Past & Present (Love at First Sight Book 6) Read online

  “Obviously, I need to talk to you about Juliet,” he said slowly, pursing his lips when he saw my eyebrow raise. “It’s not about your relationship—at least not directly. Besides, I’ve already pointed out the many reasons why your relationship might be doomed to her. She doesn’t care and I doubt you would either.”

  “Fair enough. So what’s this about?”

  Jamie glanced at the roses briefly before turning back to me. “Juliet gave me the rundown about your fight last night. Said you made an offhand offer for us to move in with you.”

  “It wasn’t offhand. It was legitimate.”

  “You’d really let me move into your house just to help her?” he asked incredulously, laughing when I nodded. “You know, I take back all the shit I said about you. You’re not like the other guys she’s dated.”

  “Gee, thanks.”

  “Don’t take it personally. It’s my job to point out things that she may be blinded to. She does the same for me. It’s just what it means to be a best friend.”

  I didn’t say it, but his words made me wish I’d had a best friend back when I was dating Sarah. I had plenty of casual friends back then who’d make passive-aggressive comments that I really should have listened to, but they never came from someone whose opinion I truly valued.

  Back then, the last thing I needed was more little warning signs. I needed someone to drop a fucking anvil on my head. It might have made a huge difference in my life if I had someone like Jamie around.

  “I get it. So is that what this is about? You want to take me up on my offer? Because I’m not bluffing—I’ll get a moving truck here today.”

  “No. You see, I already have somewhere to go. I don’t know if Juliet’s said much to you about me, but I’m in a pretty serious relationship. It got really serious three months ago when he asked me to move in with him.”

  She’d said enough for me to know that he did have a serious boyfriend, but the rest was news to me. Considering he wanted to have this conversation without her around, I wondered if she even knew it.

  “But you said no.”

  “I did. His apartment is even smaller than this house—too small to bring Juliet with me. And while she does pay two-thirds of the bills around here to support me, she wouldn’t be able to keep the place without the portion I put up. She just doesn’t make enough to cover it all on her own.”

  “She shouldn’t have to,” I growled, my irritation at their situation seeping through. “And she shouldn’t have to be paying the majority of bills and putting her own dreams on hold for you. If you leave her, I’ll—”

  “There’s nothing on Earth that would make me abandon her like that. Not a man or anything else,” he snapped. But his expression softened and turned to guilt a moment later. “And I agree. It never should have turned out this way and I didn’t mean for it to. It’s just... we’ve had a rough go of it, you know? We did what we could to make it work and the time just slipped by.”

  Though I was still mad as hell and wanting nothing but to defend her, I could relate to his plight more than I cared to admit. His seemingly genuine remorse also helped to ease my anger.

  “I get it. I do. But it’s time you two reevaluate your life and make some changes.”

  Jamie nodded and leaned back against the couch with a smile. “I agree. And honestly, a part of me thinks it all played out like this for a reason. And if you aren’t catching the hint—you are the reason I’m referring to.”

  “What exactly are you trying to say?”

  “I’m saying I know that isn’t your dick making your pocket bulge like that,” he said with a sly grin that weirdly made me think of Layla.

  God help us all if they ever got into a room together.

  I shifted back and attempted to adjust the ring box, but it only made his smile grow. My hackles raised defensively and I glared at him.

  “So what?”

  “So you’re totally going to propose to her. After a month.”

  “Is that a fucking problem?”

  “No, it’s a solution. I’ll move in with Gary and Juliet will move in with you. I can stop this cycle of endlessly relying on her and she can have the life she deserves.”

  He was right. If she accepted my proposal—or at least the offer to move in with me—everything would change for the better for all of us. There was only one problem.

  “What if...” I trailed off, looking away from his raised eyebrow. “What if she doesn’t want to live with me? Or marry me? What if she’s not ready?”

