Chapter Forty-Six
SUNNY
The warmth of Tyler’s home dowses my body as I enter, but a shiver runs down my spine nonetheless. When I make it to the living room, I see Sam and Anthony on the couch together.
“I’m going to go on the roof,” Anthony says, getting up and dismissing himself. He squeezes my hand as he walks by. I can’t determine if it’s a warning or a go ahead.
Picking her nails like she always does, Sam watches the fireplace. “It's about damn time.”
“You really need to stop doing that.” I sit next to her.
“You really need to stop doing my brother.”
I choke on the laugh trying to escape from me to keep the moment serious. If only you knew, Sam.
“I’m sorry. That was a low blow.” She finally looks at me.
“If it makes you feel any better, we haven’t done…that.”
“That right there tells me all I need to know about how he feels for you.”
I sit up straighter. “What do you mean?”
“Tyler won’t wait around or chase a fuck.
He can get a fuck whenever, wherever he wants.
He could close his eyes, tap a number in his phone and the bitch would be there before the hour ends.
Yet, he still chooses to refrain from that and do…
whatever he does with you. That means he cares, Sunny.
He cares about you if he hasn’t fucked you yet. ”
I stare wide eyed at Sam, not really sure what to say. I have no other explanation as to why that line hasn’t been crossed except for the fact it could mean more than it’s supposed to.
“People talk, Sunny. I’ve had the unfortunate encounter of hearing women talk about my brother's bedroom skills.”
The idea of Tyler with anyone else does something inside me I don’t appreciate. I toy with a loose thread on his hoodie. A small imperfection among his perfect clothing. A fatal flaw. Kind of like me. One pull, one wrong move and the whole thing can come apart.
“I’m not mad that you’re with, or doing, or whatever it is you have with my brother. Which, I don’t even think you two know what it is.” She gives me a pointed look.
“That’s fair,” I agree.
“I’m mad at the fact you hid it from me.
And I’d be lying if I said my ego wasn’t bruised by Cole basically announcing to the world my feelings for him while simultaneously picking another girl over me.
Not to mention, said girl is supposed to be one of my best friends, my sister, and lied to make me look bad and save her ass. ” She rolls her eyes.
“What do we do?” I ask, genuinely unsure of how to approach this.
“It’s something I need to talk to Mace about. I just can’t believe we were so blind to it? Like how did we not see it?” She picks her nails again.
“I have no clue. But once it was aired, it honestly made so much sense.” I watch the fire.
She shakes her head. “Anyways, tell me more about you and Tyler.”
I gnaw on my lip. “I really don’t know what we are. A lot of factors play into it. I just figured we were just friends, with benefits…maybe?” I let a nervous laugh out. “I don’t think it’s like that for him anymore.”
“Tyler is… so intense,” Sam laughs. “He loves so deeply. He loves his friends more than anything in the world and though he doesn’t want to admit it, he will destroy himself if it means healing the people he loves.
” With a sigh, she looks at the fire. “I had my suspicions about you two, I just didn’t know it was the extent that it is.
I just thought maybe it was innocent flirtations, a chemistry between you two, maybe a good fuck every now and then, but I saw the way he looks at you.
” She meets my eyes. “Only a man in love looks at a woman like that.”
I break her eye contact, trying to hide the damn tears that threaten my eyes. God, when did I become so emotional?
“I was too caught up in myself to see what’s happening to my brother.
I always wondered who the girl would be, the one to finally make him fall flat and wipe that stupid womanizing grin off his face.
But it makes sense it’s you, Sunny.” She smiles.
“Something shifted in him when you came around. He became more alive. I got worried there, for a while. Not to say he wasn’t present, but he was just on autopilot.
Especially after Shelby. I don’t know what she did to him.
He needed something to pull him out of that and you did it.
I was shocked he so willingly invited you to family dinner after only meeting you twice. ”
“He…He invited me?” I ask, clearly shocked. I’d thought it was Sam all along.
“Yeah,” she says. “I see a lot, Sunny. I just choose to not acknowledge it. Which is why I’m still shocked I did not see Cole and Macey.
Too blinded by my own feelings,” she sighs.
“I know that you’ve been hurt badly and it might feel so foreign to be feeling what you feel so soon after Ryan.
I may be biased but Tyler, he’s incredible, Sunny.
” Her eyes start to water. “He’ll never hurt you the way Ryan did.
I know you’re leaving, so this must all be so confusing, but definitely try to talk to him.
Because like I said, Tyler is intense and once he’s committed, it’s hard to sever that commitment.
And we can help you. We know lawyers, judges.
” She places a hand over mine trying to comfort me.
“I..I..” The words are caught on my tongue.
