The Lover's Surrender (No Exceptions) (14 page)

One of the
things I never understood was love. That four-letter word that spelled trouble.
Could it be that love really existed? That it was so potent, leaving a trail of
confusion in its wake by attracting nothing but simple words and actions? Or
was it the mind’s ability to create something so beautiful and scary that it
felt real if we chose to believe in it? Whatever it was, I still had a hard
time trusting it, especially when it came down to the sinfully sexy Jett
Mayfield.

The man,
who had the one and only ability to control my heart and mess with my soul.

The man who
had conquered my body and tamed my heart.

Jett had
taught me all there was to know about love, but he’d also made me learn how to
curse it when it mattered.

Like now,
when I was stuck in between a place where I wanted to believe what I hoped to
be true and curse the confusion that had filled my heart.

“Jett.” My
voice sounded awfully choked as I stared at the box in my hand. “What’s this?
If this is a prank, I swear I’ll kill you.”

“It isn’t.”
He stepped behind me, his hot breath tickling my neck. “This is pretty serious,
and I wouldn’t blame you if you ran away again. ”

I turned
around, not trusting his words, not trusting his smile, not trusting anything
he did or said. His words registered with me, and yet, for some reason, I
didn’t understand them.

I, Brooke
Stewart, didn’t understand the situation.

For all I
knew, Jett might as well have been speaking a foreign language.

It was that
damn box that rendered my brain all mushy.

“Why would
I run away?” I asked, cringing inwardly.

I sounded
so stupid I could have slapped myself, but honestly, he made no sense.

If only my
heart weren’t beating faster than a humming bird as I looked up at him.

His
handsome face turned to me, his green eyes piercing my heart, and there was
this strange knot in my throat that wouldn’t go away.

He grinned.
“You’d be surprised with a strong, independent woman like you.”

I stared at
the box in my hand again. It was light and yet heavy.

Could it be
earrings to match my necklace?

I mean,
there was no point in getting my hopes up, only to see them dashed again.

“Brooke,”
he started, “I’m sorry that it couldn’t be more special. There are no roses, no
candles, no music. Nothing to set the scene, but trust me, I had it all planned
back at the hotel, and then you ran away. But now is as good a time as any to
ask you…” he trailed off, pausing.

“Ask me
what?” I shook my head as I stared at the box, completely flummoxed.

Whether I
wanted to wear new stud earrings that evening?

That he had
found a good luck charm and didn’t know how to return it to its rightful owner?
Or whether I minded that he had started collecting cross bugs?

My mind
raced through different scenarios, each one more absurd than the
last—except for one, and that one couldn’t be true.

But if it
was?

No way.

I mean, we
girls dream. We hope and pine. And that’s just part of being stupid and in
love. Like the part of believing in unicorns, even though no one’s ever seen
one, at least not in real life. A marriage proposal was pretty much the same. A
fairy tale. Something you wished for.

At least,
it seemed like a fairy tale to me, because I, Brooke Stewart, was not getting
engaged anytime soon.

“What
question, Jett?” I asked, slightly out of breath.

“I think
you know, because I’ve made my feelings about you pretty clear.” With a smile,
he took the box out of my hand, his fingers lingering ever so shortly on mine.
“Don’t look at me like that.” Jett smiled. “I’m not pranking you, so you can
stop shaking your head.”

Did I shake
my head?

Oh my God,
I had.

And then he
kneeled.

Oh. My.
God.

So did that
mean…?

It couldn’t
be.

And yet, it
seemed so very true.

I had hoped
for it but never thought it’d happen any time soon.

Jett had
been pretty adamant that he’d never marry before he’d dated someone for at
least five years, and last time I checked, five years hadn’t passed yet. I
stared at him in shock, at the box in his hand, at his lost expression, and
fought the need to figure out if this was what I thought it was.

“Baby,”
Jett whispered. “I can be a real jerk when I want something. I can be a real
jerk when I fight to keep what belongs to me. Fuck, I can be greedy when I need
you, and there’s no denying, no reason, no doubt that I need you by my side.
Which is why I have one wish. That you stay with me. Forever. Not just today,
but until the end of time.”

He took a
deep breath and let it out slowly. Suddenly, he seemed to grow more nervous.
Not nervous, like a student taking a final exam, but more like nervous as in
afraid to fail. And he was strangely emotional. I could hear the shaking in his
voice.

