I shake my head. “I know, not like I know you. This decision isn’t based on Brock. It’s based on us, Simon, and what was missing between us.”
Something snaps inside of Simon and he begins to get angry. “So, you’re getting it from him! What’s he got? A big fucking dick or something?”
My heart drops and I know I have to end this conversation now before it turns nasty.
“I don’t want it to be like this between us. I want us to be friends.”
“You want me to be friends with you and him, to play happy families together?” he snaps. “That won’t fucking happen, Tully. You get in the car and come home with me now or it’s over forever.”
I stare at him through my tears. “I’m sorry.” I take a step backwards.
“Tully, no,” he whispers as he grabs me in an embrace. “Don’t do this, I love you.”
He screws up his face and we stand in each other’s arms for an extended time. It occurs to me that this may be our last embrace, and the emotion of it all overwhelms me. I sob out loud.
“I hate hurting you.” I wrap my arms around him.
“Well, you have.”
My chest begins ache. “Please forgive me.” I kiss him softly. “Goodbye, Simon.” I pull out of his grip, turn and walk into the building.
“Tully,” he whispers.
Regret creases my face. God, I hate this.
“Tully, come back.”
I close my eyes and walk through the foyer.
“Tully!” he cries, and I begin to run. I can’t look back. I don’t want to see him like this. The elevator doors open, and I dive in.
“Tulllllllyyyy!” he calls out.
I tip my head back to the skies. Oh my God.
I run up the hall and open the door. Brock wraps me in his arms and holds me as I cry. “Hey,” he whispers, my chest bouncing with distress.
“He was crying,” I whisper. “I promised him I wouldn’t meet anyone,” I sob. “And I did.”
“Shh,” he calms me.
“But I don’t love him. I love you, and now he’s hurting because of me.”
“Shh, baby.” He leads me into the bathroom. “Have a shower and calm down.”
Everything aches. “But we have to go to your mother’s.” I sniff.
“We can be late.” He sighs. “I’ll call her.” He bends and kisses my lips softly. “Do you still want to go? We don’t have to.”
I look up at him being all sensible and caring, and I smile despite my tears. At a time when I thought he would go crazy, he actually acts like the man I need him to be.
“I love you,” I whisper.
He kisses me tenderly, his lips lingering over mine. He holds my jaw in his hands, and then he pushes the hair behind my shoulders, looking like he wants to say something.
“I’m going to look after you, Tully. I know I’m not too good at this whole relationship thing, but I’m going to give it my best shot.” His eyes search mine.
“Promise?” I whisper.
“I promise.” He kisses me softly again, and I can almost hear my heart diving, free falling in my chest. This is the first time he has ever verbalised any emotion towards me.
And I needed it. I really needed it now.
“We go away tomorrow,” he breathes against my lips. “And I’ll take you dancing.”
I smirk at his distraction tactics.
“And I’ll buy you cocktails.”
I smile.
“And you’ve got to pay off your trip by giving me lots of amazing head.”
I giggle. “You’re ruining it now.”
He leans into the shower, turns it on, and then he carefully undresses me before I step in under the hot water.
“I’ll make you some tea,” he says, making to walk out of the room.
“Brock?” I call. He turns back to me. “Thank you. Thank you for being nice to Simon. It means a lot.”
His eyes hold mine and he smiles softly. “I can’t think of anything worse than losing you. I feel sorry for the poor bastard.”
I smile sadly, and he walks back, leaning in to kiss me softly. “You ready to meet my crazy family?”
“If they’re half as crazy as you, I already like them.”
An hour later and we are on our way. “Okay, so let me get this straight,” I say to Brock while he drives. “Natasha is your older sister and Bridget is your younger sister?”
He nods. “Uh-huh.”
“And your mother is Victoria.”
“Yes.” He flashes his gorgeous smile at me.
“What?” I smirk.
“You have been listening.”
“And Natasha is married to Jonathan?” I frown.
“Joshua. His name is Joshua Stanton.”
“Right.”
“And Bridget is married to your best friend Ben?”
“Yes. Well, he’s one of my best friends.”
I nod and blow out a nervous breath. “What are Natasha’s kids’ names again?”
“Jordana, Ellie, and Blake.”
I nod and twist my hands in my lap. “Do you think they’ll like me?”
“Maybe,” he answers casually.
I frown as I watch him. “Maybe?” I gasp.
He chuckles. “Will you fucking relax? It doesn’t even matter to me if they don’t like you. I like you.”
I stare at him, unable to stop the grin breaking free on my face.
He rolls his eyes. “Is that all you’re going to talk about now?”
I smile goofily. “Uh-huh.”
“Don’t wear it out, Cock Pocket. That’s a ‘special occasions’ kind of thing for me to say.”
“Yeah, like every day.” I lean over and kiss him as he drives. “We really do need to talk about the names you call me.”
He reaches over and grabs my sex in his hand aggressively and I squirm in my seat to get away from him. “I’ll talk about this hot fuck box all I want.” He grabs my thigh, and I jump and squeal.
