Page 122 of The Heartbreaker
When she nodded, each dip of her head sent another tear down her cheek.
I wiped them away and pulled her against my chest, pressing my lips into the top of her head. “I promise it’s going to be fine.”
She didn’t respond. She just wrapped her arms around me and squeezed. “I’m going to order a rideshare and go home.”
“No—”
“Ridge, I cannot be here when you talk to Jana.”
The last thing I wanted was for her to go home in the emotional state that she was in, lie in her bed, and fucking stew over this. She was going to blame herself. She was going to lock herself inside her head. She was going to come up with conclusions that she didn’t need to make.
I couldn’t let that happen.
I wouldn’t let that happen.
I would resolve things with Jana, and then I would heal Addison—that was the only outcome.
I pulled back to hold her face. “Then, wait for me in here. I’ll talk to her in the living room, and I’ll come back once I’m done.”
She looked at me as though she didn’t know me. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why?”
It took her several seconds before she responded, “Because what if she doesn’t approve?”
I was right; she was already so far inside her head that she was hitting bottom.
“I don’t give a shit what she approves of or not. She’s not my mother, Addison. She can’t dictate who I see or who I date or who I bring into my life.”
“But she can.” She bit her lip. “She’s Daisy’s mom. The weight that she holds”—she took a breath—“is epic, Ridge. Think about it. Really, really think about it.”
I understood what she was saying and where those fears could come from.
But even though Jana was her mother, I was her father. I had an equal stake in this. Daisy spent the majority of her time with me, and Jana knew that if I was going to bring a woman around my daughter—and she would soon know that was my plan—then that woman had to have a significant meaning in my life.
By the end of tonight, Jana would know exactly what Addison meant to me and the future I wanted to have with her.
Only then could Jana make her decision.
“Listen to me”—I lowered my face so there were only inches separating us—“I hear you. I know where you’re coming from. But I need you to hear me and know where I’m coming from.” I pressed my thumbs into her cheeks. “I don’t want you to leave. I’m asking you to stay, and I don’t ask for much.”
“You can’t say that to me.”
“I just did.” I held her hands, and with the tightness I used to clutch them, that was how strongly I stared into her eyes. “I’m confident this is all going to work out, Addison. If I wasn’t, I wouldn’t have asked you to spend the night.” I waited several seconds before I nodded toward the bed. “Wait for me. I’ll be back soon.” When she didn’t move or respond, I added, “Please.”
She slowly pulled her hands from mine and went over to the bed, lifting the comforter and sinking beneath it. I walked over and held her cheek, kissing the top of her head, leaving my lips there to breathe her in. My eyes closed the moment I got the smallest hint of her scent.
I left her in the bedroom, shutting the door behind me, and since I didn’t see Jana anywhere in the kitchen or living room, I headed straight for the wet bar. I poured vodka onto ice, forgoing the olive juice—it was filler that I didn’t need tonight—and I carried the glass over to the couch and took a seat.
Within a few minutes, Jana was descending the stairs. She came over to the mouth of the sectional, her arms crossed overher chest, an expression on her face that was half exhaustion, half frustration. “She’s asleep.”
I nodded. “Do you want a drink?”
Her arms dropped, and she glanced up at the ceiling, her hands holding the top of her head by her hairline. “I don’t know what the hell I want right now. All I know is that what I saw … I definitely didn’t want that.”
When she finally looked at me, I pointed at a spot toward the middle of the couch. “Sit.”
“Ridge”—she clenched her hands as her arms dropped at her sides—“I’m so angry with you right now, I could scream.”
