Kiss To Forget (Blairwood University #2) - Anna B. Doe Page 0,100
her face. Her tongue peeks out, wetting her lips. “She wouldn’t want you to do this. Not here, not now.”
I close my eyes, forcing myself to take a breath.
“Let him go. Please.”
What the hell have I been thinking? It’s my mother’s funeral, and I’m letting him destroy it, taint it with his presence and my asshole behavior. Like father, like son.
“Please, think about Helen. Think about Jade,” Yasmin whispers, so low I’m probably the only person who can hear it.
Unclenching my fingers, I let him fall to the ground and pull back. “Get out.”
Yasmin uses this opportunity to slip between the two of us, her arms wrapping around my middle.
“You can’t make me leave. I have every right to…”
My eyes snap open, body tensing. Yasmin tightens her hold on me. “You either get the hell out this very moment, or I’ll make you leave. It’s your choice. I’m sure you’d rather we don’t make a scandal.”
“Sir…” Prescott steps closer, and for the first time, I notice my friends surrounding us. Always having my back. “I think you should leave.”
Dad looks at us, probably also realizing that he’s outnumbered. “Fine.” He points his finger at me. “But this isn’t done.”
No, it’s not. It was done long before now.
Chapter Thirty-Five
NIXON
“They’re gone,” Hayden says as he comes back into the living room.
Pinching the bridge of my nose, I sigh in relief. “Thank God. If they’d stayed even a second longer, I think I’d have thrown them out through the closed window.”
He pats me on the shoulder. “I’ve got your back.”
And he had. I don’t think we would have managed to survive this day without my friends present. “Thanks, man.” I look around. There are still some things that need to be cleaned, but I want to go up and check on Jade. She’d been holding on strong until that asshole showed his face. Once the ceremony started, she turned into a mess. Not that I was any better. If it weren’t for Jade needing me, and Yasmin standing by my side, I wouldn’t have made it through.
“Go to her, we’ll take care of the house.”
I nod. There are no words to express how grateful I am to them for showing up, although all I did in the last few months was push them away.
“I’ll be back in a bit, I just need to make sure she’s okay.”
I quickly work my way out of the room and up the stairs. The second floor is quiet, but that’s to be expected. Walking down the hallway, I stop in front of Jade’s room. I knock softly, not wanting to startle her if she’s awake. When there is no answer, I slowly turn the knob and open the door.
“Jade?” I peek inside.
The small lamp on the nightstand is turned on. I’ve noticed that she’s started to do that lately, but I don’t want to make her feel uncomfortable, so I haven’t asked any questions. But when I look at the bed, I find it empty.
Pushing the door open, I enter the room. “Jade?” I call, this time louder, but once again, there is no answer.
Panic starts building inside of me, making my heart race. I clench my sweaty palms tight, hissing softly when my nails dig into the skin.
Where is she? She couldn’t have gone, could she? Somebody would have seen her.
I take a sweep of the room, hoping to see her hiding somewhere. But she isn’t five anymore, and this isn’t a game of hide-and-seek. My eyes fall on the bathroom door.
I debate for a split second.
She would have heard me call her the second time if she was in the bathroom.
If she was okay, she would have heard.
All the tears she cried lately come back to my mind. How hard it was for her when Mom died. How quiet she’s grown over the past few months, so unlike the girl I used to know.
I cross the room on shaky legs and turn the knob. “Jade, I’m coming in. This isn’t fun—”
The words die on my lips as the panic turns into full-blown, bone-chilling fear.
Front and center in her bathroom is a huge bathtub. I still remember how much she begged Dad to get her one when we were remodeling. From a young age, she could have spent hours in that thing, and you couldn’t get her out. She grew even worse over the years.
Of course Dad conceded; after all, she was his little princess.