Her dress fits tight to her lithe body,showing off enough cleavage to have it bordering on indecent, but I’m not her keeper nor her father. So, I’m just thankful to be the one who gets to enjoy the view.
“You look stunning, Elena Rossi.” I whisper in her ear before pressing my face gently into her neck and catching a deep breath of her scent. Deciding to be bold tonight, I place a chaste kiss on the side of her neck before pulling away and resting my chin on top of her beautiful curly mane.
She spins in front of me before bringing her hands up and grabbing onto the lapels of my jacket. She wordlessly stares into my eyes for a moment with a serene smile on her lips before bringing her hands up and fixing my tie.
“You look handsome, Sullivan Byrne.”
She watches me like she thinks I can save the world by just lifting my pinky. Little does she know she could crumble mine with just a single look. There is no length I wouldn’t go to for her. There is no bridge I wouldn’t burn or mountain I wouldn’t climb. No ocean too wide or valley too deep for me to conquer just to hear the whisper of her voice on a daily basis.
People may call that obsessive, but I would tell those people that it’s called passion and then to get their damn noses out of my relationship– No– Not relationship. Whatever, you know what I mean.
“Thank you.” I offer her the smirk that I know makes her shiver. “Let’s get out of here. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can leave.”
She laughs a true, carefree laugh. The kind that makes her throw her head back in glee. My favorite sound in this entire world.
“It’ll be fine, grump. Now come on, I’m so excited to see your brothers.” She teases. “Kieran gives the best hugs, and ugh, have you seen Mac’s Instagram lately? Those shirtless pictures of him on thebeach with Lee?” She pretends to fan herself with her hand. “Good Lord. Don’t even get me started on Daddy Rowan. Ugh, we can’t leave out Declan. He and Jakob look like they’re just looking for a third to round out their marriage. Jesus, he sure knew what he was doing when he made your brothers.”
My glare is intense enough to break grown men. I know because I learned it from the best. Still she giggles at me and takes my hand before pulling us towards the front door. I let her get to the doorway of the living room before I yank back, causing her to abruptly turn and crash into my chest. My hands settle on her hips and I squeeze just enough to make sure I have her attention.
“You want to repeat that, Boo?” I raise a challenging brow.
“Nope, I think I poked the bear just enough, thank you very much.” She presses up on her toes and presses her soft lips to my dimple before lowering back down until she’s steady on the golden heels she has on.
She twirls until I’m forced to let go, but she quickly grabs my hand again and practically dances across the driveway until we’re on the passenger side of my Bronco. I help her into the vehicle before smiling at her and shaking my head.
