On His Knees by Tabatha Kiss

Chapter 74

Jenna

My phone screen lights up again. Another message notification. Probably from Seth.

My fingers tingle, begging for me to reach for it. To read it. To answer him. To move forward. Always.

Nah.

Not there yet.

Wilder offers me a steaming mug. “For you,” she says. “My guest.”

I take it carefully. “Thanks,” I say, bringing it to my nose. “Tea?”

“Chamomile.” She sits down on the chair across from the couch with a mug for herself. “Helps me sleep after a bad night.”

I take a deep breath, enjoying the warm scent as I glance around her and Corey’s condo. “Thanks for letting me stay. And for the pajamas,” I add with a nod to my pants and tank top.

“We’re happy to have you,” she says.

“I would have stayed at the house, but...”

“You didn’t know if Heidi would drop by?”

I blow on my tea. “I doubt she wants to see me. I don’t want to see her either.”

“I feel we’re both on her shit list right now. She barely looked at me during the party. We took the hint and left early.”

“I’m sorry we got you involved.”

“I got myself involved.” She smiles. “An unfortunate side effect of being all up in everyone’s business.”

The bathroom door opens and Corey shuffles out, clad in nothing but a pair of black and blue boxer shorts.

“G’night, ladies,” he says with a wave, not pausing as he enters their bedroom.

“Goodnight, Corey,” I say, smirking at the tan lines midway down his thighs. Always the beach bum.

Wilder sighs, but her smile is full of love. “I’ll be there in a bit,” she tells him.

He closes the door behind him.

“I only have myself to blame for this, don’t I?” I mutter over my mug.

Wilder bites her inner cheek. “Perhaps.”

“I should have told her sooner, I know.”

“Why didn’t you?”

I take a sip. “What Seth and I have is... nice. It’s the nicest, sweetest, most worthwhile relationship I’ve ever had — as strange as that sounds. But it still feels so fragile. I didn’t want to risk losing it.”

“What made you think you would?”

“It doesn’t matter how I pictured telling everyone. Even in the best-case scenario where everyone was cool with it and Heidi was happy, it felt tainted. We wouldn’t be each other’s dirty little secret anymore.”

“You didn’t think you’d like him as much after that?”

“No,” I say. “I didn’t think he’d like me as much after that.”

Wilder tilts her head. “Oh, honey. That’s not true. Seth adores you.”

“How can you tell?”

She doesn’t answer. Her expression speaks for her, filled with love and sympathy.

I look away. My eyes wander to my phone on the coffee table.

“Truth or dare, Jenna?”

I chortle. Fuck it.

“Dare,” I say.

Wilder extends her hand. “Give me your phone.”

I hesitate. She flexes her fingers, a silent urge to follow through on my choice. With a sigh, I hand it over.

Wilder sits back in her chair and she scrolls. “Hm,” she considers. “Embry? No...” Scrolling. Scrolling. “Bobby?” She raises a brow. “No...”

I sip my tea.

“Ah!” She smiles as she taps. “I’m staying at Wilder’s tonight. Not in the mood to talk right now, but I’ll stop by in the morning. Sleep Zs. Crescent moon emoji. Kiss lips. Send.”

The phone almost instantly vibrates in her palm.

“What’d he say?” I ask.

Wilder smiles before handing it back.

I love you.

I watch Wilder, expecting an I told you so, but she doesn’t rub it in. She doesn’t need to, the message already loud and clear.

He adores me. He loves me.

Seth Newbury isn’t going anywhere.

But still, I doubt.

“I’m going to go to bed,” she says instead as she rises off the couch.

“Goodnight, Beauty,” I say.

“Goodnight, Beauty.”

I flick off the lamp beside me and lie down on the couch, getting comfortable with the pillow and blanket they gave me. After a long day and even longer night, I fall asleep and I don’t stir again until their bedroom door opens the next morning.

I roll onto my back, instinctively reaching for my phone. No new messages. No missed calls.

Just I love you.

A shape appears beyond my phone. I lower it to find Corey grinning over me, and I avert my gaze in case he’s indecent.

“Good morning, Jenna,” he says.

“Hey, Corey,” I say with a pause.

I blink in surprise at his outfit. Not only is he wearing clothing, he’s wearing a suit. With a tie. He didn’t even put in this much effort last night for a party at a luxury hotel.

“What the fuck?”

Corey chuckles as he tugs lightly on his lapels. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“As you should.” I slowly rise, planting my feet on floor as he walks to the armchair and sits down. Is that thing actually tailored? Did... did he shave? “You look nice.”

“Thanks. My uncle’s in town. They get all grumpy if I don’t dress up for it.” He rolls his eyes. “So, what’s up? Please excuse my rudeness. I thought I was the only one sleeping in. If I’d known you were still here, I’d have offered a cuddle.”

“That’s all right. I’m not sure I’d be the best cuddle partner this morning,” I say. “Did Wilder leave?”

“Couple hours ago,” he says with a nod.

“Must have missed her.”

“Oh, she’s got that down to a science. Wilder gets up at six every morning, but she’s never woken me up. Not once. I don’t know how she does it, but it’s amazing.”

“Well, at least one of us has their shit together,” I say, stifling a yawn.

“Thank god.” He smiles. “So, you had an interesting night.”

