Chapter 27
TWENTY-SEVEN
Here’s what you’re going to do
SOPHIE
“I was hoping to see Luke tonight,” I say as Micah drives us back to his place to continue what we started in the closet earlier. “I wanted to thank him for the scholarship.”
“You can, whenever you want,” he says. “He lives at The Haven too.”
“Of course he does.” I give a small laugh, but there’s no real humor in it. He’s a Vale—of course he lives there.
“It’s not what you think, though,” Micah adds. “He’s broke as hell. Practically lives there for free.”
“Wait—what? How?”
Micah shrugs. “It’s complicated. He’s either completely broke, or just stingy as hell. You know what—probably both.”
Before I can reply, my clutch vibrates. I pull out my phone and see Poppy lighting up the screen.
She was staying in to study tonight.
I answer immediately. “Hey, Poppy, I’m—”
“S-Soph—” Her voice cuts in, breathless, panicked. “Your father—he—he came by—” There’s a pause. A loud, shaky inhale. “He said—he said he’s coming back. T—To see you.”
My chest tightens. “Poppy?”
“I—” another broken breath. “I gotta—go—”
And then the line goes dead.
I stare at the screen. My heart drops, then starts slamming. No no no. I can’t breathe. My vision starts to blur around the edges. Poppy was going to be studying at home tonight. Alone.
Oh god. What if he—
“Sophie?” Micah’s voice is sharp now, alarmed. “What happened?”
I suck in a shaky breath. “That was Poppy. She said my stepfather came by.” My voice cracks. “She sounded—she was gasping. Something was off, Micah. She just hung up. What if he’s still there? What if—”
Micah slams his foot on the gas. The car surges forward.
“I’m on it,” he says through clenched teeth. “Hold on, Sophie. We’ll be there in ten.”
We get to my apartment and the door’s slightly ajar. Shit. But Poppy forgets to lock it all the time—it could be nothing.
“Stay behind me,” Micah says under his breath.
He pushes the door open slowly. The lights are on. Two wine glasses sit on the table, both empty—just a few drops clinging to the bottom. My heart pounds as we step inside.
Then we hear it.
A moan. High-pitched, breathy, unmistakable.
Micah freezes. So do I.
“Oh my God….fuck, Wyatt!” Poppy’s voice practically echoes through the apartment.
Another moan—louder this time. The creak of a bed.
My jaw drops. I glance up at Micah, who’s blinking like he just got slapped.
A deep grunt follows—Wyatt’s voice.
“Oh my God,” I whisper, tightening my grasp on Micah’s arm. “This cannot be real.”
“She didn’t say she had a date,” I murmur. “It’s probably nothing. She told me she sleeps with all her dates.”
Micah shakes his head slowly. “No. Not Wyatt. He’s not a hookup guy. He’s a flowers and good-morning-texts kind of guy.”
“You know, I kind of suspected something. At your place the other day,” I say.
“Yeah, I caught that too. I just didn’t say anything because I wasn’t too sure.”
And then it happens—another moan, followed by both of them, yelling each other’s name, practically in sync. Poppy’s sharp cries and Wyatt’s low grunts spill through the thin walls, sounding like a porno on full blast.
Micah and I lock eyes, both horrified.
“Should we go into my room?” I whisper.
He grimaces. “It’s right next to hers. Wouldn’t that make it worse?”
A moment later, Poppy’s bedroom door swings open.
Wyatt walks out shirtless, his curls messy, lips pink and swollen. Poppy trails behind him wearing nothing but Wyatt’s T-shirt, hanging almost to her knees. Her hair’s in a bun and her face is flushed and glistening with sweat.
“Hey, guys,” Wyatt says, completely unfazed. “You’re back early.”
“What the hell, Poppy!” I stand, hands on my hips. “I thought something happened!”
Poppy arches a brow. “Why would you think that?”
“You sounded so—panicked—on the phone. You told me my stepfather came by.”
