CHAPTER ONE
Sitting on the plane, earbuds crammed into my ears, listening to Evanescence, it felt like the weight of the world was on my shoulders. In just a matter of days, every part of my life had gone to shit—my career, my schooling, my family life, of course, my love life.
I’d thrown it all away, my perfect plan... and for what?
A man that couldn’t stand by me in one of the worst moments of my life?
A man who bailed at the first sign of trouble?
But what had I really expected from Jace? Did I expect him to profess his undying love? Go against what I’d said and follow me to the airport anyway in some crazy, romantic gesture? After everything I’d done—basically calling him a man whore, doubting him and his intentions at every turn, pushing him away, telling him I didn’t need his help when what I’d really wanted was for him to do anything but buckle against my stubborn attitude...
Get real, Andy. Shit like that only happens in books and movies.
The honest truth was, I knew there wasn’t anyone to blame for my life falling apart but me. I might not have caused my brother’s accident, and there might not have been a way for me to have prevented it, but I had pushed Sean away, and then Jace. I was the reason I was sitting all alone on that fucking plane, bawling my eyes out, so damned delusional that I could actually smell Jace’s citrusy scent, could feel the weight of his stare, the heat of his body next to mine.
Just watch, I’d open my eyes and probably have a pregnant woman next to me, or an old man going home to see his grandkids. Only...
I saw his mouth moving—that beautiful, perfect mouth—but I could only hear Amy Lee’s haunting voice in my ears. As those warm brown eyes held mine, I squinted and tried to figure out why I couldn’t hear him, but I was in too much shock to register that I needed to remove my earbuds... so he did it for me.
“Hey,” he said, still holding the earbuds in his hands.
I just kept staring, tears still trickling down my cheeks, because my brain still hadn’t remembered how to execute primary functions, like speaking.
“I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you, but I can’t let you do this alone,” he continued, setting the earbuds in my lap. “Actually, no.” He shook his head. “I’m not sorry for going behind your back to be here. I just hope you’re not so pissed at me that you don’t want me sitting in this seat next to you.”
“I—I—“ My tears of sadness morphed into hysterics. I didn’t know what I felt, other than relief, relief at not having to face Sean and my parents and my brother lying in a hospital bed alone. Relief that he hadn’t given up on me. Relief that he was sitting there, waiting for some kind of coherent response from me. “I am—I mean, I’m not.” I bit at the inside of my cheek. “Thank you,” I finally said.
Relief swept over his features as the smile pulled at his lips. “Good, because they’re about to take off and I don’t think there are any seats left on the plane.”
Just about the time that smile started reaching sexy smirk status, it all started to hit me—him leaving me in the terminal, thinking that he wouldn’t show up, wouldn’t say goodbye, that he’d decided I was too much to handle—and that’s when I got mad.
“Hey!” he shouted when I punched him in the arm instead of taking his hand. “What was that for?”
“For making me think you’d left me for good.”
His small chuckle warmed my insides. “You’re not getting rid of me that easy,” he said, taking my hand inside of his. “Besides, how could I pass up a chance to see Seattle?”
“Oh, so that’s why you’re going,” I joked, elbowing him in the ribs.
“Damn, you got me,” he said, softly. But as he wiped away the remnants of my tears with his thumb, those warm eyes of his told an entirely different story.
Unfortunately, those tears were still coming in small streams, not because of Jace or what I might have lost, but because I was genuinely scared about what might be awaiting me in Seattle. I didn’t know what to expect because my mother hadn’t given me any real details; I only knew that, if she wanted me on a plane right away, it had to be bad. “Do you think he’ll be okay?” I asked, leaning into his hand as he cupped my cheek.
“I wish I had an answer for you,” he said, his lips pulling into a tight frown. “The only thing I can promise is that I’ll be right there with you, no matter what happens.”
Too weary to talk about much of anything else, I allowed him to pull me into the crook of his arm. And, as our plane took off, I looked out the window, thought of home and sent a prayer up to anyone that might be listening. But until someone actually answered that prayer, I would let myself lean on the man that had somehow known I’d needed him.