Page 35 of More Trouble
“You’ve got good friends here too.” I ran a hand along the curve of her waist, knowing how ticklish she was there and how it would affect her. “Scarlett’s going to need loads of help.” I couldn’t resist going for her Achilles heel. Willa would never abandon Scarlett in her time of need.
She propped herself up on one elbow and turned her face to mine. “Apparently, I have a boyfriend here too. Although I’m not sure how good he is.” She wrinkled her nose.
“If you did come back, he’d be the best boyfriend you’ve ever had. Loyal, honest, reliable.”
Willa reached down to pick her shirt up from the floor and struggled into a sitting position, before pulling it around her naked body. “Really? You can change?” Her eyebrows raised.
“Willa, I’m a better man than the kid you dated.” I sat up too, finding my boxers and pulling them on. Naked, I felt I was at a disadvantage in this conversation.
“You’d need to prove it first.”
“Come on, everything I’ve done for Scarlett these past couple of days. How I’ve handled the Maddox and Lyla situation. Getting the job I always wanted at the Country Club. I have grown up.” I needed her to believe me. “I’m not the same person I was at eighteen.”
“I want to believe you. Andre, I really do.” She stood up and walked towards the door. “But honestly, that shouldn’t have happened. I needed comfort and you were there. I can’t allow for it to happen again.”
And just like that, she was gone. I heard the door to the bathroom shut and lock and sensed it was my time to leave. Sadly, I dragged on the rest of my clothes and made my way to the door.
“You know where I am if you need me,” I called to the closed bathroom door, hearing a muffled reply I couldn’t make out. “See you in the morning. I’ll pick you up so we can go get Scarlett.”
It was hard leaving her. What had happened between us was big. I knew she’d need time to come to terms with it. Willa wasn’t the type of woman to have a one-night stand.
By the time I saw her again in the morning, I suspected any progress we’d made would have disappeared and we’d be back at square one.
I drove home and found Lyla and Maddox in the kitchen. They were eating takeout pizza and I swiped a slice. Somehow, I’d found my appetite again.
“How’s Scarlett?” Lyla asked immediately.
“She’s in the hospital,” I replied between mouthfuls. “She fainted when we got back from the funeral home. There was blood.”
“Oh my God, Andre, why didn’t you tell us?”
I shrugged. “There wasn’t time. We had to get her there and I didn’t think to call you.”
“We?” Maddox raised his eyebrows.
“Willa and me.”
He nodded knowingly as he chewed on a pizza slice. “Right.”
“Scarlett’s going to need lots of support when she comes out of the hospital, so Willa’s agreed to stay.”
“What? For good? It would be fantastic to have her back home.”
For once, I couldn’t disagree with my sister’s enthusiasm.
“I need to tell Ianthe,” said Lyla. “I’ll be back in a minute.” She headed off to her room, leaving Maddox and I alone.
He didn’t say anything to start with, choosing instead to carry on eating. After a couple of mouthfuls, he looked at me. “What happened, Dre? What aren’t you telling us?”
“That transparent, huh?”
“I haven’t known you all this time without picking up on a thing or two.” The corner of his mouth quirked up. “Like I knew you were going to beat the crap out of me the other night when you caught me with Lyla.”
I snorted. “If you knew, then why the hell didn’t you make a run for it?”
“I figured it would make at least one of us feel better about the situation.”
There seemed little point in keeping what had happened from Maddox. “I slept with her.” Saying the words out loud made them mean so much more. I wanted it to be more with Willa. I always had.
