Page 46 of Her Beastly Billionaire Rock Star
He rolled his eyes, cleaned up the mess, and fixed his sister some cereal. He slid it to her and lifted his spoon. “Cheers.”
“Cheers.” She spooned a bite into her mouth. “So, why are you up?”
He shrugged and proceeded to down some cereal. Why did she have to be up? This was his thinking food. Well, overthinking food. Realizing he was in love wasn’t something that had happened before.
Bella seemed to let it go, and a few moments passed as they quietly ate. A heavy sigh came from her, and he looked up. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and she was staring at him.
“What?” he asked, shoveling cereal into his mouth.
“You’ve fallen in love with Charlotte.”
He choked and sputtered, running to the sink to grab a towel. “You’re like a steamroller.”
His sister laughed. “But I’m not wrong.”
Returning to his cereal, he shook his head as he wiped a towel down his shirt. “Why do you have to be so nosey?”
“It’s not considered nosey to state the facts.” She dropped her arms and began eating again. “She feels the same way if you’re curious.”
As much as he wanted that to be true, there was the issue of him being an ex-addict. Women who wore cute pink shirts and white ankle pants didn’t date guys like him. They especially didn’t fall in love with guys like him. They went for guys who wore aprons with funny sayings on them and stood around drinking low-calorie beer while bragging about their weeding skills. Not guys with arms full of tattoos and a face full of piercings.
“You’re just reading too much into it.”
Bella shook her head. “No, I’m not. Her face turned candy apple red when I said she liked you. And she knew what I meant.”
Despite his hesitance to believe his sister, his stomach came alive with butterflies. What if she was right? What if he did have a shot? He took a deep breath, pushing away the thoughts. “Charlotte is sweet and kind and caring. That’s all you saw.”
Throwing up her hands, Bella huffed. “That’s not true. Why couldn’t she fall in love with you?”
“Look at me. I’m…I’m—”
“A good person with a big heart who deserves someone like Charlotte to love him. You’re not the same guy I knew when I left for Dallas three months ago. I can feel it. You were so angry for so long because of butting heads with Dad, it kinda just became part of your personality. You’re different.”
Malakai braced his hands on the bar counter and hung his head. “I’m terrified.”
Bella stretched her hand across the bar and covered his hand with hers. “I know. You’ve had so many people hurt you. Dad, then Mom, girls that made you think they cared and didn’t, and so many others. You’re gonna have to take a risk, Malakai.”
“I know,” he said softly.
“You know who you need to call, right?”
He lifted his gaze to Bella’s and chest constricted. His grandfather. First, he owed the man an apology, and second, he was the best person to seek out advice from. Nodding, he pulled his hand away and raked it through his hair.
Bella smiled. “Go call him. You’ll feel a ton better after you talk to him.”
“Okay.” He set his bowl in the sink and headed for his room. The closer he got, the harder his heart pounded. He was nervous, excited, scared, and a gambit of other emotions he didn’t have terms for. Slipping inside his room, he walked to his bed and sat on the edge.
He grabbed the phone from his nightstand, pulled up his grandfather’s name, and touched the call button with a shaky finger. Worry built in his chest. It had been so long since they’d spoken. What if his grandfather wanted nothing to do with him anymore? What if there was no fixing what he’d broken?
It rang a few times before his grandfather answered, laughing. “Well, hello, son. I’ve been waiting for you to call me.”
“You have?” Malakai’s voice broke.
“I would have called you, but I had a feeling I needed to wait until you were ready to talk.” Malakai could picture him sitting on the front porch, drinking his coffee.
Taking a deep breath, Malakai licked his lips. “I owe you an apology. A real one. Not the half-hearted, no-responsibility one I gave before. I behaved in a way that dishonored Grandma and you. I took for granted the people in my life and what they mean to me.”
His grandfather grunted an agreement, a cue that Malakai could continue.
