Wilted (17 page)

Even though her cough’s better, she still looks horrible. The morning sickness thing is really kicking her ass. The poor thing can’t seem to catch a break. I bet, between having pneumonia and this, she’s over lost fifteen pounds. Lucas has taken really good care of her since he and I had our little chat. I’m still not Team Lucas, but I will always be Team BFF, so Skylar is going to be whom I cheer for any day.

I still don’t agree with her keeping Sebastian in the dark about this baby. It’s wrong in every possible way and I’m afraid it’s going to blow up in her face. The girl is making one train wreck mistake after another, and honestly, I don’t know how much longer I can sit back and watch it happen. Right now, I don’t want to upset her by bringing anything up, but when she gets stronger, I plan on pushing her to face things. She can try to fool herself all she wants, but she’s still head over heels in love with Sebastian. She’s not going to be able to change her heart by pretending to build a life with Lucas. The only reason I haven’t said anything to her before now is that I know she’d turn the tables on me. And she’d be right to. It’s true. I’m still madly in love Nikolas Thorne. And, deep down, I know I always will be.

NIKOLAS

Rolling my eyes, I listen to this insane plan that my cousin has come up with. Even I know that when a girl tells you to leave her alone, she means it. Why can’t he see that, too? Maybe it’s because, unlike me, he won’t give up on love. Perhaps a small part of me hates him for that.

“I think you're a fucking idiot, Sebastian. She’s not gonna want to see you,” I warn.

“I can’t keep waiting for her to decide when the time is right, Nik. Every day that I have to wait is torture.”

“I’m telling you, dude, she’s going to hate you for showing up unannounced on her doorstep. She told you to give her space. Remember?”

“She already hates me, Nik. There’s no way that I can keep on like this. I need to see her.”

“What the hell did you do to mess things up in the first place? I mean, I never understood why the two of you broke up to begin with
.
One day I’m getting an elaborate wedding invitation hand delivered to me, and the next, you two are Splitsville. You can’t fool me, Cuz. I saw how much the two of you were in love with one another. That doesn’t just go away over something small.”

Taking a deep breath, he sighs. Even from over the phone, I can feel his regret and sadness.

“Everything that happened between the two of us had been all my fault. It’s not just something you can fix with an I’m sorry. It takes time to earn forgiveness, but I will do whatever it takes to make it right.”

“Did you fucking cheat on her?” It’s the only thing that makes sense, because I know he wouldn’t hit her.

“Fuck no, I didn’t cheat on her! Are you insane? I could never ever do that to her! Besides, have you forgotten how fucking hot she is? Why the hell would I ever want to cheat on that? I love her, man, with every breath in me. I always will. Besides dipshit, you’re one to talk. What the hell did you do to fuck things up with Kylie?”

“Mind your own damn business!” I snap a little harsher than I intend. There’s absolutely no way I’m getting into all of that with him. Besides, I’m too ashamed of what I’ve said and done to ruin things with her in the first place. Call me a coward, but I can’t bear to hear the truth, even from my own lips.

“Well, wish me luck. I’m on my way now to a meeting where she’ll be.”

Seriously? He’s a determined bastard, I’ll give him that much.

“Good luck and let me know what happens. Text me pictures of your injuries once she beats you half to death with her stilettos.”

“Fuck you!”

“Aww, how sweet of you Cuz, but you know I’m not into men. Don’t worry, I still love you though.”

“Ugh, Later.”

“Later.”

When I hang up the phone, I find myself becoming more and more jealous of Sebastian being in LA. It’s where I should be right now, instead of almost fourteen hundred miles away in Texas. He’s willing to do whatever it takes to get the woman he loves back. Even though he knows this may all explode in his face, he’s still willing to take a chance and fight for her. My chicken-shit ass should be willing to do the same for Kylie. Pride’s always been my worst enemy when it came to owning up to my mistakes. The more time that goes by, the worse my life seems to become. Every single day, I ache for her. Every single day, I regret losing the best thing that has ever happened to me.

With so much going on with the reconstruction of my new restaurant in Dallas, I’ve been swamped at work. The restaurant concept is actually a brilliant marketing idea of Kylie’s. The last time we were here in Dallas, we’d found this really cool old building in the downtown area. She bounced up and down when she saw that it was for sale. Instantly, I hesitated because I knew it would take a ton of renovations, but she was right. It’s the absolute perfect location for a restaurant. Secretly, I bought the place, wanting to surprise her the weekend we’d broken up. After losing her, I’ve done nothing but think about this place. It just feels like it belongs to us. Throwing my attention into the project has somehow made me feel closer to her. Now that it’s finished, I’m both scared and sad. It isn’t the same, opening this place without her. Honestly, I don’t know if I can.

