Chapter 27 #2
I nodded. “I will. I needed to get this all figured out so I could let him know the plan. And then book a flight to Chicago.”
“That’s already done. Georgie and I booked you on a flight out tomorrow morning. We used Finn’s points.” She chuckled. “I emailed you the confirmation. So, you best get your ass back to Cottonwood Cove and talk to your best friend and make things right.”
“Can we please eat first? I’m starving,” Brax groaned. “And we’ll need to fuel up before you tell Travis that you’re in love with his sister. We may even need the Navy SEAL for backup.”
The girls chuckled, but Wolf raised a brow. “Do you want me there?”
I shook my head. “No. But thank you. I’ve got this. Travis and I have gone to blows before, and I probably have this one coming for not telling him sooner. I’ll take it on the chin if that’s what he needs to do.”
Brax shivered dramatically. “I’m a lover, not a fighter. That shit terrifies me.”
“Hugh’s going to be just fine.” Dylan smiled up at me. “I’m happy for you. You deserve this. Now let’s take the food down to the conference room so you can get back home and deal with the broody brother and then go get your girl.”
And that was exactly what I planned to do.
We all ate together, and then Brax and I were back on the road, pulling into Cottonwood Cove around dinner time. It had been a long day, but I finally felt like I was doing what I was supposed to be doing.
I hadn’t felt that way in a long time.
Because Lila James had been the missing piece I hadn’t even realized I was looking for.
“Are we really doing this?” Brax asked.
“You don’t have to come with me. I’m ready to tell him, and I don’t mind doing it on my own.”
“Hell, no. I may not be a good backup, because you know that I bruise like a peach. But I’ll make sure he doesn’t kill you,” he said with a chuckle.
I wasn’t worried about Travis hurting me.
Hell, I was bigger than him. I just wanted him to know that I loved her, and I hoped that he would believe me.
He was my best friend, and he was important to me.
But I wasn’t walking away from Lila regardless of what Travis had to say about it.
He could punch me as many times as he wanted to, and it wasn’t going to change the outcome of this.
I’d fucked up by lying to him, and I’d own that.
But I wouldn’t apologize for loving his sister.
We pulled in front of his house and got out of the truck.
“Are you nervous?” Brax whispered as we walked up the sidewalk leading to his front door.
I chuckled. “Not even a little bit.”
“Thank God that one of us is okay. I feel like I’m going to shit my pants.”
“Relax. It’s fine.” I knocked on the door, and Travis pulled it open right away.
“Hey. Did you get my text that Shay is at her sister’s for dinner? I wanted to see if you wanted to meet at Reynolds’ for a beer.”
I hadn’t seen the text. “Nah, we’ve been driving. Just came from the city. But I need to talk to you.”
His brows cinched together. “Something happen with my dad?”
“Nope. I checked on him yesterday, and he’s doing really well.” I walked inside after he took a few steps back, inviting us in.
“What’s wrong with him?” Travis flicked his thumb over his shoulder at Brax, who was unusually quiet.
“He’s nervous,” I said, when we reached the kitchen. “He thinks there’s going to be a fight, and you know he’s a delicate flower.”
He and I both chuckled, and Brax crossed his arms over his chest and rolled his eyes.
“Why would there be a fight?” Travis walked to the fridge and pulled out three beer bottles.
“Oh, I don’t think glass bottles are a good idea.” Brax set his on the counter after Travis handed them to us.
I set mine down, as well, leaning over the kitchen island, across from Travis. “I’m in love with Lila. I should have told you sooner, but I didn’t know it was going to turn into something serious.”
He set his bottle down on the counter, his face turning bright red with each passing second as he processed my words. “What the fuck did you just say to me?”
“You heard me. And you getting mad isn’t going to change anything.”
“Look at me, Hugh,” he said, his voice eerily calm. “Did you fuck my sister?”
“I’m not going to answer that because it’s none of your fucking business. I love her, and that’s what matters.”
