“That wasn’t so bad?” Roman touted.
We hopped into the back of the chauffeured black sedan that had been hired for the evening. Another car had been instructed to take our dinner guests back to their hotel, so they could rest for their return flight to Tokyo.
“Thanks to me,” I muttered as I loosened the knot of my tie. My hand moved down to unbutton the top two buttons of my shirt.
“Not only thanks to you. Who wined and dined their Japanese asses off tonight? That would be me. I showed them a good time—something you sure seem to be lacking these days. Rough waters at home? Honeymoon phase over before the honeymoon can even start?”
His goading did nothing. I simply turned and smiled. “Things are excellent between Lailah and me—in fact, never better. And to think, I owe all this overwhelming happiness to my generous, selfless brother, Roman. Oh, wait . . .”
He deadpanned, no longer in the mood for joking. Instead, he lunged for a bottle of water in the cooler under the seat from the small bar area that had been set up by the car service.
Good, he needed to dry out.
“There was nothing selfless about what I did. You were moping around here like a wounded puppy, Jude. Someone needed to do something to get your ass back into gear, so I did the easiest thing possible. I gave you what you wanted. I just figured it would mellow you out a bit.”
“I am mellow,” I argued. “With everyone else.”
“Ah, so the truth comes out.”
His gaze narrowed, and our eyes locked. When I looked at Roman, sometimes, it felt like my future self was staring back at me. We had so many physical traits in common, yet our personalities clashed like oil and vinegar.
“I just wish you would take something, anything, in life seriously.”
He patted my back, and his head motioned toward our building as the car pulled up. “Now, that’s what we have you for,” he said.
“Are you coming up?” I asked, opening the car door to hop out.
He shook his head, smiling. “This car is paid up until morning. Might as well use it to my advantage.”
“I’m sure you will.”
I shut the car door, leaving Roman to his vices for the evening, and I focused on everything waiting for me upstairs—a home, a fiancée, and a future.
Lailah was my beacon. No matter how bleak life might get, how rough the waters might seem, I knew she’d always be there to safely guide me back home.
I quickly made my way through the entrance, taking the elevator to the thirtieth floor. This apartment had been my home since I left Santa Monica. When I used to walk through the front door, I’d seen nothing but a prison, a place keeping me from where I wanted to be—with Lailah.
But I’d made a decision. I’d paid a price.
Wanting to save Lailah and pay for the transplant she’d so desperately needed, I’d known I would have to return to the life I’d left behind. I still remember the way my hand had shaken as I wrote my good-bye to her, wishing I could tell her everything I had bottled up in my heart, but I’d known if I did, she would never have gone through with the surgery.
In the painful months that had followed, I’d discovered what it was to lose myself all over again.
I never wanted to feel that again.
Lailah was my everything, and I’d continue to move mountains to make her happy every day of her life.
Exiting the elevator, I made my way down the long hallway toward our door. Turning the handle, I found the apartment aglow with candlelight.
“Lailah?” I called out, my eyes darting around the expansive living room and kitchen.
“In here. Come find me,” she hollered back, her voice coming from the bedroom.
I’d thought I would be returning to a houseful of guests, assuming Grace and Zander would spend the evening with us. Candlelight and a summon to the bedroom were a welcome surprise.
My hand hovered over the tops of the candles, sending the flames into a frenzied dance. The ghostly shadows moved across the walls as I stalked down the hallway. Pushing the door open, I slowly stepped inside the room and found Lailah lounging in a sofa chair by the bed, in nothing more than a light-blue satin bra and matching panties.
“Is that new?” I asked, attempting to keep the pitch of my voice from reaching the next octave.
She smirked and slowly crossed her legs, one foot over the other. “Do you like it?”
“Very much.”
“One of the many things I picked up on my shopping adventure with Grace today.”
I nodded, walking forward and dropping my suit jacket on the floor. “Remind me to tell Grace how fond I am of her.”
“I will.” She laughed.
Stepping closer until I was hovering over her, I asked, “Will we be seeing her and Zander tonight?” I bent forward, tracing my fingers over the delicate skin of her shoulder.
“No,” she answered softly. “She thought we could use a night to explore my new . . . wardrobe. We’re meeting them for brunch in the morning.”