That Secret Crush (Getting Lucky #3)(103)

He pulls her into a hug, and she wraps her arms around him, easily accepting his apology. If only it was that easy with me.

“You mean everything to me, Eve,” he continues, “and I am so proud of everything you’ve accomplished and the strong, intelligent woman you’ve become. Please know I will never doubt that again. I’m sorry.”

“You better not, or I’ll use your own knives to chop off your fingers.” She squeezes him tightly before pulling out of his hug.

“Noted.” He chuckles before turning back to me, studying me with wide, earnest eyes. “Reid,” he says. “It’s hard for me to look you in the eyes and not feel a gauntlet of emotions ranging from happiness to rage to embarrassment.”

“Embarrassment?”

“You warned me, man.” He shakes his head. “You warned me to not go after Janelle, and I didn’t listen. My pride was too strong, and I wanted to show you I could handle it. I couldn’t. I let you down; I let us down. So when I found out you were with my sister, I just kind of lost it. All I could think of was Janelle and how much I fucked up. And I threw all of those feelings onto you. I was convinced that you were repeating my mistakes but that you were too proud to ever back down. I jumped to conclusions and gave you an ultimatum that I’m ashamed of, because if anyone could handle business and a relationship, it’s my sister. And no matter what, I know she would keep you in line.”

I laugh and turn to Eve, who hasn’t cracked a smile. “You’re right about that.”

“I never should have interfered, nor should I have even had an opinion on the matter. Last night was a mistake I’ll always regret, and my attitude today was despicable. Frankly I’m embarrassed and owe a giant apology to everyone tomorrow. But you get the first one.” Looking me in the eyes, Eric says, “I’m sorry, man. You’re the guy I need to depend on, not fight with. From here on out, I’ll treat you like the brother you’ve been rather than the enemy I made you out to be in my head.”

Rounding the bar, I hold out my hand, and he pulls me into a hug. As his arms wrap around me, a huge weight is lifted off my shoulders, and for the first time since that fateful night in New Orleans, I feel like I can actually breathe.

“I love you, man,” I say, getting choked up.

“I love you too, and I’m so goddamn sorry about everything.”

When we pull away, I grip his shoulders. “It’s in the past; let’s move forward. New slate, new chapter.”

“New life.”

We both nod and give each other one more hug. I’ve known this man since we were little boys playing by the harbor, chucking rocks out into the ocean, trying to make them skip across the surface. We’ve seen each other grow up; we’ve been there for one another during our teen years and when his parents died. I know everything about him, and after all these years, this feeling that we’re finally on the mend breathes fresh air into my lungs. I never realized how much not having Eric in my life really weighed on me until this moment.

Patting my shoulder, Eric glances behind him. “I’ll, uh, let you two talk now. I’m headed out to the Har-Bahr, so take your time.” He presses a quick kiss to Eve’s cheek and then takes off, his step lighter than I’ve seen it in months.

Once the door is shut and I’m left alone with Eve in the restaurant, I stuff my hands in my pockets and rock on my heels. “So, do you think we can talk?”

She stands from the barstool and smooths down her black pants. “I don’t think that’s necessary, Reid.”

“I think it is. We need to get some stuff off our chests.”

“No, I think I made everything quite clear the other night. You gave up on us, and that’s fine.”

“Whenever a woman says that’s fine, it really isn’t fine.”

“Well, I mean it. It is fine.”

“Don’t do this, Eve. Don’t put on a brave face and act like everything is okay. I know you.”

“Yeah, you think you know me?” she shoots back. “Then you would know that I can’t possibly be with someone who is so weak that he can’t make decisions on his own. I’ve been through the wringer with you, Reid, ever since that night at the Inn. It hasn’t been easy, but a part of me always believed that despite whatever was going on in your life, you would still choose to be with me over anything else. That was until I heard about Eric’s ultimatum. If you were half the man I thought you were, you would have found a way to prove to him that I was worth the risk. But you folded. And I don’t want to be with a man who folds so easily. I want to be with a man who fights.”

“I’m fighting now.”

“Well, you’re fighting too late.”

She pushes past me but turns back when she reaches the front door. “I will be professional, because this job means everything to me, but please, just leave me alone when it comes to us. It’s over, Reid.”

The door shuts behind her, leaving me feeling like a semitruck just crashed into my chest. It’s over . . . but what if I don’t want it to be over?

Until your mind has matured, the curse will go uncured—or some crap like that. I can’t remember the damn curse verbatim, but what I do know is this is my fork in the road. I have two choices at this point. I can fold once again and act like the girl I love is just a colleague, or I can grow up, pull out my inner Brig, and romance the fuck out of her—show her just how far I’m willing to go for her.