“Brock.” I gasp as I try to get away from him. “You’re such an animal.”
His eyes dance with mischief and he grabs me again.
“You’re going to crash the car, you know?” I laugh.
He turns into a street, pulls up outside a house and turns his engine off.
There’s a black Audi SV and another Range Rover in the drive, as well as another black Audi Sedan out the front with four men sitting inside it.
“Who are they?” I ask.
“That’s Stanton’s security team.”
“Why do they have security again?” I frown.
“Joshua is a mega rich app developer. He’s well known. The security is more for Natasha and their kids. It’s how I met Ben, remember? He was Joshua’s private security guard for years before he married Didge.”
I’m lost. “Who’s Didge?”
“Didge is Bridget. That’s her nickname.”
“Oh.” I shake my head. “God, I’m going to mess up these names tonight, I just know it.”
Brock rolls his lips, pausing briefly before he gets out of the car. If I’m not mistaken, he seems nervous, too.
“When was the last time you brought a girl home?” I ask.
He inhales sharply. “That would be never.”
My face falls. “Never?”
“Nope.”
I frown. “Oh. Perfect. No pressure for them to like me then.”
He smirks and gets out of the car. He takes my hand in his, and we walk up the driveway.
“They’re here,” I hear a little girl’s voice call out from inside. She’s obviously been waiting for us at the window. “And she’s pretty, too!” she yells. “She has red hair.”
“Jordana!” I hear a man snap. “Come away from the window.”
Brock smirks and squeezes my hand in his. I squeeze it right back. “I may vomit,” I whisper as we walk up the front steps.
“I’m not cleaning it up. You’re on your own.” He whispers.
“Great.”
The front door opens, and two dark-haired women come into view. They’re smiling broadly, not hiding their excitement.
Brock rolls his eyes. “Will you two stop with that look.” He sighs. “This is Natasha and Bridget,” he says as he kisses them both on the cheek. “And this is…” He pauses and smiles at me with affection. “This is Tully.”
Natasha bounces on the spot, her excitement bubbling over. Bridget grabs me and kisses my cheek. “Oh, it’s so nice to meet you. Come in, come in.”
Natasha kisses me, too, and grabs my hand before she leads me into the house like a prized pig. We walk into the living room, and I find myself gulping.
Fuck!
Double fuck!
The living room has four men in it.
Not four normal men-four stupidly hot men who are happen to be looking at me with baited breath.
I feel the blood drain from my face.
“Tully, this is Adrian. He’s a dear friend of the family, and he’s also the CEO of Joshua’s company.”
Adrian jumps up from his seat and wraps his arms around me. “We met before, at the bar, remember?”
I nod shyly, and I nervously look over at Brock just as he throws me a sexy wink.
“This is Joshua.”
Joshua stands, smiles and shakes my hand. Oh jeez. “Joshua is my brother-in-law.” Brock says calmly. “And this is Cameron. Joshua and he are brothers.”
Cameron stands to greet me. He has dark hair with a slight curl to it, and his mischievous demeanour is clear to see.
“I’m the good-looking member of the family.” Cameron smiles and shakes my hand. “I’ll probably be your favourite.”
“Oh, God,” Adrian mutters, while Joshua rolls his eyes.
“Watch it.” Brock smirks.
I giggle.
“And you know Ben and these are little Jordy, Ellie, and Blake,” Brock announces proudly.
The children look about six, five, and four, or something like that.
“Hello.” The eldest girl smiles as she takes my hand in hers. “I love your hair.”
“Thank you.” I smile nervously
She turns to Joshua. “Dad, can I dye my hair that colour?”
“Absolutely not,” he replies flatly.
“Why not?”
“Because you’re six.”
Natasha and Bridget chuckle.
“Come over here and let me do your hair,” Adrian says. She immediately runs over and sits on his lap.
Brock looks around. “Where’s Mum?”
“In the kitchen.” Natasha smiles. “She’s a bit emotional today.”
Brock nods and my heart drops. It’s because of his dad not being here. Brock takes my hand and leads me out into the kitchen where his mother is stirring something on the stove. The range hood is cooking up a storm, and I think she may not have heard us arrive.
“Mum?” Brock says softly.
She glances over her shoulder, and her face immediately lights up. “Brock!” She rushes over and kisses him on the cheek. “Hello, my darling.”
“This is Tully, Mum,” he tells her with reverence in his voice as he presents me to her.
She smiles and takes me in her arms. “Oh, hello, dear.” She squeezes me tight. “I’ve been waiting all day for you to arrive.”
And suddenly, I feel emotional, too. It’s obvious how much she loves Brock as she hugs him. She gets teary, and Brock shakes his head. “Will you stop?” He smirks. She whips him with her tea towel, as if they are sharing an old but private joke.
I smile. He’s never brought anyone home before.
“Can I help you with anything?” I ask.
She smiles warmly. “No, dear, I have everything under control.”
“Please?” I whisper. “I’m really nervous.”
