Page 16 of Knight's Last Chance

Rhea

“Are you sure about this?”

I force my eyes away from the window and the passing scenery to my brother’s fiancé. She’s watching with me with a worried look in her eyes which confuses me a bit. Sky and I only met yesterday, but she watches like she’s known me all my life.

“I didn’t think you’d show up,” I say, ignoring her previous question.

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“I . . . I mean, we’ve only known each other for a day, and you just got engaged,” I say, my eyes dropping to the large diamond ring on her finger. “I probably disrupted your celebration with my brother.”

“Your brother has me for the rest of his life; a few hours apart will not kill him,” she says, offering me a smile I can’t return. “Besides, I volunteered to come. I figured there are things you don’t want your brother to know.”

She’s right.

When I woke up this morning, my first instinct was to run away from the hotel and get as far from Knight as possible. The only problem was I had nothing. The clothes I had worn the night before were still soaked from the rain in a heap on the hotel room floor. I had no money, and I’d left my phone back home.

So, I made do with what was available. I grabbed Knight’s phone and called Priest, telling him I had a project waiting for me back at school and that he should send someone to deliver my things to the hotel. My brother wasn’t pleased to learn that I was at a hotel with his best friend after being caught in a storm after an impromptu ride, but I assured him we’d spent the night in different rooms. I guess that was enough to appease him, and he promised to send my things over. Though he couldn’t quite hide the hurt in his voice that I wouldn’t be coming back to say goodbye.

I never expected his fiancé to show up at the hotel. Or that she’d catch sight of a sleeping Knight, his naked back on display with the sheets bunched at his feet, when she dropped off my bags.

“Promise me you won’t tell Priest about what you saw,” I whisper, running my eyes over her face. “I hate to ask you to lie to him, but I don’t want him finding out what happened between me and his best friend.”

Sky places a hand on my leg and nods. “It’s not my place to tell him your business, Rhea,” she assures me. “I don’t know what exactly happened between you and Knight, but if I am here if you want to talk about it.”

I nod, my eyes shifting back to the window. I watch as familiar landmarks pass by with each mile we cross toward the airport. The world blurs into the background as my eyes fill up, I force the tears back.

No, I refuse to cry.

A year ago, I was in this very position, bawling my eyes out on the way to the airport just because my crush hadn’t shared my feelings, but this . . . what I feel for Knight is more than just a crush.

“Have you heard the story about the heiress of Mount Bonnell?” I ask, staring unseeingly out the window.

“You mean the legend of the tragic girl who jumped off a cliff after the death of her lover?”

I chuckle at her words, but this time tears spill down my cheeks. “I’ve lived in Austin all my life, and I’d never heard of the story until last night. You’ve been in Austin for a couple of weeks and already know it?”

“I come from a small town, Rhea. I was curious to learn everything about the city and its history and landmarks. Why did you bring it up?”

“I feel like I am slowly becoming that girl,” I say, turning to face Sky. “Every moment I spend close to Knight, I find myself sucked deeper and deeper into his world. Around him, nothing matters. Not the past, not the future. Nothing matters but him.”

“Perhaps he feels the same way.”

I shake my head. “He rejected me a year ago when I confessed my love to him.”

“People change, Rhea, and so do feelings and circumstances.”

“You could be right,” I whisper. “But what if you are wrong? What if nothing has changed? I mean, can we even be together if we want to be? He’s Priest’s best friend and the vice president of Steel Order. No way would Knight ever choose me over all of that. I don’t think I could live through another rejection. Maybe I wouldn’t jump off a mountain, but I would feel hollow and broken inside all the same.”

Sky risks a glance at me as she maneuvers her small SUV—a gift from my brother—through traffic. “Your brother might happen to be the president of the Steel Order club and one of the most feared men in Austin, but he’s softer than a teddy bear for the people he loves, and he adores you. I was nervous to meet you because I know how important you are to him. You’re his pride and joy, you have to know he only ever wants you to be happy and safe. I’m sure he’d come around to the idea of you and Knight together. And if he gives you any grief, he can answer to me.” Sky finishes with a saucy shake of her head, and I bite back a laugh.

Priest promised me that my future sister-in-law is a harmless little thing, but hearing her threaten to take my brother to task on my behalf makes me proud for some reason. All too soon, we’re pulling up at the airport, and I find myself not wanting to say goodbye to her.

I like her, I realize.

Truth is, I liked Sky from the moment I met her. Anyone who makes my brother happy is a good person in my books, but I feel closer to her now.

“Let’s be friends,” I tell her, already predicting we’re going to be the best of friends. We’ll need to stick together when it comes to handling my brother after all.

---