Page 88 of Worlds Collide

No, that would’ve been mean, right?

I open the back door of my black Escalade and look at Rich in a panic. “I love him.” It sounds as desperate as I feel.

“I know you do, buddy,” he tells me without being a smartass. I’m more glad than ever that we got Lee—the driver we pay but rarely call—to drive us today, so Rich can be in the back seat with me. “It’s going to be okay,” he says soothingly while I fasten my seatbelt.

I breathe out hard a handful of times while Lee drives away from CJ’s apartment building, just trying to keep myself from throwing away my stupid self-improvement plan and going straight back to him.

If he finds someone else, well then, I’ll just win him fucking back. As far as I’m concerned, CJ Sounders is mine, and when the time comes, I’m going to do everything in my power to show him how good we can be together.

“Where are we supposed to go now?” Rich asks me, and I only remember then that I didn’t tell him. I get CJ’s mom’s letter from my pocket and give it to Rich to read.

“We’re going to Bruce’s office,” I answer him, mentioning our business manager. “I bet he knows a good lawyer or two.”

“Damn, that bitch,” Rich hisses as he reads. “You have the note too?”

“Yup.” I nod and give it to him.

Just one weekafter getting the letter from CJ, my lawyer nods at me before he exits the police station we arrived at an hour ago. He helped me put this all together—except for the paparazzi waiting outside, that was arranged by Cindy.

I spent the week after seeing CJ continuing preparations for the move. There’s been a lot to do in the three weeks I’ve been out of Cove. Packing up everything I can’t live without for a year—which is a lot, it turns out—finding an apartment in Manhattan to rent, contacting the therapist Adrian recommended, and telling the few people I like who live over there about the move.

Tassie is excited and wants me to go antique shopping with her so she can tell me all the things I need to get my new apartment set up—I let her think that I’m agreeable—and Ed tells me he’s excited to have me closer and that his youngest son, Larson, wants me to give him guitar lessons.

I mean, if your father is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and your mother is a legendary country star, I don’t know why you would ask anyone else for guitar lessons, but I took the request as a compliment.

“You know I love this plan,” Rich tells me quietly as I stand stock still, staring at the station’s doors. “But if you have any second thoughts, then we can just leave out the back. Lee will meet us in an alley or something.”

I snort and shake my head at him. “I’m not having any secondthoughts. I was actually trying to figure out if I really have everything I need for my trip.” I turn to look at him. “And if you do as well...” I trail off. I know Rich doesn’t want to move to New York, but he’s doing it to stay with me. I told him he could stay and just keep Hawk safe with Tate but he only gave me alookin answer.

“You know I do have everything I need. I’m just gonna miss it here.”

“We’ll be back,” I whisper.

“I know.” He nods stoically and looks at the doors as if the topic is closed. Which I suppose it is.

I pull my shoulders back and walk determinedly to the exit. Then I steel myself for the flashes that are about to go off, and nod at Rich to open the door for me.

The mob of men with cameras don’t disappoint, and I’m pleasantly surprised that Cindy went above and beyond and even got some reporters here, with big cameramen behind them and microphones in their hands.

“Wolf, were you arrested?”

“What did you do?”

“Does it have anything to do with your time at rehab?”

I ignore all the questions and go directly to a skinny guy with a microphone pointed at me. He has a polo with the logo for NFN—which happens to be one of the news stations my step-uncle owns—so I stop right in front of him because he didn’t shout any awful questions.

“I just got a restraining order,” I tell him as calmly as I can.

“Against who?” he asks urgently, I see a gleam of success in his eyes.

“Against Mary Anne Clemson-Sounders, for stalking, harassment, and threats and intimidation. And I know what your next question is—yes I have proof, otherwise I wouldn’t have been ableto get a restraining order, now would I?” It feels way too good to say all of that out loud.

“Are you still in a relationship with her son?”

“No,” I say through gritted teeth. “CJ and I aren’t together, but I didn’t and won’t ever get a restraining order against him.” I make sure to clear that up real fast. “CJ knows about everything that just happened inside the station, and I want to thank the Los Angeles Police Department for being so helpful to me and for protecting our great city.”

With that said, I walk away and push through everyone to get to the SUV.

---