The Wrong Right Man - Aurora Rose Reynolds Page 0,49
upset over that piece of shit,” he mutters, slipping the blanket from the back of the couch to rest it over me.
“I’m not upset about him. Or it’s not all about him,” I say while leaning forward to grab the box of Kleenex from the table, tugging a couple out before lying back down and dabbing my eyes that have finally stopped leaking.
“Is it about Braxton?”
“Some.” I swallow, not even sure myself. “I think it’s everything—not getting closure with Troy, moving in to my own place, my job, my relationship with Braxton, and how there are times I want nothing more than to dive into things with him head-first, and others when he does stuff that makes me question if I should.”
“Why didn’t you tell me about him?” he asks, and the disappointment in his voice causes a fresh wave of tears to fill my eyes.
That’s a good question. “I don’t know,” I admit while sitting up and grabbing my tea, needing the warmth and a moment to try to figure out my own thoughts. I’ve always talked to Jamie about everything going on in my life, but maybe a part of me didn’t want to tell him the things I’ve had issues with when it comes to Braxton and didn’t want Jamie to hate him before I’ve had a chance to figure out if I could possibly be falling for him. “I think I’ve been trying to figure out how I feel about him and didn’t want to talk to you about him until I did.”
“You like him.”
I know it’s not a question.
I lick my lips and nod once. “I do—most of the time anyway. When we’re together without the outside world interfering, he makes me happy, he makes me laugh, and he makes me feel like I’m important, good enough.” I pull in a deep breath. “But there are times when he makes me question my own sanity, times he does things I hate and get frustrated, because it’s like he doesn’t believe he’s doing anything wrong.”
His eyes narrow. “Things like what?”
I roll my eyes. “Like calling to tell you I was meeting up with Troy so you could show up.” I shake my head. “Who does something like that?”
“He was worried about you, Dakota,” he says, seeming to relax, like me thinking Braxton contacting him for the reasons he did is absolutely normal.
“Maybe that’s why I didn’t talk to you about Braxton. You would do the insane things he has done if given a reason or the opportunity.”
“If you mean protecting someone I care about, then hell yeah, I would.”
I groan and lean back against the couch. “I’m surrounded by crazy people.”
He grabs my foot and my attention. “If you tell me I shouldn’t like him, I won’t, Dakota. But I have to tell you he didn’t sugarcoat shit for me. He told me about everything, even about lying to you the night you two met, something you didn’t even tell me about.”
My mouth drops open. “He told you about that?”
“He did.” He smirks. “I mean, if you think about it, that shit is kind of funny.”
I grab the pillow from behind me and toss it at his head. “It’s not funny. Do you know how stupid I felt when I found out I spent the night with a man I didn’t know then later on that he’s actually the CEO of IMG, the company I just started working for?”
“I don’t want to know about you two spending the night together,” he mutters, looking disgusted.
“An amazing night together.” I fight back my smile as his face pales. “Seriously, he’s—”
“Shut up, Dakota.” He throws my pillow back at me, making me laugh. “I never, ever want to hear about what you are doing with anyone behind closed doors.”
“Oh, but it was okay for me to have to listen to you go at it all night with the random women you brought home?”
“It’s not the same thing.”
“Umm, yeah, Jamie, it is. Only it’s worse having to hear the sounds your brother makes when he’s—”
He covers my mouth before I can finish and glares at me. “Okay, fuck, I’m sorry. Just please stop.”
“I’ll stop,” I mumble against his hand, and he lets me go before moving back in his seat, still glaring at me.
Giggling, I take a sip of my tea then rest it on my knee. Silence settles between us, and I jump when my cell in my bag starts to ring. I grab my purse off the floor