“We don’t have to figure it out now. I just wanted to tell you that.” She smiles.
I do what I do best—I shift topics. “So, are you okay after hearing the Cole and Macey news?”
Sam blows a breath and then laughs. “I have to be. I guess I should’ve taken a hint, but I was so blind to it.
After we hooked up, I just wanted more of him.
I guess it was just a moment of weakness on both our parts.
Even with the miscarriage, it honestly was probably for the best.” She takes a sip of her champagne. “They make sense though.”
I won’t say it out loud, but I couldn’t agree more. Macey and Cole do make sense.
“And what about Anthony?” I ask.
In a perfect world, I’d be with Tyler, Macey with Cole, and Sam with Anthony. But this isn’t a perfect world. This is reality and we don’t always get what we so wish for.
If only we could.
“Don’t get me wrong, I love Anthony. When we hooked up, I’d be lying if I said I couldn’t imagine doing that for the rest of my life. I’m just not there. Maybe one day. Or maybe I’ll find a hot MILF.”
We both start laughing together until tears come from our eyes. Once we finally settle, I make my apology.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry I hid behind your back with your brother, and you had to find out the way you did. I feel like we kind of cornered you and bombed you.”
Sam waives a hand. “It’s fine. You know me, always gotta be the center of attention. I just want you to know, I’m only slightly bitter he got you and I didn’t when I clearly made the bolder first move.”
We hug one another then I grab the bottle of champagne on the table. “Alright, now let’s fucking party like it’s the New Year.”
TYLER
She’s left an imprint on me, one so deep that it’ll simply never go away. If she leaves, I’ll spend the rest of my life missing everything we could’ve been.
Which is why I simply cannot let her.
Our family knows now. There is no more hiding. And I know they will do everything they can to make her stay, too.
Don’t run from me, Sunny. We were doing so good.
I was given a taste of what normalcy would look like with her. Now that it’s gone, I feel starved. I want everything with her—the sweet moments of hands holding, forehead kisses and pink cheeked glances. And I want all the depraved parts—the hands tied, bite marks and tasting one another.
And I’m determined to get that.
“Okay.” Anthony sits down. He points to Cole and Macey. “All I want to know is when, how, why.” Then he points at me. “When, how, why and what the fuck you gonna do.”
A laugh escapes me because I don’t even know the fucking answer to the question. I battle it every day. My girl needs time we don’t have, but I’m doing everything in my power to give it to her.
“One night at Martha’s.” Cole starts the story he shared with me just a few months prior when we sparred all night long.
Anthony knew Cole was seeing someone. He just didn’t know it was Macey. And Anthony knew I’m in love with Sunny, he just didn't know that she’s starting to reciprocate with me.
“I was giving her a ride home and for some reason, she just didn’t want to leave the truck.” He smiles down at Macey. I feel the void in my own lap with Sunny gone. A prelude to what my life will be in the next few months if I don’t do something about it.
“We just started talking and by the time we realized it, hours had gone by,” Macey says.
“That was the night it changed for me. Something just snapped in place. It was like, there was something tying us together and I didn’t want to let it go,” Cole admits.
And I understand, I really do.
“It just kind of spiraled from there. We found ourselves coming and going to family dinners together just so we could have more truck moments. I’d pick her up and drop her off.
Until finally one night, I told her that I didn’t want her to go home.
I told her I wanted her to come home with me,” Cole says, tightening his grip around Macey.
“So, I did.” Macey giggles.
“That’s when we decided there was no one else for us.” Cole kisses her head.
“So, to answer your question, about a year,” Cole says to Anthony.
“Y’all make me sick,” Anthony jokes, shaking his head. “Alright, you’re up Tyler.”
Before I’m put on trial, we’re greeted by a giggling Sunny and Sam. Their arms linked together as they pass a bottle of champagne between one another, taking sips. A sigh of relief leaves my chest seeing they made amends. I knew they would. They’re sisters.
Now let me make that legal, Sunny. Let me make you and Sam sisters when you marry me.
“We brought champagne to celebrate!” Sam says, holding up a bottle while my girl holds the other.
“To new relationships, well, new to me at least.” A choked laugh escapes the group while a groan leaves me.
“And to a new fucking year and this fabulous family of mine.” She passes glasses around, filling them with champagne.
Sam pulls Macey aside, both of them wiping tears from one another’s faces and hugging it out. I know things won’t be okay immediately because the wounds need to heal, but at least this is a step forward, and we have at least stopped the bleeding.
Seeing my girl look around, I can tell she is contemplating where to sit.
As if she even has a choice.
The only place she’s allowed is in my lap. Grabbing her hips, I pull her back into me.
I feel the void go away almost immediately.