Page 67 of Wild Love
Cora approaches to take her hand. “Yeah, I heard that part. The neighbors might have too.”
At that, my sister throws her head back and laughs, then tugs Cora into a hug. One that has Cora looking completely taken aback.
When they pull away from each other, Willa asks, “What were you guys doing when I got here?”
“Listening to music.”
“I like listening to music.”
Watching them interact does something to my chest.
Cora eyes her warily. “What kind of music?”
Willa bites down on a smile, eyes slicing to mine for a beat. “All kinds. Can I join in?”
Cora brightens. “Really?”
A shrug from my sister. I might as well not be here at all. “Yeah. Show me what you like. Let’s go hang. I’ll even let Ford join us,” she teases.
Then they turn away, back toward the office. All I get is a wave over Willa’s shoulder, urging me along, followed by Cora blurting out, “Do you like Rage Against the Machine? Ford donated sperm so he could afford to go see them.”
My sister laughs and turns mocking eyes back on me. “Now there’s a story to pass down through the generations. Love that for Ford.”
And just like that, friends are made and embarrassingstories are told. I spend the afternoon watching them interact, soaking up the sight.
But my mind? My mind isalwayson Rosie. And obsessing over what the hell she andFuckboyare up to right now consumes me.
It makes me something I don’t think I’ve ever been.
It makes me jealous.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
FORD
Willaand I walk into the Rose Hill Reach, a pub that sits right on the water, and she looks around in wonder. “Damn, they really cleaned this place up. It used to be a total dump.”
She’s not wrong. It was a total dump when we were younger.Justdumpy enough that we all got away with drinking here before we were legal.
Now it screams elevated ski lodge. They have entirely redone the dock out front, providing a bridge out over the water to a massive floating patio. West and I met here for a beer the other day, and I couldn’t help but take a trip down memory lane while we chatted.
“Wanna sit outside?” Willa carries on without me saying anything. “It’s pretty nice tonight.”
The dock reminds me of Rosie. Sitting there with her, getting pushed into the lake, holding her.
“Nah, let’s sit inside. I can kick your ass at pool and buy you a drink.” Cora seemed pretty happy to spend her Friday night with West and the kids, so I might as well take a load off. Try to shake this funk I’ve been in.
Willa snorts a laugh and starts in that direction without complaint. “You owe me a lot more than a drink. Buy me this entire bar, Ford.”
“No.”
“Come on! I see so few benefits to being the little sister of the World’s Hottest Billionaire. I get radio silence, a secret niece”—she peeks over her shoulder at me—“who I’ll admit is really fucking cool, and what? I bet you’ll buy me shares in that genealogy testing company for Christmas.”
That makes me laugh.
But the laugh dies on my lips when we turn into the section of booths near the pool table and I’m met with a set of crystal blue eyes I’d know anywhere.
“Oh, thank god!” Willa announces when she sees Rosie andFuckboysitting together in their booth. Looking at him reminds me I really need to talk to Cora about how sometimes we just insult people with our eyes rather than our words. Or at least behind their backs. “Some people who aren’t Ford to hang out with.”
