Page 27 of Exposed

“Nigel, have you been skeeting in my juice?”

He cocked his head to the side. “Shooting clay targets around your juice? No, I haven’t been skeet shooting in ages. I prefer large game hunting.”

“I meant like…cumming.”

“Where are you coming?”

“Where are you cumming?” I asked.

“I’m confused. Are we going somewhere? Am I invited on your morning date to meet Brooklyn?” He looked down at his lederhosen. “I’ll need to change into something more appropriate. I want her to like me as much as Kennedy likes me.”

What was he talking about? He never wore appropriate clothing. “No, Nigel. I’m asking you if you ejaculate in my juice?”

He raised his eyebrows. “Do you want me to?”

“No.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” he said and started walking away.

“Nigel, don’t you dare ejaculate in my beverages!”

But he didn’t respond.

Fuck.That did not go how I wanted it to. Now it seemed like the secret ingredient wasn’t Nigel’s skeet. And now somehow it was going to be. I shook my head. That wasn’t important right now. I just needed to stop drinking it.

What mattered was that I was going to be late. And 16 years ago, I’d had a bad habit of not showing up for Brooklyn when she needed me. She needed to know that I wasn’t the same guy.

I took a deep breath. But…I was the same guy. In the most important way: I was still in love with her. And I wasn’t sure if she loved me anymore. Tanner may have been hanging out with Brooklyn a lot. But he was wrong that Brooklyn was ready for a proposal. When she’d lost her mom, she’d been broken. When she’d lost her uncle, she broke again. She’d already lost so much. And now her husband?

I clenched my jaw, trying to not think about those words. I tried to just focus on Brooklyn.

I knew what it felt like to lose my fiancée. To lose her. It was devastating. All consuming. That’s how she was feeling right now. Right now she just needed me. I’d waited 16 years to be with her. Brooklyn hated wasting time, but I’d wait a fucking lifetime for her to be mine again.

Chapter 12

Sunday

Brooklyn

Matt hadn’t texted me back. I was pretty sure he was upset about me breaking a promise. And I’d broken two. First marriage. First child. I knew why he wasn’t texting me back.

When Tanner arrived to watch Jacob, I told him I no longer needed a babysitter.

But Tanner told me that Matt had just accidentally slept in. That he was definitely coming. I wasn’t sure that was true though. Because I’d been standing on this bridge like an idiot for ten minutes.

I stared out at the ducks swimming in the water. I remembered Matt getting on one knee and pulling out a hotdog. I smiled. He’d asked me to be his girlfriend instead of proposing.

Maybe Matt forgot about our time here. Maybe he didn’t even know what I was referring to when I said to meet at our spot in Central Park. Maybe I’d had it all right the first time. That he’d forgotten all about me. For years, I’d believed I was forgettable. I’d felt forgettable to him.

Standing on this bridge with Matt that first time was a great memory. One of my favorites. But I also remembered that later that day, I broke up with Matt. We hadn’t even lasted one day as boyfriend and girlfriend. Because I’d still been his dirty little secret. And he didn’t stand up for me when I needed him. Matt always had a bad habit of not showing up when I needed him.

But I still waited.

I waited another five minutes until I knew in my heart he wasn’t coming. I’d mourned Matt like he was dead. And I knew Matt thought I was actually dead. But his ghost had haunted me too. God, and now that I remembered what he smelled like… I closed my eyes and imagined breathing in his exhales.

“Brooklyn.”

I spun around.

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