Shut Up and Kiss Me (19 page)

“
Are you serious?” Nikki
stared open-mouthed, hands on her hips and her eyes as wide as wine glasses. “Seriously? He’s a
Townsend
?” she spluttered. “As in a Townsend from the infamous Townsend family? Heir to a fortune the size of…oh my God, his fortune is so big I can’t think of anything worthy to compare it to!”

I nodded and tried not to giggle. We’d been having this discussion for almost twenty minutes now, with her repeatedly asking me the same questions over and over again, just to make sure that she wasn’t hallucinating this entire conversation.

“
And you’re screwing him?”

I nodded again and this time I did giggle, my cheeks blushing furiously.

Nikki grinned when I nodded. “You lucky bitch,” she said, shaking her head. “You lucky, lucky bitch. Why do I never meet the hot gazillionaire?”

I rolled my eyes. “It’s really no big deal. I mean, he’s said his family is wealthy and he owns a few clubs, but,” I shrugged, “so what? He’s just Will to me.”

“
To you, yes!” Nikki practically shouted. “But to everyone else he’s one of the richest men in the world! His family is seriously wealthy, and super important. God, you can’t take five steps in the city without seeing their name attached to one thing or another. I can’t believe you didn’t know any of this!”

I waved her away. “You didn’t know either.”

“
I’m not the one fucking him!”

Heat rose in my cheeks, even as I grinned. “Shut up!”

Plopping down on the couch beside me, Nikki stared at me. “Is he…you know, big?”

I shook my head. “Nope, I’m not talking about this.”

“
He is, isn’t he? And I’m guessing that he’s amazing in bed. He has to be. Anyone with that much money, who is always that good-looking, has to be amazing in bed.”

“
Yes, he’s amazing,” I conceded, no longer able to refrain from laughing.

“
The sex? The sex is amazing? Oh my God, Mila, you’re like my hero.” Jumping up and down, she clapped her hands together. “So, you’re just dating then? Nothing serious?”

I shrugged and nodded, because there was no way that I was going to tell her—or anyone, for that matter—how much I really was beginning to care for him, or the things he had said to me—the mention of the world forever. I wasn’t a child, I was a grown woman; and grown women did not fall for one-night stands. That was just stupid, wasn’t it? It had to be, and no doubt Nikki would be the first to tell me such. And it wasn’t something I was ready to hear.

Nikki continued to stare at me, long and hard, her eyes narrowing into slits.

“
Stop looking at me, Nikki.”

“
I’m sorry, I’m just…I’m in fucking awe of you right now, and totally jealous! I mean, for real, how many one-night stands have I had? I’ll run out of fingers if I even try to count them! And you have one! One! And you bag the rich hottie who also just so happens to be amazing in bed.” She shook her head. “The world is unfair place, Mila.”

“
Nikki!” I shouted, snorting with laughter. “Stop it!”

She waved me off. “Anyway, I think he really likes you.”

“
What makes you think that?”

“
Let me count the ways,” she held up a finger. “One, he’s screwing you—a lot, and it’s amazing. Two, he’s invited you back to his place—so you’ve seen where he lives. No man does that unless he likes you, because men are weird like that.”

Pausing, she arched an eyebrow at me, and I nodded since the reasoning sounded feasible.

“
Three,” she continued, holding up three fingers, “he’s invited you to some charity thing where his family will be. He wants you to meet his actual family—his mother, of all people. A man does not take some random ho to meet his mother.”

Her dark eyes were wide and swimming in excitement at this revelation, and I struggled to contain my grin.

Nikki held up a fourth finger. “Oh, and let’s not forget, you’re screwing him. And it’s amazing.”

I laughed so hard that tears sprung to my eyes. “That was number one!” I gasped.

“
Yes, but with the amount you two are probably screwing, it deserves to be mentioned more than once.”

Biting down on my lower lip, I glanced away. It had only been less than a full day since I’d seen him last. After leaving his house, I’d gone straight to work, but for the duration of my shift I’d been distracted with thoughts of him—the way he smelled, the way his arms felt around me, the adorable unruliness of his hair. In fact, I’d been thinking about him endlessly since meeting him, and with every passing day my obsession seemed to only grow. Will was in my head 24/7. When I wasn’t with him, I was thinking about him. It was both exciting and frightening.

“
Oh my God… Mila, you’re in love with him, aren’t you?”

My gaze snapped back to hers “What? Don’t be silly!”

She smiled fondly at me. “I’m so happy for you, Mila. You deserve this, after everything. You deserve to be happy.”

I blushed again and looked down. She was right: I did deserve a little happiness. Even I could relent enough to agree to that. But with that happiness came the threat that something could destroy it—namely my past—and that worried me.

“
What’s wrong?” Nikki asked.

“
I haven’t told him,” I whispered, looking up. “I know I need to, and I almost did, but then…”

“
You don’t need to tell him,” she said. “Not if you aren’t falling for him. But if you are, you have to tell him—especially if he’s feeling the same way, Mila. His family is…well, his family is important, and if they’re the assholes that he says they are, they are going to burn you at the stake when they find out that—”

“
I know,” I said, cutting her off. Sighing deeply, I stood from the couch and began pacing the room. “Believe me, I know. I’ll tell him soon, before the charity thing. That way he can find someone else to go…”

Nikki appeared beside me and pulled me into a warm hug. “If he’s worthy of you, Mila, he’ll understand.”

