Page 61 of Lost Love

“Pepper, are you okay?” Lourde and Olivia crowded down beside me.

“My ankle. I think I twisted it when I fell.”

“Let me get some help.” Olivia left as I tried poking my head up and over to see if Connor was okay.

Francesca was by his side, pulling him away from the commotion. “Stop this immediately!” she screamed out in distress. “There are cameras everywhere!”

Oh God, she was right. I looked around to see customers with their phones like it was a fucking concert, and we were the live act. Except Manhattan royalty was in a fistfight, and all because of me.

I put my head in my hands, my breath lodged in my throat.

Shit, what have I done?

* * *

Lourde insisted on taking me home, and after hobbling into bed, she sat beside me while Barrett waited in my living room.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, emotion clogging my throat.

“What are you sorry for? Those jerks shouldn’t have laid a finger on you!”

“I know, but the evening’s ruined.” An eruption of emotion engulfed my body, and wetness pricked behind my eyes. Then uncontrollable tears streamed down my cheeks.

“Oh, honey, why are you crying? You never cry!” She placed her hand on my arm, surprise etched on her porcelain face.

“I must be hormonal.” I cried, overwhelmed at my sudden and rare onset of emotion.

The chimed sound of a message distracted me from full-blown crying. When I turned my phone over, his name appeared, and my breathing became rushed as my heart rate soared.

Connor.

Quickly, I picked it up, holding it in a way that shielded it from Lourde’s view.

Connor:Send them away, or I will.

“What is it? You’re blushing.”

I looked up to find Lourde staring.

I let out a nervous laugh and turned my phone face down on the bed.

“It’s Jake, isn’t it? Are you guys working things out?”

“We’re trying to, yes…” I agonized. But it wasn’t exactly a lie. Certainly better thanyour brother is stalking me, waiting for you to leave.

The phone rang, and I lifted it quickly to my ear.

“Jake,” I answered casually, but inwardly my heart thumped like a herd of elephants in the wild.

Connor groaned in frustration. “Get rid of them now, or I will.” His razor-sharp tone sent shivers up my spine, taking me back to the dirty talk in the bedroom.

“Okay, okay, we’re going!” Lourde said, getting up from the bed. “Keep the ice on that.”

I placed my hand over the receiver. “I will, thanks, hun.”

“Lunch tomorrow?”

“Okay.” I’d agree to anything just to get her out of the apartment.

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