CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
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ASHLEY
“BABE, I NEED you to wake up.”
Opening my eyes, I squint as I look to my right and see Tyler standing over my bed. He’s shirtless but wearing a pair of faded jeans. His damp hair tells me that he’s recently showered.
“Hi honey,” I murmur, my voice raspy.
“I’ve got good news.”
I smile sleepily. “Can we pick Boo up?”
“I talked to the vet and I’m going to go get her this afternoon. That’s not the big news, though. I just got off the phone with your cousin. He and his girl landed at Sea-Tac about twenty minutes ago and they’ll be heading here as soon as they get their luggage.”
His words wake me all the way up. I sit up quickly but then groan when I feel a sting of pain in my arm.
Tyler hisses out an alarmed sound as he steps forward and sets his hand down on my shoulder. “Fuck, babe, please be careful.”
“Sorry, I got excited and forgot for a second. It’s just that I can’t believe Rob’s coming! He never said a word.”
Tyler winces. “About that. This visit wasn’t pre-planned,” he says.
My stomach drops as the implication of his words hits me. “Oh shit,” I mutter. “Millie called Rob and told him what happened to me didn’t she?”
“She did,” he confirms, “but to be fair, a shitload of other people also called to tell him.”
“Did he sound okay?”
The look on Tyler’s face tells me the answer to that question is a solid no.
“He’s holding his shit together,” he hedges.
“Really?” I press.
“As much as he can, yeah. He’s clearly freaked. And I can’t fuckin’ blame him.”
“Crap, crap, crap. Not only is he going to be in full worrywart mode, he’s going to be upset that I didn’t call him last night.”
“I think he’ll be okay once he sees you,” Tyler assures me.
Maybe, but I doubt it. I know Rob—he’ll already be thinking he could’ve prevented what happened with Rita if he were here. Just like Tyler was yesterday, he’s wrong. Sometimes people do bad things and there’s nothing any one person can do to stop something once it’s already in motion.
When Rita cornered me in Tyler’s kitchen last night I realized her biggest issue isn’t that she’s a bitch. It’s that she’s completely devoid of normal emotion and I don’t believe there’s a fix for that.
“Will you help me get dressed and ready so I don’t look like crap when he gets here?”
Tyler chokes out a laugh. “I’ll help you but babe, you gotta know that you don’t look like crap.”
“Sureee,” I drawl.
“Trust me,” he says, his voice low. “I had a hard time keeping my hands off you when I woke up this morning. Laid in bed and stared at you for a good five minutes before I had to head to the shower to take care of myself.”
Just like that all thoughts about how I look fade away. The thought of him naked, wet, and jerking off in my shower just spiked my temperature. “Why didn’t you wake me up?” I pout.
Tyler gives me a horrified look. “You got fuckin’ stabbed yesterday and you’ve got stitches.”
Seeing his point, I nod. “Thank God I’m a quick healer because I’m not sure how many days I’ll be able to keep my hands off you.”
“Sweet, funny, beautiful, and so sexy I can barely keep up. How’d I get so lucky?”
I giggle as he holds out his hand to help me up from the bed. “It wasn’t luck—it was that mysterious matchmaking club.”
Tyler’s rumble of laughter is music to my ears. “That they decided to help get us together is the luckiest thing that’s ever happened to me.”
“The luckiest?” I ask.
“Absofuckinglutely,” he answers.
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AS SOON AS Tyler opens the front door to let Rob and Karen into the house, I get choked up. They are the only part of my life in Los Angeles that I have truly missed and I’m overjoyed that they’re here. Texting, talking on the phone, and FaceTime chats aren’t the same as seeing them every day. Keeping my sore arm at my side, I extend the good one to hug first Rob and then Karen before I make quick introductions between them and Tyler. Once that’s done, Rob turns his full attention to me. The expression on his face and the tired smudges beneath his eyes tell me that he’s been freaking out.
“Why didn’t you call me last night?” he asks, his tone stern.
“I swear I planned to call you as soon as I got up this morning,” I hasten to assure him. “I should’ve known Millie would get ahold of you before that.”
“If she hadn’t called me, hearing about the situation from you this morning would’ve gone over like a lead balloon. We’re family,” he stresses. “You should’ve called.”
My chin wobbles as I nod. That means everything to me, and it’s on me that I made a bad call about notifying him. When Tyler steps forward like he’s about to try to diffuse the situation, I put my hand up to stop him. Rob has a right to be salty that I didn’t call.