In the Crease
Page 114
She came toward him, and he looked away as she whispered, “Jensen, please. Look at me.”
“Wren, I can’t right now. I’m trying to figure it out. Okay? I just need some time.”
“Time? We’re married, you don’t get time. We’re in this together. Me and you. Talk to me.”
Meeting her fearful gaze, he shook his head. “Not now. We don’t have time. This is about to start.”
“I don’t care. I need to talk to you.”
“Not now,” he asked once more. “Please.”
“But you promised!” she snapped, her eyes welling up with tears once more as she held his gaze, her hands shaking beside her thighs. “You promised you wouldn’t break up with me, leave me, and you said you don’t make a promise you can’t keep.”
He bit his lip hard as his eyes fell shut, and before he could answer, Vaughn was calling him to go. Meeting her gaze, Jensen didn’t say anything before heading toward his best friend with dread swirling deep in his stomach.
Because for the first time ever, he was worried he wasn’t going to be able to keep a promise he had made.
Watching his retreating back, Wren felt like her heart had fallen out of her chest and shattered on the ground.
What was happening?
Never in her life had she felt such pain.
The rejection from every guy ever didn’t even come close to this. This was awful, and she didn’t understand. Yeah, she may have lied about Bradley, and she was truly sorry for that. But did Jensen really believe she would pull some kind of shit like asking to go to check on his dad to get out of a wedding where there might be a chance meeting with Bradley?
Never.
“Jensen, really?” she yelled, and everyone in the lobby looked back at her. Alex’s four little friends’ eyes all widened in confusion as her brother rolled his.
“Wren, not here, please. Alex’s friends—”
“No,” she spat back at him as Jensen turned around, looking at her. “I get it, you’re pissed and you have every right to be, but be mad at the right thing. I would never use your dad to get out of something. I love your father, I love you, I wouldn’t do that!”
Jensen looked down before he nodded. “I know.”
She went to argue, but then she paused as her eyes scrunched up. “Then what the hell is going on? Is it Bradley? Please. I don’t want that dude. I want you.”
“Wren, please, the music has started. We gotta go,” Wells urged, and Jensen shrugged.
“We gotta go. We’ll talk later.”
With that, he turned. She didn’t understand. This wasn’t him. He was all about getting things fixed, but now, he was the one running from it. What the hell had happened? When someone reached for her, pulling her back, she looked up to see her father. Her eyes were wide while his hold was soft, pulling her to the back of the room. “Honey, just calm down. Let’s get through this wedding, and then you two can talk.”
“But, Dad, I need to fix this.”
“I understand that, but we have a wedding to do,” he said simply, cupping her face. “It will work out.”
As her gaze held her father’s, she shook her head while her eyes filled with tears. “Guess this all ruins my inheritance, huh?”
His face changed, his eyes narrowing. “What? You’re married before your birthday. I see no problem.”
“Even with everything you just heard?”
He shrugged. “I heard nothing except some asshole who hurt my daughter, but then someone else came along and fixed it all.”
Her lower lip trembled. “I don’t want to lose him.”
“You won’t,” he said confidently. “You won’t give up on something you truly want.”
Meeting her father’s gaze, she nodded slowly, hiccupping a sob as she whispered, “What if he tries to take my baby?”
Her father scoffed. “I wish he’d try. We’d ruin him. All of us.”
Her heart sang, but only for a second before she looked up at her father. “Daddy, why haven’t you brought up the inheritance? Not even once?”
His brows rose as his gaze bored into hers. “Because I never questioned you. I know for a fact that boy loves you, you love him, and that baby is his. I have no questions.”
Her heart did a flip-flop in her chest because, unlike her father, she had a lot of questions, and they all revolved around Jensen. Before she could say anything else though, the music was indeed starting, and the doors opened. Standing in place behind Alex’s man-maids, as he was calling them, she felt like she was about to cry her makeup off again. For so long, she couldn’t fathom that someone like Jensen could love her. And then the moment she accepted it, and believed it deep inside of her, it all came crumbling down on top of her.
But she refused to put up with that.
And she didn’t want to wait.
She needed to fix this.
She loved him.
And damn it, she knew he loved her.
When it was her turn, she walked out, her eyes on the prize. She didn’t look anywhere but at him, standing in all his beautiful glory. When he finally looked at her, she held his gaze as she closed the distance between them before standing beside him, not missing that he tensed up.