“I was a little…in a rush,” she says, smiling up at Wyatt. “I just thought you’d want to know he came by. But why would you think I’d panic about it?”
She doesn’t know about my family or my past. I never told her.
“I don’t know—well—uh, because—”
“She just didn’t expect to come home to this,” Micah cuts in smoothly. “Anyway, Wyatt—I thought you were studying. Your dad was looking for you at the gala.”
Wyatt shrugs, completely unbothered. “I was studying. Just…something else. Or someone.” He pulls Poppy to his side and kisses her cheek. She giggles.
Micah and I exchange a look.
“Alright,” Micah says, his tone shifting. “No one’s sleeping here tonight. The apartment lock is broken, and it’s not safe. I’m taking Sophie to my place. Wyatt, you take Poppy to yours.”
Poppy scoffs. “Why? The lock’s been like that forever. Nothing’s going to happen.”
Micah gives Wyatt a look—a silent, firm, do not argue with me kind of look.
Wyatt catches on immediately. “Let’s just go to my place,” he says, glancing at Poppy with a smirk. “Got a new couch. Maybe we can break it in together.” He throws her an easy, cocky wink—like it’s second nature.
Poppy raises a brow, amused. “Sold.”
Poppy and I are curled up on Micah’s sleek sectional, a shared blanket thrown over our legs and two mugs of tea in our hands. The penthouse is quiet without Micah and the guys in it—he and Wyatt are at Wyatt’s apartment to have their own talk or something.
“So…” I begin, side-eyeing her over my mug.
She grins, biting her lip. “You’re not mad?”
“Why would I be mad?” I ask. “I’m just a bit surprised, is all. You didn’t say a word.”
Poppy exhales and sinks deeper into the cushions. “I didn’t want to say anything until I knew if it was real. I mean, you and Micah seem kind of serious, and I just…I didn’t want things to get weird between the four of us if it crashed and burned.”
I nod, understanding. “So it’s serious, then?”
“I think so,” she says softly. “It kind of just happened, you know?
We started out casual and then suddenly we were seeing each other every day—and then I realized I didn't want to see anybody else.
I didn't even know if he wanted anything more, but he was the one who brought up making it official.”
“I love that for you,” I say, and I mean it. “How long has it been?”
“A while,” She winces. “Sorry for not telling you.” She falls back against the cushions.
“Anyway, can we talk about the important part?” She fixes me with a very serious look.
“Have you seen that man? Wyatt is hot. Like capital-H, life-ruining hot.” She shakes her head slowly.
“He's ruined sex for me, Sophie. No one else is ever going to come close. I'm completely screwed.”
I stare at her for a second.
"Wait a minute.” I narrow my eyes. "All those times you came to see me on my break at Boston Brews—were you coming to see him?"
“Sorry.” She bites back a smile, but there’s a nervous flicker in her eyes. “I really like him. I didn’t think he’d ever see me as girlfriend material, though, you know? So I tried not to get my hopes up.”
I frown, turning to face her more fully. “Why wouldn’t he see you as girlfriend material?”
Poppy hesitates, her gaze dropping to the rim of her mug.
When she finally speaks, her voice is quieter than I’ve ever heard it.
“Sophie, I’m just a plain Jane bio major.
Wyatt’s apparently loaded—maybe not Micah-level loaded, but still.
His family’s super influential. His dad is some powerful judge or something. ”
She shrugs, like she’s trying to make it sound like it doesn’t matter. But I can see the weight of it sitting heavy on her shoulders.
“I just figured someone like him wouldn’t look twice at someone like me,” she says. “Let alone want more.”
“Micah said he’s not a casual fling type of guy,” I say. “He doesn’t do hookups. So if he’s hanging out with you, it’s probably real for him too.”
Poppy hugs the pillow to her chest, biting back a smile. “God, I really hope so.”
I bump my shoulder against hers. “If he didn’t realize how lucky he is, that’s his loss.”