  Jamie leaned forward and reached his hand out until it was in my line of vision. He snapped his fingers and I looked up, narrowing my eyes at his serious expression.

  “I’d never betray her trust by repeating things she’s said to me in confidence,” he said slowly, waiting for me to nod in understanding. “But I have every reason to believe that she will say yes.”

  “Did she say something?” I whispered in shock. “Was it this morning? What did she—”

  “What’d I just say about things said in confidence?” he snapped.

  “Listen here, you little punk—”

  “Don’t you try to pull that shit with me, papa bear. I’m not afraid of you.”

  Yep. Jamie was a male version of Layla. They were bound to meet at some point and the mere idea of that scared the shit out of me.

  “What time does she get off work?”

  “Seven.”

  I glanced down at my watch. Six hours to go. With a growl, I stood up and shook my head.

  “Fuck that. I can’t wait that long.”

  I was heading for the door before Jamie could even react, but when he did, it was only to yell encouragement at my retreating form. He even hopped up to wave at me as I ran to my car and hastily pulled away from the curb.

  I’d gotten words of wisdom from the people closest to me and the man closest to Juliet. All I had to do now was say the two words that would finish this.

  I just prayed Jamie was right.

  14

  I arrived at Edelman’s while they were still in the midst of the lunch rush. The woman in charge of seating inspected her nails with a bored expression as she relayed the information that there was a fifteen-minute wait.

  Like hell. I’d waited forty-two years for this woman. I wasn’t wasting another second.

  I didn’t look at her as I stormed into the restaurant, ignoring the cries of annoyed patrons who thought I was trying to skip ahead of them in line. The woman was calling out for the owner of the restaurant, but the moment my eyes landed on my girl where she stood taking a table of businessmen’s orders, all the noise faded out.

  “Juliet!”

  Her head whipped toward me and her eyes widened in surprise. She looked around in confusion, watching the scene as I rushed to her while the owner and one of the male waiters rushed to me.

  “Sir, you need to—”

  “Fuck off, I’m not staying.”

  A hand grasped my shoulder and I snarled at the boy who touched me. He pulled his hand away like he’d been burned, fear obvious in his eyes. He couldn’t have been more than twenty and he looked like he was ready to piss his pants.

  “Don’t poke the beast,” I hissed with a sneer.

  The owner didn’t look nearly as concerned. “Sir, if you don’t leave immediately, I’m calling the police.”

  I looked back in time to see Juliet mutter something to her table before hastily rushing over to diffuse the situation.

  “I’m so sorry, sir. Please don’t call the police. This is my boyfriend,” she said softly to her boss. “Ethan, what are you doing here?”

  Her tone didn’t faze me, but her blush sure did. God, I loved the way she looked when she blushed. It was a lot redder than usual though, which was ultimately what brought me back to reality.

  With a jolt of surprise, I realized the background noise hadn’t faded out the moment I saw her like some cheesy movie. No, the noise had stopped completely when every pair of eyes in the restaur
ant turned toward the giant man causing a scene. The only sounds were the occasional clinking of a glass being gently placed on a table and the occasional hushed whisper.

  The color staining her cheeks wasn’t from my presence or a slight embarrassment. It was from total public humiliation.

  Even though I realized this, the crazed blood pumping through my veins and the box burning a hole in my pocket couldn’t be ignored.

  “I love you,” I practically yelled in the silence, startling Juliet to the point where she jumped. She looked around nervously as the whispers rose and I softly repeated, “I love you, Juliet. More than anything else in the world.”

  I could see in her eyes the moment when she forgot all about the people surrounding us. The blush began to fade as her forehead crinkled with a confused frown.

  “I love you, too, Ethan,” she whispered. “But why—”

  Before I lost my nerve, I bent down and kneeled on one knee. I dug into my pocket as the whispers got louder with excitement and I briefly wondered what I would have thought if I witnessed a spectacle like this.