“Oh, yeah? So, you were just fucking her all this time and keeping it from me. And now it’s turned into something serious? So, you were willing to cross that line when you didn’t know?” he shouted, as he came around the corner and stopped right in front of me.
“If that’s how you want to look at it, that’s your choice. I’m in fucking love with your sister. Don’t belittle it,” I said, my voice coming out louder and harsher than I meant it to.
His fist came at me, just as I’d expected. A shot to the cheek, which nearly knocked me on my ass, but I didn’t go down. And I didn’t put my arms up because I’d let him take as many shots as he needed to take before we could move on. I felt Brax move closer, but my gaze stayed locked on Travis.
He didn’t come at me again; he just stared for a long while before he spoke. “So, you love her?”
“I do.”
“Does she know that?” he asked, reaching for his beer and popping off the lid before he took a long pull.
“Probably not. But I’m going there tomorrow to tell her.”
Travis set his bottle back down, and Brax groaned as if he were preparing for the worst.
“And what? Drag her back here?”
“You know what, Travis. That’s also none of your fucking business.
” I squared my shoulders and stepped forward, crowding him.
I was done with him acting like he knew what was best for her.
“That decision is up to her. I have someone willing to take over all three restaurants here. So, if your sister wants to stay in Chicago, that’s where you’ll find me.
And if she wants to come home, that’s also where you will find me.
She’s a grown-ass woman with a mind of her own.
And you’re a grown-ass man with a wife and kid on the way.
Stay in your own fucking lane, brother.”
I prepared for the hit. He’d never been one who could handle hearing things that he didn’t like. But I wasn’t afraid of Travis. I respected how much he loved his sister, but his days of thinking he had a say over her life were over.
The hit never came. Instead, he reached for his beer bottle again and took another sip. “All right, then. It’s serious enough that you’re willing to walk away from everything here? Your family? Your business? Your parents’ businesses?”
“Without a fucking doubt. I don’t give a fuck where I am as long as I’m with Lila.” Now it was my turn to reach for my bottle and pop off the cap and take a long pull.
“Holy shit. Never thought I’d see the day.” Travis held up his bottle to clink it against mine.
“Wait,” Brax whispered. “Are we good? Can I get my bottle, too, or might this turn ugly again?”
Travis barked out a laugh. “Nah. Shay’s been all over my ass that I’m too overbearing with Lila and said she thought my sister wasn’t excited about leaving at all.
But I’d been too blind to see past what I thought was right for her.
And on that last night with Lila, I could tell she was upset about leaving.
And clearly, I ruined your fucking lovefest, or whatever the fuck you two have going on, which I prefer not knowing.
I’m sorry, man. You’re the best dude I know, and if you feel that strongly about her, I couldn’t ask for better for my sister. ”
“Trying not to be offended over here,” Brax said, his voice higher than normal, and I finally let out a laugh.
I turned my attention back to Travis. “I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I know that I’m not leaving as long as she wants me by her side.”
We spent the next hour with Brax and Travis telling me how to handle things once I landed in Chicago. But I didn’t need help with any of it. I was going right to her, face-to-face, and I’d tell her that I fucking loved her.
Something I should have said a long time ago.
I was exhausted by the time I got home. I’d gone over to see my parents and tell them my plans, and, of course, they were both completely supportive because that’s who they are.
They were fine with whatever I decided to do with the restaurants, and that took a lot of pressure off my shoulders.
I dropped down on my bed after taking a shower and saw a text from Lila, which had me sitting forward. It was two hours later in Chicago, so it was close to midnight there.
Snow
I miss you, Bear.
That was all it said—yet it said so much more. She was sad, just like I was. But I’d be there tomorrow, and I’d tell her everything. Face-to-face. I wasn’t going to pledge my love over a text or a phone call.
Miss you more.
I missed her in a way I’d never known possible. My body physically ached. She was the first thing I thought of when I woke up in the morning. The first thing I thought of when I stepped outside and saw the sun just coming up. The last thing I thought of before I went to sleep each night.
And I couldn’t get to her soon enough.