She wraps her arms around me. “Well, in that case, come in here.” She leads me farther into the kitchen. “I burn everything, anyway.”
I giggle. “Me, too.”
“We have that in common then.” She smiles warmly. Oh, I like her already.
“I’ll get you a glass of wine,” Brock says, smiling softly before he disappears. Natasha and Bridget come in and sit at the kitchen counter. Bridget is clearly heavily pregnant.
“How far have you got to go?” I ask.
“Fourteen weeks.” She smiles. “Twins.”
My eyes widen. “Twins?”
“I know.” She shakes her head. “I don’t know how the hell I’m going to do it.”
Natasha rubs Bridget’s stomach. “It’s going to be fine, stop worrying.”
“Are you scared?” I ask.
“Petrified,” she whispers. “But don’t tell Ben. I’m totally faking this whole ‘I have this shit in the bag’ business.”
Natasha has long dark hair and is wearing tight-fitting, faded blue jeans and a white T-shirt. Her hair is in a ponytail and she hasn’t any makeup on. She’s beautiful with the most perfect dimples I have ever seen. She has a friendly, down to earth vibe about her. Bridget’s hair is a little lighter, and she’s wearing an ice-blue summer dress. Her stomach does look huge. No wonder Brock said she’s struggling.
Adrian comes out and sits at the bench with the girls. Brock reappears with a bottle of wine and pours me a glass, topping up Natasha’s and Adrian’s while he’s here, and then he gently puts his hand on my hip and stands behind me. “You okay, Pock?” he asks softly.
“I’m good.”
He leans in and kisses my temple. “I’ll just be in the living room.”
“Okay.” I smile at him being so thoughtful. I look up to see the three of them grinning as they watched our interaction.
“God, you three are fucking busy bodies,” Brock grumbles before he disappears into the other room. We fall silent, and I nervously look at the three of them.
“So…” Bridget smiles. “We could probably act cool and casual, but that really isn’t our style and we desperately need to know all the juicy details.”
I grin bigger.
“How long have you been dating?” Adrian asks.
“A couple of weeks.”
Adrian. “Oh, yes, that’s right. It was around Natasha’s birthday, wasn’t it?”
Bridget says something in return, but my attention turns to Joshua as he walks in and puts his hands on Tash’s shoulders from behind. She turns to him.
“Do you want a drink, Presh?” he asks softly.
She smiles lovingly at him and holds her glass up. “I’m full.”
He licks his lips and bends to her ear. “You will be later.” He looks down at her darkly and gives a subtle crack of his neck. Jeez, there is some serious sexual chemistry between the two of them. I wonder how they met? I feel myself getting quite hot under the collar watching them together. Natasha rolls her lips together and smiles cheekily up at him, raising her glass at his promise. I look down quickly, pretending not to notice their private interaction.
Victoria begins to put everything into the serving dishes to take to the table, and Ben comes in shortly after to wrap his arms around Bridget from behind. He puts his big hands lovingly around her stomach, and she turns her head and kisses his shoulder.
I smile softly as I watch their interaction. Oh, I like this family.
There is so much love between them all. I can feel it.
“Ouch,” someone cries from the living room. If I’m right, it sounds like the eldest girl.
Joshua rolls his eyes. “Blake!” he calls, and I smile, how does he know it was Blake? Is this kid wild or something?
“I didn’t touch her!” the little boy calls back.
“Come here, please,” Joshua demands.
Blake comes in and puts his hands on his hips defiantly. “Jordy started it, and I’m not sitting next to her at the table,” he tells us all.
Joshua stares at him, deadpan. “You’ll sit where we tell you to sit.”
Cameron comes in and picks Blake up in a rush, throwing him over his shoulder. “Blake is sitting in the pot plant to eat his dinner.”
He takes Blake over to the huge pot plant and pretends he’s going to put him into it as Blake squeals in delight, kicking and screaming.
I smile as I watch them play while everyone goes back to their conversation.
Victoria rolls her eyes. “Damn Cameron. He can’t be serious for one minute.”
I giggle as I watch him play with the little boy.
Brock puts his hand at the small of my back, and I smile up at him.
“I like your crazy family,” I whisper.
He smiles down at me. “Me, too.”
I lie on my side in bed. Brock has just had a shower, and we are back at his house. It’s late now, and he’s walking towards me when he drops his towel and I smile up at him. God, I still get awestruck at his sexual confidence. No matter how many times he parades around in front of me naked without a care in the world, I find it intoxicating.
“My family loved you,” he tells me as he steps into his boxer shorts.
“Do you think so?”
He lies down beside me. “I know so.”
He watches me for a moment. “Are you okay? You were quiet on the ride home.”
I smile sadly and roll onto my back. “I guess.”
“What’s wrong?”
I look over at him and shrug.
He raises his brow. “You can talk to me. I won’t…” His voice trails off.
I pause for a moment. I really want to talk to him about this, but I don’t want him to get angry with me. “Do you think I’ve treated Simon badly?” I ask softly.