Page 280 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 11
But I think turning up drunk on her doorstep in the middle of the night would end up with me being grounded again. And despite the alcohol coursing through my veins, I knew a freshly baked cookie wasn’t worth it. No matter how good they were. So I walked in the opposite direction of the Caldwell mansion.
I exhaled slowly as I wandered through the grass. The fresh air was already helping clear my head. I made it to the fence of my grandfather’s property and tossed my shoes over before climbing over it. I jumped down into the plush grass and grabbed my things. I started humming as I walked up to the treehouse.
There were old pictures of my dad and his friends up there that I loved. I’d recreated a few of them with my friends over the years. Like the one of us hanging out at Jacob’s grandparents’ pool. It always felt like I was living in some kind of parallel universe. Maybe making the same choices and mistakes that they had growing up.
There were four of them. My dad, his brother Rob, and their best friends Matt and Mason Caldwell. And there were four of us. Me, Sophie, Axel, and Jacob. It was always the four of us. Just like it had always been the four of them.
But we hadn’t felt much like a foursome recently. It was usually just me and Soph hanging out. I missed our lives before high school. It seemed like everyone else around me was looking forward. To college and beyond. And I just kept looking back.
Maybe that’s what happened when you fell in love when you were young. You just got...stuck.
I sighed and looked up at the old treehouse. Yeah, I was definitely stuck. My past was all tangled up with Axel. My whole life had been tangled up in him. And I was having a hell of a time unraveling myself from his grip. I was so tired of going backwards. For once, I was ready to look forward too.
Maybe I was drawn to the treehouse tonight because I needed to say goodbye to the past. To finally take a leap forward. I was just so tired of my heart aching. And saying goodbye to the past felt like saying goodbye to our four. How was I supposed to say goodbye to all I ever knew?
I needed a sign. Just...something. Anything. I stared at the treehouse in the moonlight. And again, I had the oddest sense that it was calling to me. That it had all the answers I was seeking. Maybe I was drunk. But I felt a little magic in the air tonight.
I stared down at my feet in the grass. My father had stood right here when he was my age. So had Uncle Rob, Uncle Mason, and Uncle Matt. They’d all made mistakes and come out the other side for the better. And most importantly, they were all happy now. They were still a four after all these years. They’d figured it out. And that gave me confidence that I could figure it out too. I could leave my feelings for Axel in the past and we could all still be friends. I didn’t have to let go of the past completely. I just had to change things up a bit so it didn’t feel like I was drowning every day.
I took a deep breath. So yeah, this treehouse did have answers. It had kept my dad and his friends together. And it could keep me and my friends together too. Somehow. I’d figure it out. I had all night to soak in the old treehouse’s wisdom.
I made my way up the rickety old ladder. I pushed the door in the floor up.
“The sign says no girls allowed,” said a deep voice.
I screamed at the top of my lungs.
Scarlett and the Kiss Thief - Chapter 28 – Truth or Dare
Saturday
My foot slipped on the ladder and I started to fall. But a strong hand clamped around my wrist, holding me in place. I quickly regained my footing and stared up at...my past.
I cursed under my breath. “You scared the crap out of me, Axel.”
“What? Were you expecting someone else?”
Actually, when I’d heard the deep voice, I’d thought it might be my kiss thief, lurking in here waiting for me. But I didn’t dare say that out loud. “No, I was expecting no one.”
He stared down at me. “Well unfortunately I’m here. And like I said. No girls allowed.”
I laughed.
He smiled.
I didn’t think the no girls allowed sign was the sign I’d been asking for. But I was very aware of the fact that I’d felt the treehouse calling to me tonight. And that Axel had been sitting in here the whole time. I tried to shake away the thought, but it was impossible when I was staring up into his blue eyes. “Help me up.”
He pulled me up into the treehouse, abandoning his no girls allowed policy pretty quickly.
“What are you doing up here?” I asked.
He shrugged. “Thinking about our project.” He put his hands behind his head and leaned against one of the old wooden walls.
“You were up here thinking about our coding project? Instead of celebrating your victory?” It was very unlike him to be thinking about homework on a Saturday night.
He shrugged again.
“Dreaming of princesses and princes, huh?” I scooted forward to see the wall of pictures. I smiled at my dad, Uncle Rob, Uncle Matt, and Uncle Mason all looking young and ridiculous. The four of them had stayed friends their whole lives. I wanted that to be true for the four of us too. But our four was a lot more complicated than theirs.