Pausing,
his hand held mine, and he continued to stare at me, his eyes shimmering with
what I assumed were tears.

My heart
skipped a beat.

He meant
it.

“Brooke,”
he started again, drawing my attention back to his face. “There’s a reason why
I told you that I was sorry, and there’s a reason why I hope that I get a
chance to make it up to you for the rest of my life. It’s because I can no
longer wait to ask you that one question. The one question I hope will change
your life. The one I hope won’t make you run away.” He took a sharp breath. I
remained quiet, waiting for him to continue. “You once asked me why I love you,
even though you never had to ask. I already told you that you’re the only woman
who’s seen the real me and accepted me for who I am. You’re the only woman I
want by my side for the rest of my life. The only woman I can imagine myself
with. So…will you give me the honor and the joy of
being your
husband
?”

With tears
in his eyes, he opened the box.

My heart
slammed against my chest so hard I feared I might faint on the spot. Lost for
words, I stared at him, then at the box.

Inside it
was a beautiful diamond ring.

And not
just any ring.

Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod.

It was an
engagement ring.

He was
really going for it.

Jett
Mayfield was proposing to me.

I held my
breath.

My soul
rejoiced, my heart slammed in my chest, and my knees grew weak.

Too many
words began to swim inside my brain, and yet my mind was too mushy to grasp any
of them.

My vision
grew blurry. My fingers brushed over my eyes to check for any invisible tears.
Even though I couldn’t feel the moisture on my cheeks, it was there.

My tears
seemed to pour out of me like a river.

And then he
smiled—that beautiful smile I had grown to adore. That beautiful smile
that made my heart jump every time he so much as looked at me. For a few
seconds, I could feel his emotions, as if our hearts beat as one.

 
“Yes.” I nodded and wrapped my arms
around him, my fingers clasping at the back of his nape. “Yes, oh my God. Yes.”

He breathed
out, relieved. “That’s good.” He grinned as he gathered me in his arms and spun
me around. “I thought I’d have to kidnap you and hold you hostage until you
said ‘yes’.”

While I was
sure that Jett wouldn’t be opposed to giving me some much-needed privacy, I
couldn’t tell him how much I needed him to get out so I could engage in some
girl chat.

It had
taken some convincing for Jett to order more Chinese, but the moment the door
closed and I got rid of my new fiancé—God, how much I loved that new
word—I phoned my best friend Sylvie.

“You won’t
believe what just happened,” I started as I stared at my new ring, barely able
to conceal the excitement that came with being proposed to.

Sylvie
had
to know, or else I would be breaking
our ancient girl’s promise to convey the news of being engaged, or else—

Which was
why I was now standing in front of the mirror, my heart beating fast at the
prospect of telling her.

“Whoa, slow
down,” Sylvie said, unimpressed by my barely contained excitement. “Does it
involve Jett?”

My lips
twitched. “Yes. How did you know?”

“Oh, my
God. You did not bash his car with a baseball bat, did you?”

“No.
Nothing of the sort.” I let out a snort. That was exactly the thing Sylvie
would want me to do.

“What is it
then?” she asked, the confusion obvious in her voice. “And why the hell are you
shouting? Did you kill him or something?”

“I’m in the
bathroom, and Jett’s picking up lunch. Last time I checked, he was very much
alive.”

“But if
you’re with him, then…Oh shit! You did not!” She sounded shocked. “You did
not
have sex with him again! Please
don’t tell me you did.”

I groaned.
“I did, but before you say anything…”

“That’s it.
You have to get help,” she cut me off. I shook my head. As usual, Sylvie was
bossy when it came to Jett, not in the least because she wasn’t his biggest
fan. “I’m serious. This…this obsession with this guy, it has to stop. I gotta
tell you, it’s pure madness. And I’m putting it nicely, what with being your
friend and all.”

I groaned
again. “Please listen to me.”

“No, I’m
not listening to any more of your lame excuses. It’s not healthy for you. The
first thing you need to do is accept that he’s bad, bad news, hot or not.”

“No, just
listen. He proposed.” The words slipped out before I could stop myself.
Forgotten was the small fact that Sylvie wasn’t up to date. And she most
certainly didn’t know how much I had wanted Jett to propose.

Silence,
then hesitantly, as if she wasn’t sure she had heard right, “He did what?”

