Lust Thy Neighbor (22 page)

It irked her that Alexandra had spoken to his mother about her plans, but she found herself shaking her head. "No. I've been seeing someone. And he's asked me to go with him for the holidays." She didn't want to rub Henry's nose in it but, hey, if he could be happy with someone, then she could too, right?

"Is it serious?"

"Yeah, it is."

"That's ... good for you." There was a weird note in his voice, causing her to frown.

“What’s going on, Henry? Why did you really call?"

"I ... Natalie and I had a fight."

"Oh." She leaned back in her chair. So, he had gotten into a quarrel with his new girlfriend and decided to call the one he’d let go? Her mouth set in a hard line. "I’m sorry to hear that, but why call me?”

"I don't know." He released a heavy sigh, and she could picture him dragging his hand through his dark hair, like he always did when he was aggravated. "I guess I just wanted to hear your voice. It always made things better. Helped me figure things out.”

At one time that might have melted her, but now? Now, she just wanted to get this call over with so she could move along with her day. Hell, with her life in general. Waiting for Henry to say something—anything—gave her a clear picture of the differences between Henry and Declan. Her ex skirted around issues and had always secretly wanted Violet to be able to read his mind. He played games, and he played them well. But Declan ... Declan put everything out there for her. If he wanted something, he told her—plain and simple.

"Henry,” she said calmly. “I can’t do this with you.”

She wasn’t surprised when he ignored her statement and asked, "Are you happy now?"

"Yes." Her answer came immediate.

There was another heavy pause. "I miss you sometimes."

She squeezed her eyes tightly together. A year ago, right after their breakup, she might have wanted to hear that from him. Now, it just made her stomach twist into uncomfortable knots. “I’m sorry you had an argument with Nat," she began softly, “but you really shouldn’t be calling me, Henry. Especially if you’re going to say things like that.”

"I see." She heard him take in a breath, and when he spoke again his voice was formal and detached. "I’m sorry for bothering you."

For a long time after she hung up, she simply stared at her phone and wondered what the hell had just happened.

*

"H
ow did swim go?"

Jacob ran his hand through his wet hair and then shook it like a dog, earning a dark look from his brother. "Good."

"Did you have fun?" Declan pressed.

"You sound like Mom right now," he complained, but then softly added, "But yeah, I did."

"Good." Declan turned into their driveway. "I just want you to be happy, kid."

"Stop. You're getting all gushy on me. I think Miss Kelly’s rubbing off on you and making you all weepy or something.”

Declan popped his brother in the shoulder, grinning. "Shove it, kid.”

But Jacob was no longer looking at him. Instead, he was craning his neck to peer over into Violet’s driveway, his nose wrinkled. "Who is that?"

"What?" He put the truck in park and looked out the window at the BMW sedan parked on the other side of Violet’s compact car. His brother posed an excellent question, who
was
that? With the way the other car was parked, it was impossible for him to get a good look at the driver. “Maybe Beck got a new car,” he suggested, and his brother shook his head.

"Nah, remember what Violet said at dinner the other night? Beck’s out of town for the next week.”

"You sure?"

"Yeah." Jacob gestured again at the BMW. "Look, he’s getting out now."

Declan's breath caught at the sight of Violet's ex going up her driveway.

"You know who he is?"

His mouth dried up. There was a good explanation for Henry Abee being at Violet’s place. He knew it. And he trusted her. Right? "That's Violet's ex-fiancé."

Jacob’s eyes nearly bugged out of his head. “Wait, what? Violet had a fiancé?”

"Yeah." For the first time since moving into his new house, Declan pulled his truck into his garage. He grabbed his laptop bag and opened his door before barking out, "Let's go inside."

He could hear Jacob's quick steps trailing after him and then a mumbled, "This isn't good is it?”

*

"H
enry!" When the doorbell rang, Violet had expected it to be Jacob stopping by for Bear, but she felt all the blood drain from her face as she stared back at her ex. “What are you doing here? How did you even get my address?”

"Your grandmother,” he answered with an easy smile that made her feel like she was going to start breaking out in hives at any moment. “It’s good to see you.”

