Chapter 21

Dallas

Several days later, I was scrolling through emails on my computer when my phone rang. I glanced at the screen to see it was my little sister.

“Hey Thea, what's up?” I asked.

“Dallas! Noah and Ian are coming up for Christmas. Isn’t that awesome?”

I grinned because when Thea was excited, it was infectious. “It’s great. Can’t believe you pinned ‘em both down.”

“Oh, I had to do some sweet talking, but they’re on board. I’m also calling because I was thinking maybe I could come up tomorrow. Audrey and I could drive down to New York together and deal with getting everything out of her apartment.”

I’d mentioned to Thea that Audrey seemed open to help with this. “Sounds like a plan. How about I drive with Audrey? That'll save you a trip. Have you talked to her about it?”

“Not this specifically, but she said she was hoping to get it done before Christmas. I suppose it makes more sense for you to drive down,” she replied.

“You can fly up later,” I explained.

Thea chattered on for a few more minutes about how excited she was that Noah and Ian would be in Haven’s Bay for Christmas.

“Have you been to the house yet?” she finally asked.

“No, I haven't. It looks the same from the outside. It's not like I don't know what's there,” I added, biting back my annoyance.

I had mixed feelings about our childhood home. I hated the way it had come to me—through our father’s backhanded efforts to protect his money. He’d put most of his investments in my name before the investigation caught up to him. I’d sold off everything and managed to pay off everyone he’d hoodwinked. The house was all we had left, and I didn’t even know if I wanted to keep it. Thus far, I’d been ignoring it. The only reason I held onto it was because the home reminded me of our mother. It was more her home than anyone’s, her presence permeating every memory I held of it.

“Geez, Dallas. Why are you so weird about the house? It's yours,” Thea said.

I shifted my shoulders uncomfortably. “It's not mine, it's ours. In fact, I'm going to deal with processing the deed and signing it over to all of us.”

I could practically feel Thea rolling her eyes.

“Whatever. I think you should keep it. You're the only one of us who visits Haven’s Bay. It's obvious you miss it,” she explained.

I didn't want to dwell on this line of conversation, much less point out I’d visited quite a bit less in recent years. “Mind texting me the address? I don't even know where Audrey lived in New York. You think we should give Matthew a heads up?” I asked.

Thea sighed heavily. “I don't give a damn. It's their place. She can go in and out when she wants, but I suppose we might as well check. I'll call. I'd rather her not accidentally walk in on him with Alyssa again. God, that whole thing pisses me off! How is she anyway? She hasn't called much, which worries me.”

My mind spun back to last night. Every single day I woke up now and told myself I wasn't going to fuck Audrey senseless again. Every single day, I completely failed. Last night, I had my face buried between her legs and then my cock buried deep inside of her, watching her fly apart twice. She was like a drug I'd never known I could get addicted to. I was stumbling inside emotionally when it came to her, and I didn’t know what the hell to do about it. She was coming to mean far too much, far too quickly. The sensible side of me knew I needed to step back, but I couldn’t. For the first time in my life, my intellect wasn’t running the show.

I forced my attention back to Thea.

“I think she's okay. Honestly, I do,” I offered.

“Yeah, she actually sounded okay when I talked to her. I gave Alyssa hell for what she did. She’s lost most of her friends over this. Fine with me, she can hang with Matthew and his asshole friends,” Thea said angrily.

I heard Audrey's footsteps on the stairs. “Audrey’s coming down. You wanna talk with her?”

Audrey came into the dining room with Molly trotting behind her. Molly was either asleep on the bed upstairs, or following one of us around the house. She was turning out to be an incredibly sweet dog.

“It's Thea. You got a sec?” I called out as Audrey stepped into the dining room.

Audrey glanced my way, her eyes brightening. I handed her the phone, beating back the urge to slide my palm over the curve of her bottom. Her comfort clothes consisted of a fitted V-neck t-shirt, which only made me want to lick into the valley between her breasts, and these swingy cotton pants that perfectly outlined her lush bottom. In short, she tempted me constantly. She talked with Thea as she walked into the kitchen to get coffee. A few minutes later she returned, handing me my phone.

“I hear you've decided we're going down to New York to move my stuff tomorrow,” she said, catching my eyes.

“Thea suggested it, but I figured it made more sense for us to meet her there. You said it was okay, right?” I asked.

“It is. I just find it amusing how easily you make plans for others,” she said with a roll of her eyes.

I stared at her for a moment, considering that I didn't usually make plans for anybody unless it was my family. Yet, I wanted her to be able to fully close the book on Matthew. That meant getting her stuff out of his orbit.

The question is why do you care so much?

Shut up.

I’d been telling my skeptical mind to shut up a lot. That question was quite pertinent and one I didn’t care to consider. I didn’t make a habit—ever—of pushing myself into anyone’s life like this. Yet, I couldn’t shake the hold Audrey had on me.

I didn't say any of these thoughts aloud and shrugged. “It was Thea’s idea.”

True, insomuch as Thea had brought it up. It was my idea to be involved, and I didn’t care to discuss why.