“Jett and I
are engaged.” I grinned like an idiot, even though she couldn’t see me.

The line
went quiet. A minute passed. Then another. The silence grew so heavy I was sure
Sylvie had hung up.

“Sylvie?
Are you still there?” I asked.

“Yes, I
am,” she whispered, strangely choked. “I’m just waiting to hear some clapping.
You’d tell me if I was being pranked on TV, wouldn’t you? Because right now,
that’s exactly what I think is happening and it’s not funny. It’s not funny at
all.”

“Jett and I
are back on,” I said.

“Like ‘back
on’ back on?” Sylvie’s voice was stiff, her tone oozing disbelief. I couldn’t
blame her. She had no idea at all what was happening. In her mind, Jett had
cheated on me. Then, in the span of thirty-six hours, Gina was found dead, a
letter was left for me, a nightly visit scared the shit out of me, and yes,
Jett and I had reunited. And then he proposed.

I had no
doubt that explaining everything on the phone would be too much for someone
like her. Knowing Sylvie and her tendency to overanalyze and comment on each
situation as if she were Oprah, it would take hours to get her to understand.

Hours I
didn’t have.

Grabbing a
stool from the corner of the bathroom, I sat down. “We want to take our
relationship to the next level, you know, start a family.”

“But…” As
expected, the dreaded words came. “He cheated, Brooke. How could you possibly
take him back?”

“Sylvie, I
got it all wrong. Tiffany was just jealous.” I cringed as I realized how I came
across. Defensive. Overprotective. “Jett was planning to propose the whole time
and she knew it. That’s why she tried to make a pass at him in the hope he
wasn’t serious about us.”

“That’s
what he told you, huh? That son of a bitch. Of course, he wouldn’t let you go
without putting up a fight. Of course, he’s working on his next lie.” A snort
echoed down the line before her rant continued, “Honey, you can’t believe a
word he says. He’s trying to get into your panties again. He wasn’t the one who
dumped you, meaning the loser couldn’t take a punch to his ego, so he’s spun
his story around to suit a purpose. Don’t fall for his shit. I bet he didn’t
even get you a ring.”

I sighed,
then sighed again.

This was going
to be so hard.

Leaning
forward, I took a few breaths and slowly counted to three—just as I had
learned in therapy after my sister died. This time it didn’t help ease the
tension inside me.

“I know
this is a lot to take in,” I said slowly. “It came as a surprise to me, too.
Really. But, Sylvie, listen to me.” I paused for effect before continuing, more
convincingly, “He didn’t cheat. He really proposed, and yes, I do believe him.
And what the hell! Of course he got me a ring, which, by the way, is the most
beautiful I’ve ever seen.” I stared at my hand again. It sparkled so much it
could light up a room.

Holy pearls!

The ring
was stunning, which could only mean that it must have cost him a fortune.

“Is it even
real?” Sylvie asked, doubtful, cutting through my thoughts.

“Wow. I
can’t even believe you said that.” I grimaced, my tone sounding hurt. “Of
course it’s real. Did you forget the fact that Jett’s a billionaire?”

“
Exactly.
He’s a billionaire.”

“What’s
that supposed to mean?” I asked indignantly.

“For starters,
he might have experience in proposing. I don’t even have to tell you how many
women he’s fucked.”

Disappointed,
I let my shoulders drop at the lack of excitement in Sylvie’s voice. Why
couldn’t she be happy for us? I knew my engagement made no sense to her, but
just this once, I wanted her to pretend.

Taking a
deep breath, I closed my eyes.

“Look. I
know you mean well, but my future is with him,” I said firmly. “If you both
can’t get along, then I’m not sure you should come to the wedding. This is
about my happiness, Sylvie. I don’t get to make a choice, because I love him,
and he loves me, and I can’t change that, even if that means you won’t be
invited to be there on our big day.”

“You’re not
joking,” Sylvie said matter-of-factly.

“No, I’m
not,” I whispered.

“So you
would choose him over me,” she said, hurt. “All the years of friendship, and
now you wouldn’t invite me to your wedding. Now let me remind you: When he
breaks your little heart, I’m the one who’ll still be there for you, but if you
don’t want me at your wedding, then by all means, I’ll respect your wishes.”

Kill me!

My pulse
started to pound against my temples. I so didn’t want to fight. Whenever Sylvie
and I had an argument, it could take days to resolve it.