Making a mental note to call Alexandra and give her a piece of her mind the moment she got him off her doorstep, she crossed her arms over her chest. "I told you earlier, I can’t do this with you.” She glanced around him, relieved when she saw that Declan’s driveway was empty. The last thing she wanted was an awkward confrontation. “What do you want, Henry?”

"Fifteen minutes,” he said. “All I’m asking for is fifteen minutes, and I’ll never bother you again. Can you at least give me that?”

She debated saying no. That’s what he deserved even if she had come to terms with the end of their relationship. But she was a softie and she scooted aside so he could come in. "Make it ten, okay? I have plans tonight and I've got a lot to do around here before I leave.”

She heard the clatter of nails on tiles as Bear ran into the front room, eager to explore the newcomer. At the sight of Henry, a stranger, Bear barked and tried to snap at him with his sharp little teeth. "Bear! Stop!" Violet bent down and picked up her dog, soothing him with a gentle rub behind the ears.

"You got a dog." He stood awkwardly in the foyer, his hands in the pockets of his elegantly tailored pants. “I never took you for the type to get a dog.”

No,
she wanted to say,
you were strictly against getting a dog.
"He's a good protector.”

"He's tiny,” he pointed out.

Violet cooed into Bear's triangle ears, telling him he was a good boy before she looked up into Henry’s midnight blue eyes. “He’s my family,” she said simply. "Want a drink or something?"

He nodded. "Yeah, thanks." He followed her into the kitchen and she let Bear out into the backyard. "Got a beer or something?"

She nodded. She wasn’t much of a drinker, but she was pretty sure Beckett had left a case of his favorite IPA in her fridge the last time he was over. When she went to check, she found two and offered him one just as her phone began to buzz on her kitchen counter. She had never in her life been so happy for an intrusion. Shooting Henry and apologetic smile, she snatched her phone to her and answered before the next vibration. "Hello?"

"Hey, beautiful." Declan's voice poured over her, making her even more anxious to get Henry out of her house. She remembered his reaction to Henry the night of her grandparent’s party. The last thing she wanted was for him to come home to discover her ex had pried her address out of her grandma and was currently standing right in the middle of her kitchen. “Getting ready for tonight?”

"Not yet." She glanced over at her ex, who was pacing her small kitchen and occasionally tipping the bottle of beer to his lips. She had a feeling this talk with him wouldn't be over in a short five minutes. So much for getting him out as soon as she could. "Actually, can we just stay in tonight? Just call me whenever you get home and I’ll come over for a movie or something. Are you close by?"

"Oh." She could have sworn she heard his voice catch before he said, “No. Looks like I’m not as close as I thought I was. Why the change of plans?”

"It's just that I have a lot to finish for a lesson." She cringed the moment she said the words aloud, wondering why she hadn’t just told him the truth. It wasn’t like she was doing anything wrong.

Declan was silent for a long pause then he asked, "Anything I can help you with?"

"No,” she answered quickly, her stomach clenching.

"You sure everything is okay?" There was that weird tone again. “Violet?”

She looked to Henry who had almost finished his drink, annoyance flaring within her. Why had he come? Why couldn't he have just stayed out of her life, like he’d done expertly for the last year?

"Fine," she said. “Everything is fine.”

There was a tense silence. Or maybe she was the only one who was tense. Guilt gnawed at her, and once again, the need to backtrack and tell him the truth weighed her down.

"See you later?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Good." He hung up.

"What was that?" Henry's voice jarred her out of her daze.

"Nothing." But it wasn't
nothing
. And the pressure settling in her ribcage told her that she had just made a horrible mistake.

"W
hat did she say?" Jacob was perched on the countertop, his long legs swinging back and forth.

"Nothing." He stared at the phone in his hand, his throat constricting as he processed the ninety second call where Violet had pulled the rug out from beneath him.

His brother hopped off the center island, muttering again, "Nope, this isn't good at all."

Declan's eyes went to the fence that separated Violet's house from his. He had trusted her. And she just lied to him.

