Page 42 of Final Goodbye
“I want to know what you’re doing this year for Thanksgiving?” he asked. Why was it that everything that came out of his mouth today was so unexpected? I figured he’d ask me something lame like what my favorite color was or what my astrological sign was. The shock of the question was written all over my face.
He continued, “I’d love to invite you, your mom and brother over to my parents’ house. That is, if you don’t already have something else planned.” I doubt my mom wanted to worry about Thanksgiving this year for just the three of us. He could be on to something here.
A small smile found my face as the blush crept up my cheeks. “I’d love to come. I can ask my mom to make sure she didn’t have anything else planned for us. But I can say, I’m sure the last thing she wants to do is cook a turkey.” The idea of spending aholiday with both of our families combined didn’t freak me out like I thought it would. It was oddly… comforting.
We were lost in conversation about what our typical holidays looked like, and what we normally do with our families. I didn’t have much to contribute to the conversation because the honest answer was, I worked the holidays. It was an opportunity to make more money, and my family wasn’t in Phoenix. I never came home for the holidays, just made sure to send cards and gifts and video chat with my mom and dad before I went into work. There were a couple times they came out to Arizona to celebrate with me, and those years were probably my favorite. It was always so expensive to travel around that time of year, I didn’t blame them for the years they couldn’t make it.
We devoured our ice cream cones, and I was waiting for Declan to walk back to the car now that we were done with dessert. But to my surprise, we kept walking. Our conversation was flowing, and the day was about as perfect as it could get. That was until I saw a familiar face ahead I hadn’t seen in a while—not since our last interaction at the bar when Declan shooed him off. He was headed right for us when I tugged on Declan’s arm.
“Should we turn around and avoid this interaction?” I pleaded with a shakiness to my voice. I hated confrontation, but I’d have to admit, when Declan confronted Logan each time, it had been sexy as fuck to watch him be protective over me. He was so protective of me that it made whatever this was between us feel real.
“Well, well, well, if it isn’t the new couple in town,” Logan taunted as he walked toward us with a twisted smile across his face. Whereas Declan looked like trouble in a good way, Logan was trouble all around. Definitely not the good kind.
“Logan.” Declan offered a quick nod before putting his hand on my lower back to guide me around Logan the other way, butwe didn’t get around him like we had hoped before Logan side-stepped, sliding his body in front of us.
“Look, I was just hoping to talk to Paige for a minute. I’ve wanted the chance to talk to you, but it seems you two are always attached at the hip these days.”
Yeah, and I wanted to keep it that way if it meant I was safe and away from you.
“Whatever you want to say to her, you can say with me standing right here. So, what is it? What is so important that you need to talk about it right now?” Declan added, clearly irritated.
“All due respect, this has nothing to do with you. So, Paige…” he looked me in the eye and ignored Declan completely before adding, “You mind if we chat for a second? Your bodyguard can stand right over there and watch us talk if he needs to. It’s not like I’m going to do anything to hurt you out here in the open.”
Hurt me?I thought back to our last interaction at the bar and my mind couldn’t help but twist his words. If we were in private, would all that go out the window? Would he only keep calm because we were in public? Part of me wanted to see what he needed to say. I wanted this to be the final interaction with him. If we talked and got everything out that he needed to say, maybe that meant he could leave me alone. If I just gave him the opportunity to talk, then he would move on and this would all be over.
I’ve been waiting years for him to just leave me alone.
“Give us a second, would you?” I asked Logan when I pulled Declan to the side. He stepped away, giving us a sliver of privacy.
“You can’t seriously be considering talking to him, Paige. Not after how last time went.” Declan sighed, shaking his head as he pinched the bridge of his nose. I could tell he didn’t approve of this. But the more I thought about it, I needed this for me, and maybe that was something Declan couldn’t understand right now.
“I want closure. I want him to be done seeking me out and trying to talk to me every chance he gets. If I give him just a few moments, with you standing here, it’s a win-win. I can talk to him about whatever he needs to say and move on with it. All while feeling safe because you’re standing right here keeping an eye on me,” I begged him to understand.
“I don’t trust the guy. I don’t think this is his last time lurking around, but I trust you. Get it over with, and I swear, if he tries anything stupid, I’ll be over there with my hands around his neck.” Feral Declan was hot. I loved how he defended me. Feeling slightly turned on in the absolute wrong moment, I took the opportunity to ease his mind while also getting what I wanted.
Since we originally agreed to put this show on because of Logan, I wanted him to see how crazy Declan was beginning to make me feel. My hands found the nape of his neck, toying with the sandy blond hairs laid below his trucker hat and pulled him into me. Not denying my attempt, he met me halfway. Not normally one for PDA, I took this chance to be quick and get my point across. Declan had me feeling different about PDA lately—Iwantedto get my hands on him whenever I had the chance.
Going straight for his lower lip, I gave it a light pull with my teeth to draw him in closer to me. I could feel the heat from his hands radiating into my lower back, and I suddenly forgot how cold it was outside. Our kiss could easily be taken further if we weren’t in the middle of the sidewalk with my ex-boyfriend practically breathing down our backs. His lips were soft, and I could taste the chocolate on his tongue as mine swiped across it only a few times before I had the opportunity to pour every ounce of me into this kiss and get completely lost in it.
Breaking the heated kiss apart, I whispered in his ear, “I’ll be right back, okay?”
Before I could pull away, he said, “I’ll be watching you. If he does anything stupid, I’ll be at your side in a heartbeat.”
I pulled away and let my body slowly disappear from his grip. Suddenly, I was missing the signature Juniper and Sage smell as I walked further away from him and toward where Logan was standing. My body went from warm and safe in his arms, to cold and uncomfortable and begging for this conversation to be over quickly.
“Don’t worry, bro. I’ll have her back to you in no time!” Logan hollered back as we walked just down the way to a small brown bench by the park. His hand slipped to my lower back, guiding me to the park ahead. The feeling of his hand on my body gave me the ick.
At the same time I pulled away from his touch, I heard Declan shout in a stern voice, “Hands off my girlfriend, asshole!”
Once again, his protective side made me feel warm inside. Even though I was standing next to Logan, I felt completely safe with Declan in close proximity.
It was just him and I, and I couldn’t rely on Declan doing the talking for me, so I had to say something to get this over with.
“What do you want, Logan?” I asked with an irritated look on my face.
“Whoa, what’s the rush? We haven’t talked in years. Might as well catch up a little bit before you make it all serious.”
As we approached the bench, I took a seat on the opposite end of him, propping one knee up to my chest. The ice cream was starting to sink in, and I was feeling colder by the minute. I didn’t want to sit out here and listen to him talk all evening.