  I probably would have rolled my eyes while internally commending the man for his blatant display of affection—the opinions of others be damned. When I looked up at Juliet, I could tell she felt the same way. She was still embarrassed as hell, but there was something in her soft expression that gave me the feeling she was impressed.

  It took a fuckload of nerve to propose in front of at least fifty spectators. I deserved some points for that.

  “Marry me,” I said as I raised the box and opened the lid. “Let me be the one to take care of you forever.”

  A tear rolled down her cheek as she looked from the ring to my face.

  “I’ll take care of you, too.”

  “I know you will, angel.”

  There was a brief moment of hesitation—that moment where she was surely questioning if she was insane enough to go through with this—before she finally nodded. Her smile as I slid the ring on her finger was the best thing I ever saw and when I rose to my feet to kiss her, I barely heard the loud clapping that surrounded us.

  Juliet did and she pulled away with flushed cheeks, though she was still smiling as she lifted her hand and inspected her ring.

  Unfortunately for her, I wasn’t done embarrassing her. I did resist the urge to scream ‘Mine!’ and beat my chest like a fucking crazy person, but I didn’t even try to stop myself from lifting her up and carrying her out of the restaurant. The clapping turned to laughter and shouts that made her cheeks a darker red.

  Everyone in the restaurant knew where I was taking her and why.

  Before we left, I stopped in front of her boss and said, “Juliet is sick. She can’t come to work today.”

  The man spluttered as he looked between us. Juliet stifled a laugh as she reached for her waist and tugged at the fabric of her apron. She handed it to him as he continued to gape at us.

  “But-but—”

  “She’ll be sick tomorrow, too. And every day after that. Terminal illness, you see. You might want to find a replacement.”

  “Ethan—”

  “You’re going to college,” I whispered lowly into her ear. “I won’t let you work a job you hate ever again.”

  And there it was. My favorite look in all the world, only slightly marred by her tears. I knew they were happy tears, but I still didn’t like seeing them.

  “I think what my fiancé is trying to say is—I quit.”

  I didn’t give the man a chance to respond. It was done. As we left the restaurant, I was mainly focused on her, but I could see women and even a few men standing up to clap for us as we made our way out for the last fucking time.

  It was safe to say I’d never be eating at Edelman’s again. But the loss of my favorite restaurant was so very worth it.

  “I’m mortified,” Juliet whispered.

  “But happy?”

  “Yes. Can you at least put me down so I can walk to the car and retain a little bit of my dignity?”

  “No can do, doll. But believe me when I say you’re getting off pretty easy.”

  “You’re such a caveman.”

  “Yes, but I’m your caveman.”

  Her responding laugh was low and throaty and went directly to my cock.

  “Guess all that’s left is for you to claim me like one, huh?”

  “You just laid down the fucking gauntlet, baby,” I growled. I set her on her feet just outside the car and opened the passenger door for her. “Fair warning. If you get in this car, you won’t be leaving my bed tomorrow. Unless you’re okay with walking funny.”

  The corners of her lips twitched and she raised a single eyebrow. A silent challenge before she eased herself into the passenger seat.

  I shut the door behind her and grinned as I said, “Game on.”

  15

  We barely made it through my front door before I was tugging at her clothes, unable to keep my hands off her. She was just as greedy as I was—jerking my shirt apart roughly and sending buttons flying.

  “You want it rough today, huh? I can do rough.”

  The plain black shirt she wore for work ripped easily down the middle. I was working on ripping it all the way down when her hands came up and undid the clasp on her bra.

  “I love front clasps,” I growled as she slowly peeled the cups away. “Love your tits, too.”

  She mewled as I pushed her back against the wall and lifted her up so high that I could bury my face against her chest. She balanced her hands on my shoulders like she was worried about falling, but I was sure she knew I would never drop her.

  Especially not when it meant having her tits in my face. Now that was a fucking incentive.