Typically I always have my phone on me, but
I’m in such a hurry to meet with the inspector that I leave my phone at the hotel by accident. We still have several issues to fix in order to be able to meet certain building codes, so the meeting lasts all damn day.

When I finally get back to the hotel, it’s really late. I’m beyond beat and all I want to do is crash. The flashing light on my phone indicates I’ve got messages waiting for me.
Fuck!
The last damn thing I want to do is go through a bazillion messages on the damn thing. As I pick it up to toss it across the bed, I notice Sebastian’s name as the last person who’d called. Scrolling down, I see he’s called at least twenty times.

Laughing to myself, I guess he’s either calling to tell me how badly things have gone or how good they’ve turned out. Even though I love to prove him wrong, for his sake, I’m hoping it’s good news. I really want things to work between the two of them.

Throwing off my shirt, I call him back. When Skylar answers, I smile.
The sly son of a bitch has done it. He’s won her back.

“Nik?” Her voice shakes and I know right away that something isn’t right.

“Skylar, what’s wrong?”

“It’s... there’s been an accident. He walked out into traffic. I... I tried to stop him, but it was like he was in some sort of trance.”

“Calm down, Skylar, and tell me what happened? Is Sebastian all right?”

“A car hit him, Nik, and now he won’t wake up. I can’t get anyone here to tell me anything. Oh god! He can’t die… I need him. We need him.”

We? Why is she including me in on this?

“Where are you? What hospital?”

“We’re at Keck.”

“Hang tight, Skylar. He loves you more than anything, so trust me, he’s not going anywhere. I’m in Dallas, but I’ll be on the first flight out. Call me when you get any updates.”

“I will. Please hurry, Nik!”

Throwing on my shirt again, I grab my keys and head out the door. Other than losing Kylie, I don’t think I’ve ever been so terrified in all of my life. Sebastian’s all the family I have, or at least all that I claim anymore. We love each other just like brothers. In my eyes, he’s always been invincible, a powerful force to reckon with.
He can’t die.
Swallowing the fear, I know I can’t fall apart right now. When I get there, I’ll have to be strong and confident for Skylar. Calling the airport, I have my pilot ready the plane for LA. I’m not really a spiritual man, but I find myself drawn to pray.

Please God. Let him make it. Please.

KYLIE

When I see an upset Lucas coming back down the hallway, I know it isn’t the right time to talk to him about anything. From the looks of things, his conversation with Skylar had been an intense one. After walking into the hospital and finding Skylar pleading for Sebastian to live, I imagine he is pretty upset. So instead of pushing him to tell me anything, I leave him and go downstairs to check on Skylar. If I know my best friend at all, she’s blaming herself for everything. I’m pretty sure she’s a basket case right about now. Opening the door of the busy cafeteria, I spot her sitting in the corner. She’s leaning over the table with her head braced on her hands. From the shaking of her shoulders, I know she’s crying.

“Hey babe. You all right?” I ask, sitting beside her and putting my arm around her. Her head drops and her body grows tense. This poor girl has been through so much. I can’t even imagine myself in her shoes.

“I ruin everything.”

“No, you don’t, Skylar. I already told you, we’ll figure all of this out.”

“I told him, Kylie. I told him that I love Sebastian and how sorry I am for hurting him again.”

“And? What did he say?”

“He said he was letting go of me for now. What does that even mean anyway? Even though I told him I loved Sebastian, he seems to think I’m going to get hurt again. I don’t want him to hate me, but he needs to know that I’ve made my choice.”

“I think he’s just hurting right now. He probably just meant that he was always going to be there for you if you needed him.”

“I don’t think so. Oh, Kylie! Why do I have to hurt everyone? Why does this have to be so hard? Lucas is such a good person. I do love him, but I’m just not
in
love with him. You know?”

“Honey, listen to me. Hurt is a part of loving someone, but in the end, you still have to follow your heart. You can’t make yourself love someone that you don’t, Skylar.” You can’t make your heart unlove someone either.

Her bottom lip trembles and she throws herself into my arms and cries. All I can do is hold her and rub her back.

“You did the right thing, Skylar. I promise. You just have to give everything time. Healing isn’t easy. You know that better than anyone.” Hell. Who am I kidding? So do I.

“Thanks for dropping off my laptop, Evan.”

“Of course, it’s no trouble. But don’t worry about work, Kylie. I’ve got everything covered until you get back.”

“I’ll have the presentation ready on time, don’t worry. I’m going to do some work from here and home. If everything continues to improve, I should be back in the office in a few days.”