I hoped
today wasn’t one of those days.

Fuck, I
hoped it wasn’t the day our friendship ended.

On reflex,
my chest tightened as fear washed over me. Losing Sylvie would be too hard a
blow. She was like the glue that held me together when times were tough.

“Sylvie,” I
started, my voice shaky. “You’re my best friend, my other sister. I never said
that I’d choose him over you. Of course, I want you to be there on what will be
my most important day. But I can’t be in the middle of this. I just can’t.
Right now, I need you to be there for me and not make things extremely hard by
jumping to wrong conclusions and fighting against Jett. There’s so much more
going on that you don’t know about.”

“I’m
looking out for you, sister.” Her voice sounded frosty. “As your friend, it’s
my responsibility to warn you that he keeps twisting his way into your head
with all his lies. What did you expect? That I would close my eyes and lie to
your face that he’s great when he thinks it’s okay to do whatever he pleases
behind your back?”

“No…yes,
maybe. I don’t know.” My head was spinning. “He lied to protect me.”

There was a
short silence. Eventually, Sylvie’s voice bounced back, the anger in her tone
more palpable than before. “I don’t understand. Protect you from what? And
what’s going on that I don’t know about?”

The lump in
my throat suddenly increased in size. I closed my eyes for a moment. This was
the moment. It was now or never.

“Nate was
granted a furlough,” I said, trying to sound casual, even though a minuscule
part of me shrank at that name.

“Whoa! Stop
here! Why would they do that?” She sounded so taken aback, I thought she might
pass out from shock. “That’s crazy. He’s a killer who should be locked up
behind bars, not walking around, getting a break.”

“He isn’t
exactly walking around,” I explained. “They put him under surveillance so that
he could record a few conversations with his ex-associates in return for having
his sentence reduced.”

“What for?”

“They need
more evidence,” I muttered.

“That’s so
fucked up. As if they didn’t get enough already. Besides, how can they trust a
liar?” Her laugh sounded fake and stopped as abruptly as it started. In the
background, I could hear a chair scraping across the hardwood floor. Then
Sylvie sighed.

For a
second, I imagined her, her hand clutching her phone, everything else
forgotten. My previous words were still ringing in my ears. Sure, what I had
said was harsh, but I had spoken the truth.

“Hold on. I
need a drink to digest this. All of it.” The line went quiet for a while. That
was exactly what I had expected Sylvie to say after hearing the news. Leaning
my head against the wall, I imagined Sylvie rummaging in our small kitchen for
a bottle of anything, until I realized that she wasn’t and couldn’t be at the
apartment.

“You have a
bottle in your office?” I asked incredulously when she was back on.

She let out
a forced laugh. “Are you kidding me? How else would I survive in this poorly
paid job? But seriously, everyone has a secret stash somewhere.” In the
background, I could hear a bottle unscrewing and liquid pouring into a glass.

“I hate
fighting with you,” Sylvie said and took a sip.

“I don’t
want to fight either,” I admitted, strangely emotional.

It was
true.

“Good. I
mean, it would be stupid to risk our friendship over some—” she stopped
abruptly.

I frowned.

Over some
guy? Over something else?

The silence
grew worse. For some reason, I could sense that Sylvie was fighting with
herself.

“You said
Nate would be getting a reduced sentence,” she started. “How many years are we
talking about?”

“I don’t
know,” I said honestly. “I hope not too many, but Nate’s looking at life
anyway, so it won’t really make a difference. That’s what Jett said.”

“That’s
what he said, huh?” Her voice sounded stiff, but at least she had calmed down.
I could only guess it was the alcohol now flowing through her system.

A good old
glass of wine had probably saved me from the lion’s jaw.

“Yeah.”

Tense
silence ensued.

Stretching
out my legs, I waited for her reply—for anything that would break the
awkward moment. When nothing came, I closed my eyes. With each passing second,
I was getting closer to the moment of truth.

“Just say
it,” I whispered, feeling every muscle in my body tense.

“Look, if
you want to get married, I’ll support you. Fuck, I’ll tolerate Jett, but don’t
expect me to love him or anything. You can’t expect me to understand why he
couldn’t tell you about Nate. It’s not like it’s not a big deal, because it is,
and we all know that. But it’s not exactly like he couldn’t tell you. And
please correct me if I’m wrong.”