“I’m going home,” he heard Molly mutter under her breath as she stormed toward the terrace, where Julian watched her grab some keys from Kate’s purse. A minute later the catering van was pulling out of the driveway.
He wanted to chase her, yell and fight with her, the adrenaline was so off the charts in his body. But his instinct to spare her his rage was still too strong, and he was more bloodthirsty to make his brother his outlet for his rage.
Garrett was pushing to his feet, but Julian didn’t let him. He shoved him back down by bracing one knee on his shoulder. “Stop meddling in our lives! We’re not your responsibility, or Mother’s or anyone else’s. And if we wanted to be together, we sure as hell have never needed your idiotic help!”
Garrett pushed him aside and shuffled to his feet, rubbing his sore jaw. “She loves you, Jules. You’re being an ass.”
“Make that a headline in the paper tomorrow, brother. See if I buy a copy.” Julian stalked away and flipped Garrett his two middle fingers without even glancing backward.
“Argh, you hardheaded bastard.” Garrett pounced, scowling as he blocked his path. “You’re going to make me fight you, aren’t you?” Gritting his teeth in obvious frustration, his older brother began rolling up his sleeves.
“Get out of my way,” Julian warned.
“Molly didn’t betray you, you imbecile! She was furious because we were warning her away from you. She didn’t know we’ve been riding you about her for years and she was trying to defend you. Why can you not see that?”
Julian wasn’t listening. He was still restless, reckless, seething.
All night. All night, watching inches and inches of goose-bump-covered, creamy white skin, lustrous red hair and parted pink lips. All night, torturing himself with wanting her so damned much. He’d had a hard-on for hours. Hours.
“You know that girl loves you more than anyone or anything in this world. Don’t you? Don’t you, Julian?” Garrett demanded.
He glared at his brother. Goddammit, he wished he was sure of her. That she did not want anyone else. That she would never put any other man before him, ever again, before Julian.
“And you love her so bad you were ready to dump your whole family just to be with her,” Garrett insisted.
Julian was suddenly incensed. “Because she’s mine. Mine. Always has been. Always will be. She gave me her damned lollipop, and I took it, and right then and there—she was mine, Garrett. Mine.”
“Well, then. Why are you here arguing with me while she’s on her way home?”
Julian dropped his face with a grimace of pain, remembering her words as he rubbed his throbbing temples. Please, please help me out here. I’m so in love with you I can’t bear this anymore.
If only he could be absolutely sure that she truly loved him. Him.
Not…his brother.
“Well? Are you going to let her get away now that you have her?” Garrett pressed as he signaled at the empty driveway. “Do you think a good girl like Molly would be with you if she wasn’t all for you, man?”
Julian stared off to where she’d disappeared. “She was never with me.”
“Come again?”
“Molly. It was a lie. Our relationship. She was never really with me. She wanted…you.”
Just saying that to Garrett made him feel sick to his empty stomach. He didn’t even know how he could have gone along with her foolish plan in the first place.
“Sooooo…that’s what this is about.” Garrett threw his head back and released one of his few real laughs, the sound booming across the landscape. “Molly doesn’t want me, Jules. Hell, I sure as hell would know when a woman does.” His gaze strayed over to Kate. She was speaking to their mother by the docks, and Garrett watched her for a long, long moment, his eyes on fire with emotion.
He jerked back when he realized he was being watched and growled, “Molly’s loved you her whole life, jerk. She wanted to marry you when she was younger. She thought when it was time for her prom, she would be taking you. Kate had to tell her once and for all that she should see you as a brother and start thinking of another boy to invite to prom. She cried for days because she’d never be able to marry you. She even packed her bags and that feisty little girl actually tried to leave—said she didn’t want to grow up with us and have you as a brother. Our mother forced her to stay, but can you please understand how Mother would remain concerned about this development?”
It took a moment for him to absorb this. He imagined Molly in all her stages. Never once had any man featured in any of them—except for Julian. While he’d known he could never have her and had sought to fill in the void with a thousand different women, she had done the opposite and had wanted no man.
Until one kiss from Julian had awakened her.
God, if he had known that all this time… All. This. Time. She’d wanted to go to prom with him? Had wanted to marry him?
She’d been his friend, and he’d been hers, and neither had realized that they had truly ever only loved and wanted each other.
His heart soared at the realization, and for the first time in days, he felt as if he could take a normal breath again. But he still glared at his brother for having made his life a living hell where Molly was concerned. “Clearly what you all failed to see is that I loved her. I always have, you morons.”