That gets a laugh. “Thanks. But I think he knows. At least, I hope he does.”
MICAH
“Where’d you disappear to earlier?” Luke asks, wrestling with the steamer like it personally offended him.
He’s attempting to de-wrinkle a suit—probably the one he wore tonight—and failing spectacularly.
“Just send it to the dry cleaners, Luke,” I say, watching the steam cloud up around him. “You’re going to ruin your suit.”
“Dry cleaning is too expensive to do it every single time I wear it. Why would I do that when I’ve got this top-tier steamer right here in my own home?” he replies, proud and delusional.
I sigh and hold out my hand. “Just give it to me. I’ll add it to my next pickup.”
“The deer and the rabbits,” he says.
I ignore it.
Luke smirks—that satisfied older brother smirk, like he knew I’d cave. He always does this. Plays it casual, lets me talk myself into helping. It's a skill, really.
I’d come down after a quick check-in with Wyatt. I needed to know if he actually saw Sophie’s stepdad. He said he did. Just some average-looking guy in his late forties. Looked a bit tired but didn’t seem threatening at all.
Still, I told him to keep Poppy away from him if he ever showed up again—and to trust me on this, no questions asked. I didn’t want to tell him about Sophie’s past without her consent. That’s her story to tell. Always.
“I need to talk to you,” I say to Luke, serious now. “I think I need your advice. Your way of thinking might actually help this time.”
“Oh, I’m all ears,” Luke says, instantly perked up like I’m about to drop scandalous gossip. “Your big brother is here to help.”
I ignore the last part. He does that on purpose—he’s only a year older than me.
“I spoke to Dad at the gala,” I start, already bracing for the conversation. “He appeared next to me the moment Sophie went to the bathroom. Like he was watching me all night. And he’s not happy about—”
“Let me guess,” Luke cuts in, smug. “He’s not thrilled about Miss Lennox. He wanted you to entertain Marcus Whitmore’s daughter but you shut him down.”
He looks proud of himself for piecing that together.
“Well, yeah. But it’s more than that.” I exhale hard. “He’s convinced Sophie’s using me—for gifts, status, whatever. But she’s not. She didn’t even know who I was when we met. She offered me discounts at the campus bookstore and the cafe she works at, for God’s sake.”
Luke barks out a laugh. “That’s fucking cute. She doesn’t realize that you could buy the entire bookstore and the cafe.”
“I’m serious, Luke.” My voice drops. “He reminded me at the gala that if I stay distracted by a leech like that, he’ll cut off her housing, pull any scholarships tied to Westcliffe, and push for her expulsion.”
Luke’s face sobers instantly.
“He said nothing will go to Sophie from me without his knowledge. I mean at least he doesn’t care too much about the car I got her, but if I don’t end it, he’ll make sure she has no future. No career. Nothing. She wants to be a lawyer.”
Luke whistles low. “You got her a car? Damn, Micah. And I’m out here driving your old one?”
“That’s a Mercedes, Luke. It’s only two years old and crazy expensive, might I add. I just didn’t want her walking from job to job to class in the freezing cold.”
Luke leans back, watching me closely. “Damn. So this is serious, huh?”
“Yeah,” I say without hesitation. “She’s it for me. I’ve never felt like this before. I just…I know.”
A slow grin spreads across his face.
“What are you smiling at?” I ask. “I’m serious.”
“Oh, my baby brother,” he says with a shake of his head. “You’re really in it.”
I narrow my eyes. “So? What do I do? What would you do?”
“I don’t see what the problem is.” He leans in, smug as ever. “There’s a simple solution to your dilemma.”
I stare at him, waiting.
“Here’s what you’re going to do.” He drawls.
I think about it on my way upstairs. The elevator doors close and I stand there, staring at nothing.
It's bold. Maybe insane. Luke's always been the one who thinks ten steps ahead—I used to resent him for it. But I never knew what a genius he actually was until now.