I hesitate, but I know that if there’s anyone who won’t sugarcoat things for me, it’s Corey. “How did Heidi seem after I left?”

“Eh.” He turns up a hand. “Stampy’s always been hard to get a read on, but... I think she was fine. Free cake always cheers people up.”

I breathe a laugh. “Good.”

“But for a while there, it was awkward. Especially after what Seth did.”

“What did Seth do?” I ask.

“After you left, he and Heidi kind of had a little extra spat.”

“They did?”

“Wilder didn’t tell you?”

“No.”

“Well...” He leans forward. “I couldn’t hear very much. He said that what she said to you was out of line, whatever that was, and that it was his fault she found out that way. If she wanted to be angry with someone, be angry at him. Not you.”

My heart skips. “He did that?”

Corey nods. “And since you opted to stay here last night and not at Seth’s place... I take it things are a bit strained between you guys now, too?”

“Yeah. A bit.”

“Why? You’re in the best part.”

“The best part?”

“Yeah! It’s you and him. Together. Against the world! Fuck the haters sex is fantastic. Way better than sneaking around sex, that’s for sure.”

“I can see that, I guess.”

“I’m serious.” He steeples his hands over his knees. “Jenna, if I may speak freely...”

I raise a curious brow. “Sure.”

“There was a time, not too long ago, when people took issue with me and Wilder being together.” He cants his head. “Including you.”

“Well...” I pause, wondering how to defend myself. “That was different.”

He says nothing, awaiting my explanation.

“You and Ellie were together for a long time,” I say.

“High school sweethearts.” He nods. “So what?”

“So... then, you kissed Wilder and caused a huge fight between them.”

“And?”

“It was jarring at the time!”

“Everything worked out for everyone, didn’t it?” he asks with a gesture around their condo.

“Okay, yeah. Sure, but then...”

“Then what?”

I pause, unsure how to phrase it. “You two make... an interesting couple.”

“Thank you.”

“Not a bad couple, but just... interesting.”

“And that’s a problem because...?”

“Wilder is very ambitious!”

He nods. “Yes, she is.”

“And you... you have no ambition. At all.”

“When you have money, you don’t need ambition,” he says.

I squint. “Yeah, how do you have money?”

“I don’t. My family does. They let me have some of it.”

“Someof it?”

“Yeah, some.”

“How much?”

“Enough.” He snaps his fingers twice. “Focus, Jenna. This isn’t about me.”

“It was about you for a second there...”

“Okay, fine! I have no ambition. I know that. Wilder knows that. What’s your opinion have to do with it?”

“Nothing,” I blurt.

“Exactly!”He chuckles. “I know who I am. I’ve chosen a very simple lifestyle for myself because I can. Let me ask you something. If the roles were reversed and she was the only staying home while I became a doctor, would anyone even care?”

I bite my cheek, seeing his point. “Probably not.”

“Wilder works hard. She deserves to have someone in her corner. Someone who will make her house a home. I make her laugh. I hold her when she so stressed out she can’t do anything but curl up into a ball and cry. I make sure she always has clean underwear. It works, and do you know why it works?”

“Why?”

“Because the one thing I don’t do is sit around feeling sorry for myself because everyone else thinks I’m not good enough for her. The only person I have to convince is her. Not you. Not Stampy or Drew or anyone else. Just her. I wake up every morning and my first order of business is putting a smile on her face. If I can’t do that, then I really don’t deserve her. But, I gotta tell you, Jenna, I’m batting a thousand so far. If Seth is willing to go to bat for you — to chew out the birthday girl at her own party, for example — then maybe you should do the same for him.”

I wrinkle my nose. “You had me until the sports metaphor.”

There’s a firm knock on the door.

Corey casually buttons his jacket as he rises from his chair. “I wasn’t her first,” he says. “Might not even be her last, but I’m sure as hell going to try to be. That’s what love is.”

He walks across the room to answer the door. I sit still, my stomach still rumbling, but at least my heart feels a little better.

Corey opens the door. “Good morning, boys!” he greets.

Four men in black suits barge into the apartment. Two march directly past the couch into the back, one breaking off into the bedroom while the other enters the bathroom. Each one has an earpiece and... a sidearm resting on their hip?

What the hell?

One stops by the couch. “Unidentified female,” he says.

I raise my hands in surrender.

“Relax, y’all!” Corey says. “It’s just Jenna.”

“Yeah, it’s just me,” I say, my voice quivering slightly.

“The rest is clear,”one says as they regroup by the entrance.

Corey presents his wrists as if they were in cuffs. “Take me away,” he says, smirking the whole time. “The master awaits.”

“Uh.” I lower my hands. “Corey?”

He pauses. “Yeah?”

“Who is your uncle again?”

“Patrick King.”

I snort. “No, really.”

“My uncle is Patrick King.”

“Your uncle is President of the United States?”

Corey performs a wide flourish with one arm as if to present the fantastic evidence of the four suits invading his living space... who I now realize are probably agents...

United States Secret Service agents, specifically.

“Oh,” I say.

Corey flashes a wink before walking out the door with them.

The last one left stops and turns, giving the room a last look over before nodding at me. “Ma’am,” he says, his voice rough around the edges.

“Bye,” I squeak.

He closes the door, disappearing as quickly as they appeared.

I grin. “Holy shit!”