W
hy she hadn’t she just told Declan that Henry was in her home, in her kitchen pacing back and forth, she asked herself as she numbly placed her phone face down on the counter. Scrubbing her hands up and down her face, she assured herself that she didn't do anything wrong and then the little voice in the back of her head mockingly reminded her that maybe she hadn’t—at least not before she lied.

She twisted back around to look at Henry who was busy fiddling with the label on his beer bottle.

"Why are you here?" This time there was no kindness in her voice, only irritation, and his denim blue eyes widened in surprise.

"Can't a guy visit a friend?"

"Without any warning? Without that friend even knowing he has her address? And when she asked you to leave her alone?” Her volume increased with every word until she was yelling. “Your sense of entitlement makes me want to rip my hair out.”

She saw his Adam’s apple bob when he swallowed hard. "You're right. I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize, just tell me why you're here."

"Nat and I broke up."

"Okay.”

"I think our engagement just ended,” he repeated as if she hadn't heard him clearly the first time. She had.

“You told me that earlier when you called.” She balled her hands into small fists by her side. "And then, when I didn't tell you whatever it is you wanted to hear,you thought it would be a good idea to drive two hours to tell me in person?"

“Yes.”

Inhaling, she dropped her gaze to the kitchen floor, gathering her thoughts for several seconds. Finally, she lifted her chin and looked at him again, her blue eyes hard as ice. “I’m sorry to hear about your engagement, Henry, but that has nothing to do with me. It stopped being my problem over a year ago.”

"Remember how happy we were when we first got together, Vi?" He approached her slowly, and she backed away, the kitchen suddenly felt too small for the both of them.

"That feels like a million years ago,” she admitted. “And I wouldn’t say we were happy—we were content.”

"I remember seeing you that day in the coffee shop. You were beautiful and shy and I couldn't let you go without talking to you. Remember that night in Southampton? Remember how we just sat out there in the middle of nowhere, lying on the deck and looking up at the stars?"

She did. Henry had pulled out all the stops to impress her and she had fallen for it. It was a grand gesture and she had appreciated it. It was the first night they slept together. Under the stars. Crossing her arms over her chest, she nodded.

"Remember how on top of the world we felt?"

She snorted. “We had just had sex, so of course we felt on top of the world. What does any of this have to do with you breaking up with Natalie? Did you try to impress her by fucking her on your dad’s yacht in New York, too? Maybe it wasn't all she thought it would be either?”

He looked hurt, wounded, and she felt a sharp pain in her chest because it hurt her to say those words. To be cruel to the man who'd screwed her over. What the hell was wrong with her?

"It was special," he insisted.  "We had something special, Violet."

No matter how bad she felt for being rude to him, his comment didn't sit well with her. If he had made that statement a year ago, she might have been compelled to agree. But now that she'd been with Declan, she didn’t think so. Declan gave her a realistic picture of the world. He showed her that life could be extremely beautiful to the point where it took your breath away. He made her smile at the little things. He made her find joy again, made her realize that being in a relationship didn't mean that she needed to give up something. Declan, with his chocolate brown eyes and easy grin, made her see that if she was going to be happy with him, she needed to be happy with herself first. He didn't expect her to change to find that happiness.

But he also opened her eyes to the horrors of the world. When he would wake up in the middle of the night, sweat-drenched because of his reoccurring nightmare where he dreamt that he was there on the night of his parents' accident, seeing it happen but unable to do anything about it ... in those moments, she saw how cruel the world could be in tearing apart a family, leaving a young man to fill an almost impossible role.

What she had with Declan—that was special. It was real. And she couldn't imagine anything else. “We had a good time while it lasted," she told Henry with a tight smile.

"Goddammit, Violet." His voice broke and he slammed his empty bottle on her counter. "I think I made a mistake."

Of course he had. "What is that supposed to mean?”

"Us. I mean us."

She fumbled around for a place to sit down. Easing onto one of her kitchen chairs, she accidentally swept aside her purse, its contents spilling on the floor. "I'm seeing someone, Henry,” she told him softly. “I told you that earlier, and for you to come here and say something like that to me ... it’s worse than when you fucked another woman behind my back.”