Page 58 of Playing For Keeps
“Then you’re good to leave.” She leads us out of the room.
“Thank you.” I grab Jami’s hand. “Let’s go.”
We say goodbye and start toward the door.
He stops before we get to the entrance of the waiting room. “Melanie, Aiden, and Hunter are in there wanting to see you.”
“We can go in.”
Jami moves in my way. “Aiden and I… We’re not in a good place. I don’t want him to give you any trouble.”
“I know he’s mad about us, but he needs to get over it.”
Jami scans my face with something I can’t place in his eyes. He’s hiding something from me. My brain scrambles for an answer.
“Jami, what aren’t you telling me?”
“I’ll explain when we get to the hotel. I just want you to be prepared for when he sees us together. It’s not going to go well.”
“He needs to get used to it sooner or later. I’m not going to let you go, so if he wants to be in my life, he needs to accept our relationship.”
“Okay.” Jami holds my gaze for a moment, then gestures to the door. “Let me lead.”
I nod, and he guides me to the waiting area. I hold my head high, preparing to fight for Jami and me. My brother needs to learn I’m capable of making my own decisions, and he can’t interfere anymore.
We step into the room. Hunter’s back is to me as he speaksto Aiden, who’s sitting next to Melanie. She notices us the second we get to the area.
She jumps up from her chair. “Oh my god, Dori. You’re okay.”
Hunter spins our way as Aiden stands. Relief washes over Hunter’s face, but Aiden stares at Jami like he’s about to tear his arm off. Jami tenses and pulls me close.
Mel gives me a hug. “I’m so glad we have you back.”
“I’m glad to be back.” I stare at Aiden until his heated gaze finds mine.
He blinks and stays where he’s at.
Hunter strides toward me, so I break away from Mel.
“Beauty…” He moves to embrace me but stops. His guilt-ridden eyes shift between Jami and me. “You have to believe I never wanted this. It wasn’t supposed to go down like it did.”
“I know, but I’m tired and want to get out of here. We can talk about this later. I need to rest before I can work through what happened and why it did.” I lean into Jami for support. “Jami told me a little bit, but it’s too much for me to discuss right now.”
“Understood.” Hunter swallows hard. “Trust that I’m doing everything to make sure they all stay locked away for good.”
“Thank you.” I peek around him to see Aiden.
He’s staring at us, frozen. I can’t read him. His expression is blank, but the energy in the room is thick with tension.
I release Jami’s hand and take a step toward Aiden. “Are you going to say anything?”
“I… I’m glad you’re okay.” He takes two long strides and hugs me. “I love you, sis.”
My insides warm. Maybe there’s hope that we can work out our issues. “I love you too, but we have a lot to talk about.”
He pulls away. “I know.”
I glance at Jami. “Can you take me to the hotel now? My nerves are fried, and I?—”
