I slip out of Kayla’s bed close to ten p.m. I’ve had my mind on one thing the whole night. Actually, I should say one person. I leave her a note ensuring I’ll be back, then drive straight over to my brother’s. He’s a dead man walking for what he’s done.
It puts last night into perspective, though. He was completely off the wall. Selfish motherfucker. Kayla is devastated, and he’s going to fucking fix it.
“Dev!” I burst through the door. “Where the fuck are you?”
I storm through the house until I find him standing on the back deck.
“What the fuck?” I stomp across the wood and shove him. “You just broke her fucking heart!”
“I was trying to save her, but she made her choice.” He gets in my face.
“You forced her hand! She’s fucking loyal! Which is more than I can say for you!” I shout with our noses an inch apart.
“What are you more upset about, Reese? That I hurt her, or you now have sole responsibility?”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” I spit.
“It means you don’t have me to push her off on when you leave to traipse across the world or to dump your problems on when they become too much of a headache. Isn’t that why you suggested this whole situation to begin with? So I can pick up your pieces and cover your ass?”
“No!” I shove him. “Kayla is not some problem! And what you and I have conspiring between us has nothing to do with her!”
“Doesn’t it? Your decisions, your actions, your life directly affects hers.” He stalks back toward me. “That’s how relationships work, Reese. Why don’t you just put an end to all of our misery, and do the inevitable now.”
“Which is?” I ask defiantly.
“Walk away. Leave Kayla and me be, and go commit suicide on the track. You’ll never truly be happy until you push yourself to the point of death.”
I seethe at my brother. Mainly because he’s right. I did have a death wish, but I don’t anymore. I meant it when I said Kayla changed me. She’ll never know the depths of the transformation. But one day soon, I’ll tell her. I’ll expose everything. She’ll be the only other person besides Dev who’ll know the truth. My truth.
“I’m not walking away.” I stand my ground. “Not this time, and not from her.”
Dev glares at me but says nothing.
“I wish it didn’t have to be like this,” I waver.
“But it does,” he replies obstinately.
“You’re a fucking moron!” I lash out. “When the regret sets in, remember you did this to yourself.”
His blue eyes flash. “I already regret it.”
I shake my head at my stubborn-ass brother. When did the tables turn? He’s always been the sensible one, and now, I barely even recognize him.
I leave the house on a mission. If this is how it ends, so be it. I know what needs to be done, and I’m not going to waste a minute.
I creep back into Kayla’s condo. I hear the shower running as I make my way back upstairs. She’s just turning off the faucet when I walk into her small bathroom. I grab the towel from the rack and wrap her in it as she steps out. She looks weary and tired and melts into my arms as soon I embrace her.
“I wasn’t sure you were coming back.”
“I left a note saying I was.” I kiss her hair.
“I’m in a strange place right now. Everything seems uncertain.”
I can’t say I know what it’s like to have my heart broken, but I do understand what it feels like to hurt, and Kayla is in so much pain, it’s palpable.
I lean against the bathroom counter and pull her against me. The room is still steaming and the faint smell of her coconut shampoo is lingering in the air.
“You’re not getting rid of me that easily. Dev may be stupid enough to walk away from the best thing that’s ever happened to us, but I’m not. Fuck him and fuck this place. We don’t need any of it.”
Kayla hangs on my every word wide-eyed, trying to decipher exactly what it is I’m trying to say. I take a deep breath because here it comes.
“Marry me.” I clutch her face. “Leave the land that time forgot and travel the world with me. Be by my side. It’s what I want. It’s what I’ve always wanted.”
Kayla stands there gaping. I know my proposal is abrupt, but it’s what I want. And if there’s one thing about me, I always go after what I want.
“Reese, I can’t just up and leave. I have a job and house and bills to pay.”
“Kayla, I’ll take care of it. All of it.”
“I’m not a charity case, Reese.” She becomes defensive.
“I know you’re not. You’re the woman I want to be my wife. Isn’t that what couples do? Share their livelihood? What’s the point of having fame and fortune if I can’t share it with the people I love? I’ve been alone for so long. I’m ready for this. For us.”
The expression on Kayla’s face is one filled with trepidation. I know I just dumped a shitload on her. Marriage, leaving her home, her job, her family. But life is short, and if you don’t strike while the iron’s hot, you can miss a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And this is one opportunity I refuse to pass up.
“I don’t know what to say.” She’s clearly shocked.
“Say yes.” I shake her lightly. “Take a risk. Jump without looking. I promise I’ll catch you.”
Kayla deliberates for a long while. A very long while, just standing in my arms with heavy wet hair and her body wrapped in only a towel.
She closes her eyes and inhales, causing my heart to stop. Doubt suddenly pours over me. What if her sense outweighs my impulsiveness? What if one man isn’t enough?
Kayla opens her eyes, the flecks of gold piercing through her brown irises. Her gaze is heavy—unreadable. I hold my breath.
“Yes.”