The Exception(38)

“What the f*ck was that all about?” Lance asked. “And why were you late?”

“She’s here.” I smiled as I grabbed the contracts and headed back to my office.

“Who’s here?” Lance asked as he followed behind.

“Jillian. The girl I met on the plane and spent some time with in Hawaii.”

“Huh? She’s here in New York?”

“Yes. We ran into each other yesterday on the street. We had lunch, talked, did some shopping, and I don’t think I need to tell you what happened next.”

“So you were late because you had sex with her this morning?”

“Yep.” I took a seat behind my desk.

“Okay.” He nodded his head. “That’s a damn good excuse for being late. So now what? Are you two officially dating?”

“I don’t know, to be honest. Remember I told you she was on that self-discovery journey? We hadn’t talked about what happens next. She just found out yesterday that her sister is dying.”

“Man, that sucks.” He looked at his watch. “But what matters is that you were reunited with her. You’re Drew Westbrook and you always get what you want. Remember that. I have to go. I have that meeting with the tech department. I’ll fill you in later.”

After he walked out of my office, my phone pinged with a text message from Jane.

“Mr. Drew. You didn’t sleep in your bed last night and you weren’t home this morning. I’m dying to know why you were going to look at dishes.”

I couldn’t help but laugh.

“I’ll fill you in when I get home. I promise.”

“You better.”

I was happy. Actually, I was fan-f*cking-tastic. I didn’t know if I’d ever felt so good. Having her here in New York, in my apartment, was euphoric to me. I had missed her so much and I worried about her being out in the world all alone. But now, she no longer had to be alone and I was going to make sure she wasn’t.

****

Jillian

When I walked into Kristen and Noah’s apartment, I found Kristen sitting on the couch, drinking a cup of coffee.

“Hey.” I forced a smile.

“Hey, you. Come here.” She held out her arms to me. “How are you?”

Seriously? She’s the one who just found out she’s dying and she’s asking me how I am?

“I’m okay. How are you?” I asked as I looked at the gorgeous big rock on her finger. “What the—”

“He asked me last night. Apparently, he’s had this ring for a while and was going to ask me on our dating anniversary.”

“Oh my God! It’s gorgeous. I’m so happy for you!” I squeezed her tight.

“Thanks. Will you help me plan my wedding? We want to get married as soon as possible since I don’t have much time left.”

My heart. Fuck. The ache I felt when she said that nearly sent me into a crying fit. But she wouldn’t want that, so I had to hold my composure. I’d fall apart later.

“Of course I’ll help you.” Tears filled my eyes. Shit.

“Why are you crying?” she asked with a pout.

“Because I’m so happy for you and Noah.”

“But you’re thinking why bother since I won’t be alive for much longer,” she spoke.

I couldn’t believe she just said that as I placed my hands over my mouth.

“NO! I’m not thinking that at all. Why would you say that?”

A small smile crossed her lips. “Because that’s what everyone will think. I love Noah more than life itself and he wants us to be married, even if it is for a short while. We’ve talked so much about marriage in the past and I’m not going to let f*cking cancer keep me from marrying my prince charming.”

“I love you, Kristen.”

“I love you too. So what did you do yesterday after you left the hospital? I was worried that you hid out in your apartment and cried all day.”

“You’re never going to believe it. You’re just not.” I smiled as I slowly shook my head.

Her eye narrowed as she tilted her head to the side.

“Oh God, Jill. What did you do?”

“Well,” I slowly spoke.

“Ugh. Stop it! Spit it out!” She grabbed hold of my hands.

“Yesterday after I left the hospital, I decided to take a walk. Where I was walking to, I had no clue. All I knew was that I needed to walk and I ran into someone on the street.”

“Shit. Don’t tell me it was Grant or your parents.”

“I ran into Drew.”

“Shut up!” She cupped her hands over her mouth. “Drew from Hawaii? Drew that you had sex with?”

“Yes. That would be him.”

“And?”

“We had lunch, went back to my place, had sex, went to Bed Bath & Beyond to buy some dishes, went to dinner, he dropped me off at home, we said goodbye and then he came back within an hour, spent the night, and then we had sex again this morning.”

“Wait. You threw me off when you said you went to Bed Bath & Beyond.” She laughed.

I shrugged. “We were going to order dinner in, but I didn’t have any dishes to eat on. So, we went and bought some. But wait. There’s more and you’re going to freak the f*ck out. Are you ready?”