Chapter Twenty-Four
IfeltlikeIhad a better chance at convincing Isaac to give me directions than I did with Blake. Blake was bossier out of the two of them, and I had a feeling he’d try to drive me to Julian’s. I didn’t want that, though. I needed to talk to Julian alone and show him that I was making an effort just for him. If I had any chance of fixing things, that would be the only way. I needed to show him that I cared about him as an individual.
By the time I got back to my car and drove to Isaac’s, it was late afternoon. I wasn’t sure where he’d be, but as soon as I pulled into the driveway, he came stalking out of the barn.
Seeing him made my chest ache, and I had to remind myself that I wasn’t there to reconcile. Not yet. Not until I knew where things were with Julian. I stood just outside of my car and waited for him to close the gap between us. Watching him move towards me was hard. In just the few short days since I’d seen him, I’d almost managed to convince myself the magnetism that radiated from him was in my head.
“Mal. Are you okay?”
I smiled shyly and nodded. “What does it say about my exit that that’s the first thing you ask me?”
“We’ve been worried.” He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked over my face. “You look better.”
I laughed. “Liar.”
“Tell me you’re here to come back to us.” Sighing, Isaac suddenly looked older than his years. He ran his hands through his hair and tugged at it. “I fucking miss seeing you around here.”
I bit my lip hard. I wanted to go to him and make us both feel better. “I have to make things right with Julian first.”
Blowing out a big breath, Isaac nodded. “Okay.”
“You know why, right?” I gripped the door frame that separated us hard. “I mean, you know that I care about you. I want this. I just… I can’t do it if the three of you aren’t okay.”
“It fucking figures that the woman we fall for cares enough about the three of us that it’s all or nothing.” Shaking his head, he grabbed my arm and pulled me into his chest. “I get it. I’m just not loving it.”
“I’m going to see Julian. He deserves an apology and a chance to see that I don’t want him just because he’s connected to you and Blake.” I hugged him back and breathed in his warm scent. “Can you give me his address?”
“I’ll take you.”
“No. I need to do it alone.” I pulled away and looked up at him. “I need to show him how I feel without you or Blake there.”
“Dammit, Mal, you don’t have to do it alone. The road isn’t the best up around the cabin. And there are sometimes unsavory characters that hang around up there.”
I raised my brows. “Unsavory characters?”
“That’s for Julian to talk to you about, but I don’t think you should go alone.”
“Okay. I don’t know what that means, but I don’t care. I’m going.” I got back in the car and rolled the window down. “You tell me or I’m going to Blake. One of you has to give in eventually. I have to do this. I feel sick to my stomach thinking I hurt him and thinking that I hurt your relationship. This is important to me.”
“It’s not your responsibility to fix us, Mal.”
“Okay, I’ll go see Blake.”
Staring at me for a few seconds, Isaac finally swore and grabbed my phone through the open window. “I’m typing in the address into your GPS, but it won’t matter once you get up the mountain. I’ll tell you how to get there. You need to go straight there so you’re not driving in the dark. Have Julian drive you back down. Don’t put yourself at risk.”
“I’ll be safe.”
“Drive even slower than you think you need to drive.” He handed my phone back to me and rubbed his forehead. “Don’t make me regret giving you that.”
“You’re cute when you worry.”
“I’m serious, Mal.”
“I am, too.”
Opening the door, he leaned in and kissed me. It was slightly too hard for my sore lips, but my body instantly responded to him. I grabbed his hair and tugged him away. “I have to make things right first.”
“No matter what happens with Julian, you’re still mine, Mal.” He stroked his thumb over the pulse in my throat and growled. “You’re infuriating. Call me if you need anything. I’ll come drive you home if you need me to.”