Page 7 of Theo's Forever Love

“I… I have a voicemail from Jed?” Cora choked out. “It sounded. I… He works at the North Avenue Live bar, near to my brother's coffee shop… doesn’t he drink there in the evenings?” I glanced up at Lilia’s tear filled eyes. “Oh my God. What has happened?” Cora sobbed out in a roar as she dropped to her knees in the mud. “I…”

“Call them.” I whispered out handing across the satellite phone to Cora as Dylan knelt down beside her and comforted her. “Or—” I turned to Dylan. “You find out what’s happening?” I passed the phone to Dylan and began to pace knowing out here until I knew the situation there was nothing I could do.

I needed facts. Then I could deal with whatever was going on.

Dylan nodded at me as Cora passed me her cell and I found the number and dialed it, waiting anxiously for the line to connect. I walked away from the group so I could hear myself think and gather my composure on the situation. I needed to be able to give whatever news was shared with me, back in a calm manner.

It didn’t matter though as, in that moment, a car beeped alerting us to their presence. I turned around to see all eyes looking at the car, knowing that in my heart the guys had put a plan in motion, but how had they found us? No one knew how to reach this path. I made sure it remained between me and… oh fuck… please no.

“Ollie’s here, Connor—” Lilia shouted as I glanced up at her and saw the group of other men surrounding her but one remained sitting in the car refusing to leave his seat.

“Cora—” Ollie knelt as the two of us pulled back. “Sweetheart, I need to talk to you. It’s your mom, darling?” He choked out as he gathered her in his arms. “Arlo, Paxton and Reed are on their way to her, but we said we’ll come and get you.”

“We?” she forced the single word out. “You didn’t need to.”

“I did,” the guy whispered as Cora forced herself to stand. “Ollie didn’t know where this place was and would get lost. I bet you didn’t find it easily even without our instructions. We couldn’t waste any time.”

“You’re Hardin and…” she pointed at the other guy with his arm wrapped around him. “You’re Anthony.”

“Bro,” I whispered, before nodding at Hardin. The two of them sheepishly averted their eyes from me. “Please tell me you didn’t…”

The girls walked over to the car and gasped when they opened the door and started talking to each other and the guy. My chest ached but the pain instantly burned and turned to anger. I thought I was free. That this was my time to live again and he couldn’t just leave it. I’d have given anything to see him months ago and warranted to know the reasons behind what happened—even craved his attention, but now I loathed to be in his presence.

He couldn’t even respect our past.

Why not reach out to the rescue teams?

He could have found another way but instead he wanted to cause me pain.

“Theo…” I whispered, walking toward him. “You came back here, you…” He sucked in a breath as I instantly reached for Dylan and he wrapped his arm around me. “You.”

“Jesse, no, I came because I had to.” Theo snapped back. “I had to help. You know that. Don’t make me out to be a bad person here.”

“Bad person?” I laughed loudly. “You are the devil incarnate. Please, don’t—” I choked out. “At this minute, you are not my concern. I need to get everyone packed up and out of Pennsylvania.” He hissed out. “Away from Sugarloaf Knob Mountain and the fuck away from you,” he shouted out. “Go and pack up and get yourself settled between the cars,” I stated before turning to face Cora. “Let’s get you to your family. If you want to travel with the others and follow us guys?—”

“Okay,” Cora whispered out. “I’ll go and get sorted.”

My heart squeezed tightly as I took in the picture before me and realized this was one photograph I never needed to capture in reality.

My brother was a grade A dick, and at this moment I hoped he could read every thought I was thinking about him. He knew what he was doing by packing the cars in such a way that space was limited and Theo had to remain here with me.

“We’ll be back in a day or so as we now know where you are.” Hardin winked at us. Fucker. “He must think I was born yesterday and couldn’t read his thoughts. That the smirk plastered across my brother's face wasn’t an instant plan they’d formulated together. It was as if the two of them knew something that I didn’t. It’s not like it mattered as I glanced to my side and saw the guy who’d hurt me so much.

Anthony knew I couldn’t leave my post, and I needed my vehicle to get around. Theo’s gaze caught mine as he grabbed his kit (the same bag I remember from our adventures all those years ago) and I told him to follow me to the post where we’d be situated for the night.

At this moment, I hated my brother and Hardin for putting me in this position.

I hated the fact even more as our arms brushed against one another, as we fell into sync. That the spark and need between the two of us was still there. That the want, need and desire had never left…

Deep down even more, I was more frustrated at the fact of knowing I was totally screwed if I didn’t keep my distance from him.

CHAPTER 8

Theo

Icould have been more forceful and demanding, telling Anthony and Hardin to hold up and let me rearrange the luggage they’d all piled into the back so that little me could squeeze into one of the seats and make the journey back with them. The hostility that was evident throughout Jesse's whole body was the telltale sign that I should've pushed, but I couldn’t do it—not to that sobbing girl who needed to get home, and not to Anthony.

I knew the journey here was going to be hard, but the confessions and stories that Anthony told me on the journey hit me hard. I was the first to admit after what I’d done my backbone had grown stronger and tougher but within the space of less than fifteen minutes of being trapped in the tight, confined space with these people and realizing exactly the effects of what I’d done to Jesse over the last twelve months, he’d instantly broken through every shield I’d put up around myself.

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