I stared over her shoulder at window frame, seeing only the lines of abuse it had taken over the years—the chips and dents, scratches and cracks. Much like me, this windowsill needed someone to love it. It needed someone to care for it.

Though part of me wondered if it was too late for me. I had been perfectly content with my life since moving in with Nikki. I had a job, security, an amazing friend… I’d successfully started over, and after…after what had happened, did I have the right to try for more?

And what if… God, I couldn’t even bear to think it—to wonder what would happen if my past caught up to me.

“
Mila? Are you okay?”

I looked at Nikki, forcing a smile. “I’m fine. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“
Well you wouldn’t have met Mr. Fancy Pants ‘my family own half the world,’ that’s for damn sure.”

I laughed. “You’re right—
you
made me go to his club.”

“
Ohmygosh!
His
club.” Holding the back of her hand to her forehead, she swayed dramatically.

Laughing again, I leaned in and pulled her into a hug. Holding tightly to her, I cringed to think of where I would be if I hadn’t found her. I was so grateful every day that I’d met her, because if I hadn’t, if I’d had to keep running, I had no idea where I’d be, but doubted my situation would have resembled my life now. My life had changed so much, and it was because of the strength that Nikki had given me, the belief that she had forced me to accept: that I was better than my past, and I deserved a better future.

Pulling out of our hug, I saw the twinkle in her big brown eyes, the telltale sign that she was getting emotional, and I kissed her quickly on the cheek.

“
God, if I didn’t have to go to work, I could talk about this all day!”

Pushing her toward the hall, I blew her a kiss. “Go! I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Grabbing her purse, she paused in the hallway. “And we’ll discuss the fact that he has brothers, right? And that you’re going to take pity on your poor, single friend and hook a sista up, right?”

Laughing, I waved her off, listening for the sound of the front door closing, and then heading toward the kitchen.

Pulling out a pot, I filled it with water and set it atop the stove and began rummaging around in the cupboards for pasta. While I waited for the water to boil, I slid my phone free from my jeans and typed out a quick text to Will.

Mila: Miss you.

Seconds later, my phone vibrated, signaling a response.

Will: I can’t stop thinking about you. See you tonight? Your place or mine?

Grinning, I typed another reply.

Mila: Mine. I have ice cream.

Will: I love your ice cream. See you tonight.

Feeling full and happy, I set my phone down so I could finish cooking. While the pasta softened, I set to chopping vegetables, adding them into the pot as I went. When everything had cooked, I brought my meal into the living room and turned on the television. I was halfway through my third mouthful when…

“
Pennsylvania authorities have identified the body of twenty-nine-year-old Monica Shearling, who’d been reported missing from her hometown in Tennessee over a year ago…”

My fork clattered to my feet as I stared unblinking at the screen, at the face of the woman I’d once called my best friend.

I stared for a long time, wishing I could pause the image and erase it all at the same time. With a shaking hand, I picked up the remote and turned up the sound, listening to the words fall out of the news reporter’s mouth, memorized, clipped, calm. Words that held no emotion, no care or feelings for the story they were talking about. This was just words on a screen to them, another news story, another day at work. They would probably finish up and go home to be with their family after they’d finished.

He’d found her. In Pennsylvania, no less—a mere hop, skip, and a jump away from New York.

New York…where I was.

It had started to rain on the way to Mila’s apartment, the dusky evening sky darkening as the gray clouds overtook the white ones and claps of thunder reverberated from above.

Due to the lack of parking on her block, Will had Richard drop him off on the corner just as the sky opened up and the light rain became a full-on downpour. All around umbrellas were opening as he increased his pace to a steady jog, weaving quickly around other pedestrians while shielding his eyes to see through the wall of water.

Several yards from her stoop, squinting through the rain, he slowed his steps, stopping entirely when he realized it was in fact Mila that he was watching drag a large suitcase down the steps and hand off to a waiting taxi driver.

Looking flustered and panicked, she spun around, her wet hair flailing in thick clumps around her head, and ran back up the steps, disappearing inside her building.

Confused, Will hurried forward, reaching the first step as Mila burst out from the door again, another bag in one hand and her purse in the other. With her eyes downcast, watching her steps on the sodden ground, she didn’t see him until she had almost bumped into him, nearly knocking them both over. Their clothes made a slapping sound as they connected. Will gripped her arms to stop her from falling as her eyes lifted to his.

“
Oh,” she said, her eyes widening at the sight of him. “Oh, Will, I’d forgot you were…” Blinking rapidly she trailed off, her words being swallowed as her bottom lip disappeared beneath her teeth.

He was soaked to the bone now, his clothing drenched, hanging heavily off his body and clinging uncomfortably to his skin, becoming restrictive across his broad shoulders. “Going somewhere?” he asked with a nervous laugh, though the situation felt anything but humorous.

“
I…um…I…um…” She shook her head wildly, her eyes still wide, and Will could have sworn there was real fear in her expression. “I’m sorry, Will, but I have to go,” she finished quickly, breathlessly, her features twisting as if it pained her to say the words.