  She couldn’t stand the attention of my teeth and tongue for very long without attempting to writhe around. I reluctantly lowered her down to the floor and instead moved my attention to her neck.

  I loved to kiss and nip at the soft skin there, but in the spirit of a rough fuck, I bit down hard enough to make her cry out and shudder. I felt her hands moving toward my crotch and put a stop to that by reaching for her wrists and pinning them to the wall above her head with one hand.

  “None of that,” I murmured as I pressed my thigh between her legs. “At least not yet.”

  She quickly caught on to what I was doing and began grinding herself against my thigh while we kissed. It was rough and sloppy and hungry as fuck—which perfectly described the way I was feeling at the moment.

  Mine, mine, mine, mine, MINE! my brain screamed as I pressed my hips forward and rubbed my hardness against her. Between her moaning and her wanton movements, I knew she was ready for it. Ready for me to claim her.

  My cock was ready for it as well, but I wanted to make damn sure she was wet enough first.

  I detached myself from her embrace and slung her over my shoulder, patting her on the ass and laughing at her surprised shriek. I practically ran upstairs—though I was careful about my balance on the way up, as usual—and I deposited my prize on the bed with a wicked grin.

  “You’re a treasure,” I drawled as I reached up to get rid of her damn pants. “You’re my treasure.”

  “Yes, yes. I’m yours. Take me.”

  Oh yeah. Definitely ready.

  But still.

  “In good time.”

  She let out a cry of disappointment that died when I dragged her naked body to the end of the bed and dropped to my knees for the perfect position to eat her pussy for a long period of time.

  I sucked and licked until she was begging for me to stick at least a finger in her. I refused. This time, my cock was going to be the only thing to stretch her out. When I paused just long enough to tell her that, I grinned at the sight of her eyes rolling back.

  I had to give myself credit for my self-control. When she bucked wildly and cried out during the first orgasm, my cock throbbed in desperation. It was almost to the point of being painful, but I somehow held myself back and continued to lap at her core.
/>   Once her legs stopped shaking and her breathing calmed down to soft pants, I dove right back in and sucked on her clit. She spasmed immediately and I smiled against her, flicking my tongue rapidly over the sensitive bud. The next orgasm came quicker than the first and by the time I pulled away to breathe deeply, both her pussy and my jaw was dripping wet.

  “I could do that all night,” I panted as I rose my feet. “But it won’t be this night.”

  Because this night, I needed to fuck. I needed to fuck right now.

  I finished tugging off my shirt and shed the rest of my clothes while Juliet struggled to regain control of her breathing. Once I was fully naked and raring to go, she was still boneless which made it a lot easier to flip her onto her stomach without protest. The hard part was waiting until she got enough control of her legs to stand, but once she did, I slapped her hard on the ass before gripping her hips and arching her back to me.

  “This what you wanted?” I teased as I ran my cock against her slit. “Want to get fucked?”

  “Yes! Fuck me, please!”

  “You want this massive cock stretching you wide open and pounding you?”

  Her body shuddered again and she moaned, “Please, Ethan. I’ll do anything.”

  “All I want you to do...” I said as I lined myself up, “is take it.”

  With that, I thrust all the way in, groaning loudly as her walls instinctively clenched around me. Fucking hell. She had never been so wet. Nobody had ever been this damn wet.

  It made it a hell of a lot easier for her to take it as I began fucking her almost immediately. No time to adjust. No playing with her clit to relax her.

  And my God—the way she squealed and moaned in delight was the fucking sexiest thing I’d ever heard.

  “I’m gonna come—oh God—Ethan, please!”

  “So soon?” I teasingly asked between clenched teeth. “You must really love this cock.”

  “I love it, love it, love you, I need—”

  Her delirious begging was making it hard for me to think straight, so I shoved her hips down until she was flush against the bed and ground my hips against her. Juliet screaming as she came from the deliberate stimulation of her g-spot and the extra tightness of the position nearly tipped me over the edge myself.