Sugar on the Edge (Last Call #3)(79)

Sighing, I turn and walk past Lindie… heading back to the bookstore. She fortunately stays silent and doesn’t berate me for my behavior. I pull my phone out of my pocket and dial Savannah’s number. She doesn’t answer but I don’t expect her to, so I leave a message.

“Savannah… please talk to me. I’ll come to you after the signing. Or you can come to me. I’m staying at the Mandarin Oriental. Room 877. Please… I’m begging you. Let’s talk. I have so many things I need to say to you.”

I hang up… not knowing what else I can do at this point.

I walk back into the bookstore with Lindie, making my apologies as I walk past the line of fans. When I sit back down at the table, I put the smile back on my face. Except this time, it’s not as plastic.

This time… it’s coming naturally to me.

I saw Savannah… and she looked marvelous. And though she wouldn’t give me the time of day, the fact of the matter is, she sought me out. So she must still care… at least a little bit, to have come all this way.

And… I’m having a girl. A little baby girl.

My smile gets brighter as I look up and greet the next person in line.





And so, here it all begins.

At least, I hope this is the beginning.

I booked the earliest flight I could out of New York the following day. Savannah never did return my calls. Yes, calls as in plural. I left her seven more voice mails, but she was proving to be stubborn.

I had to assume she flew back to North Carolina, and I was in hot pursuit. I pull the rental car up to The Haven, carefully following the dirt driveway around to the back. I’m immediately relieved to see Savannah’s car sitting beside a large truck. No one is in sight.

I park and shut off the car. Gripping the steering wheel hard, I lay my forehead against it and take in a deep breath.

It’s do or die.

As I get out of the car, the back door to the kennel opens up and Brody walks out. He makes immediate eye contact with me, and I’m relieved to see a slow smile come to his face. He walks toward me with purpose. Two feet away, he offers me his hand.

I reach out to shake it, returning a smile of my own. His shake is firm. He pumps my arm twice, and then pulls me in for what I think may be a man-hug, which is weird, but then I see his other hand balled into a fist and flying toward my face.

He catches me square on the jaw, rocking my head hard to the right, and releases his hold on my hand at the same time. I go flying backward, completely caught off guard by the sucker punch. I stumble back into my car and slump halfway down the driver’s door before I catch myself.

Brody isn’t done though. He’s striding toward me, anger blazing out of his eyes.

Rubbing my jaw gingerly, I flex it and find it’s not broken. I hold one hand out in front of me, a silent plea for him to hold up, because I didn’t come here to fight with Savannah’s bestie.

“Okay… I deserved that,” I admit.

Brody at least stops his advance, but he looks like he wants to murder me. “You deserve a lot more than that, you piece of shit.”

I drag myself up the car and get into a standing position, because I’m pretty sure I’m going to need to defend myself at the least.

“Probably,” I tell him. “But do you really want to pound me into the ground before I can make things right with Savannah?”

“You can’t make things right with her. It’s done, and you need to leave.”

“I love her,” I tell him simply.

Brody snorts and throws his hands out to the side. “Oh, well gee… that just makes everything better, doesn’t it?”

“Look, mate,” I try to reason with him. “You can beat me to a pulp, but I’m still going to see Savannah, and she is going to listen to me. I’m not going to let up until she forgives me and lets me back in. So, if I have to take an ass-whooping from you to get to Savannah, so be it.” I hold my arms out and to the side. “Take your best shot.”

“With pleasure,” Brody snarls, and then lunges at me.

“Enough,” Savannah says from behind me, and Brody immediately stops his forward progress. I turn and there she is.

My Sweet.

Looking like she wants to murder me as much as Brody wants to.

Sighing… because this looks to be a long day, I say, “Hey, Sweet. What does a gent have to do to get a few moments alone with you?”





Oh, God.

He’s here.

He actually came after me.

The realization of what that could possibly mean almost knocks me over. Did he come after the peanut or me? Both?

Gavin walks past Brody, eyeing him warily, and approaches me. Then he’s there… in my space, inches away from me and staring down with unfathomably beautiful and tortured eyes.

“We need to talk,” he says quietly.

I feel the pull of him… I’m in danger of being mesmerized, and my broken heart is afraid of getting crushed. “There’s nothing to talk about anymore. That time is gone. It expired twelve weeks ago when you walked out.”

“Don’t say that,” he rasps out. “Don’t f*cking say that.”

“Well, what do you want me to say, Filthy? Welcome back. Glad you could spare me some time?”

His lips curve upward slightly, and he looks amused. “You called me Filthy?”