Page 39 of Just A Little Chase

Chase wasn’t going to assume anything about what she wanted to have a private conversation with him about, and kept his tone casual as he asked, “Everything okay?”

She folded her arms on the table in front of her, her gaze direct and more serious than she’d been all evening. “With me, yes. As you can see, I’m great. I’m more concerned about you.”

“Because?”

She pursed her lips together, the faintest amount of annoyance flickering in her eyes, which was something he didn’t see often. “Oh, come on, Chase. Don’t be obtuse.”

He raised a brow and admitted to nothing.

“Okay, fine.” She sighed heavily. “I called the Meridian today to discuss a few things with Lauren about next year’s Future Fast Track charity ball. I know I’ve been in my own little bubble with Neil and should have called you earlier this week, but I didn’t, so when I was on the phone with Lauren, I asked her how everything went this past weekend at her sister’s wedding.”

His gut twisted at just the mention of Lauren’s name. “And?”

Billie held his gaze. “She said I should ask you.”

“It went just fine.”

Her eyes narrowed on him. “Then why did Lauren sound so… sad? And not like her normal, upbeat self? Something happened between you two, didn’t it?” she pressed. “And I’m not talking about sex, because… eww, you’re my brother. But I can see it in your eyes, the same way I heard it in Lauren’s voice. You’ve tried to be present tonight, and you’ve been great with Neil, but I know you, Chase. I’ve seen you when you’re grumpy and annoyed and standoffish, but for the first time since meeting you, you look sad. Maybe even defeated.”

He was so goddamn tired of trying to keep his walls raised high, of denying all the emotions that Lauren had cracked open inside him. “Yes,” he finally admitted. “Something… happened. And it scared the goddamn shit out of me.”

She broke out in a grin. “That’s good.”

He frowned at her in confusion. “Why is that good?”

“Because it tells me that your heart is working, and I don’t mean in an obvious, pumping blood kind of way,” she teased. “Being scared of feeling something means you’re human, and I know it’s hard to let yourself be vulnerable that way. And despite those walls you have up, and how gruff and tough you act, I already know you have the capacity to care very deeply.”

He scoffed. “We’ve discussed my upbringing. What the hell do I really know about love, Billie?”

She looked taken aback. “You know how to love, Chase. If you didn’t, I wouldn’t be here, sitting across from you, feeling like the luckiest sister alive because you searched for me and found me and made me your family. A man incapable of love wouldn’t have done that.”

He sat back, not only listening to his sister, but processing her words. He’d been unhappy, not just for the last four days, but for most of his life. Until Lauren.

“Chase, you can continue to bury yourself in work and tell yourself it’s for the best or you can put that brain of yours to work and accept that things don’t always have to be this way. You don’t have to be this way. You don’t have to be alone.”

His hand curled around his empty espresso cup as he met Billie’s gaze. “What if I hurt her?” he asked.

Billie leaned forward. “What do you think you’re doing now?” she challenged him. “That said, I’m going back to Neil and leave you to your thoughts.” She rose from her seat before he could push his chair back, and walked over and kissed his cheek. “Don’t let this chance at happiness slip away, big brother.”

She left him sitting there with the knowledge that he had one more chance to get this right with Lauren. Assuming she wasn’t so upset with him she wanted nothing to do with him now. But knowing her sweet, forgiving personality, he didn’t have much to worry about.

He just had to find the courage to approach her.

Chapter Sixteen

Lauren made it through the week on autopilot, barely aware of what she worked on, and by the time the weekend arrived, she was tired, weary, and wondering how long it was going to take for her to get over Chase. And if that was even possible.

After sleeping past noon on Saturday, which she never did, she finally shuffled out to the kitchen in her fuzzy slippers, not even caring that she looked a hot mess in her oldest, rattiest comfort pajamas, her hair an unkempt disarray around her head.

Her outward appearance definitely matched the morose way she was feeling inside, and she embraced the whole package, because it was her day off and she’d given herself this one last weekend to indulge in a good sulk before figuring out how she was going to explain to her parents and Gramps that she and Chase had called it quits. Her mother had left a few messages since the previous weekend, and Lauren called her back, only to get her voice mail. They’d been playing phone tag, but the truth of the matter was that she couldn’t avoid the topic of Chase forever, so that excruciating conversation was on the weekend’s docket. Ugh.

There was no denying that the painful way things had ended between them had felt as devastating as a breakup. Even more so than how things had ended with Greg, which told Lauren just how deeply she’d fallen for her grumpy, reluctant bachelor.

“Good morning!” Tara greeted her in a too chipper tone as her roommate exited her own bedroom, way too bright, fresh, and energetic for Lauren’s mood. “Good of you to join the land of the living.”

Lauren grunted in response as she rummaged through the refrigerator, grabbing the last container of the banana pudding she’d bought from a deli down the street. The rich, indulgent dessert with real bananas, whipped cream, and vanilla wafer cookies reminded her of the one her grandma used to make, and if this was her last day of wallowing, then she was going to make sure she at least enjoyed her favorite treat while she indulged in her pity party.

Taking her breakfast to the living room, she plopped down on the couch, removed the lid, and dove into the pudding.

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