“I can’t wait.”
“Wren, stop. After the wedding, I swear we’ll talk.”
“But that’s not okay with me.”
“Wren, dude, shut up,” Vaughn snapped over at her, and she glared.
“Don’t talk to her like that,” Jensen whispered at him before looking to her. “I promise, we’ll talk after this.”
“Like you promised you’d never leave me?”
“Wren, I’m not leaving you.”
“Oh, you’re not?” she yelled, louder than she expected to, and when she looked up, Wells shot her a look that killed her dead three times over.
Whoops.
Lowering her voice to a whisper, she muttered, “It sure feels that way.”
Setting her with a look, Jensen shook his head. “Please, we’ll talk.”
As the music changed, Céline Dion’s “Because You Loved Me” blaring through the room, the doors opened once more, and Alex came out in a white suit with diamond-encrusted lapels, but Wren wasn’t paying attention. All she could do was listen to the song. “I could seriously sing this song to you right now,” she said, and Jensen’s eyes widened.
“Wren, I can’t right now. I’m trying to figure it out. Okay? I just need some time.”
“Time? We’re married, you don’t get time. We’re in this together. Me and you. Talk to me.”
Meeting her fearful gaze, he shook his head. “Not now. We don’t have time. This is about to start.”
“I don’t care. I need to talk to you.”
“Not now,” he asked once more. “Please.”
“But you promised!” she snapped, her eyes welling up with tears once more as she held his gaze, her hands shaking beside her thighs. “You promised you wouldn’t break up with me, leave me, and you said you don’t make a promise you can’t keep.”
He bit his lip hard as his eyes fell shut, and before he could answer, Vaughn was calling him to go. Meeting her gaze, Jensen didn’t say anything before heading toward his best friend with dread swirling deep in his stomach.
Because for the first time ever, he was worried he wasn’t going to be able to keep a promise he had made.
Watching his retreating back, Wren felt like her heart had fallen out of her chest and shattered on the ground.
What was happening?
Never in her life had she felt such pain.
The rejection from every guy ever didn’t even come close to this. This was awful, and she didn’t understand. Yeah, she may have lied about Bradley, and she was truly sorry for that. But did Jensen really believe she would pull some kind of shit like asking to go to check on his dad to get out of a wedding where there might be a chance meeting with Bradley?
Never.
“Jensen, really?” she yelled, and everyone in the lobby looked back at her. Alex’s four little friends’ eyes all widened in confusion as her brother rolled his.
“Wren, not here, please. Alex’s friends—”
“No,” she spat back at him as Jensen turned around, looking at her. “I get it, you’re pissed and you have every right to be, but be mad at the right thing. I would never use your dad to get out of something. I love your father, I love you, I wouldn’t do that!”
Jensen looked down before he nodded. “I know.”
She went to argue, but then she paused as her eyes scrunched up. “Then what the hell is going on? Is it Bradley? Please. I don’t want that dude. I want you.”
“Wren, please, the music has started. We gotta go,” Wells urged, and Jensen shrugged.
“We gotta go. We’ll talk later.”
With that, he turned. She didn’t understand. This wasn’t him. He was all about getting things fixed, but now, he was the one running from it. What the hell had happened? When someone reached for her, pulling her back, she looked up to see her father. Her eyes were wide while his hold was soft, pulling her to the back of the room. “Honey, just calm down. Let’s get through this wedding, and then you two can talk.”
“But, Dad, I need to fix this.”
“I understand that, but we have a wedding to do,” he said simply, cupping her face. “It will work out.”
As her gaze held her father’s, she shook her head while her eyes filled with tears. “Guess this all ruins my inheritance, huh?”
His face changed, his eyes narrowing. “What? You’re married before your birthday. I see no problem.”
“Even with everything you just heard?”
He shrugged. “I heard nothing except some asshole who hurt my daughter, but then someone else came along and fixed it all.”
Her lower lip trembled. “I don’t want to lose him.”
“You won’t,” he said confidently. “You won’t give up on something you truly want.”
Meeting her father’s gaze, she nodded slowly, hiccupping a sob as she whispered, “What if he tries to take my baby?”
Her father scoffed. “I wish he’d try. We’d ruin him. All of us.”
Her heart sang, but only for a second before she looked up at her father. “Daddy, why haven’t you brought up the inheritance? Not even once?”
His brows rose as his gaze bored into hers. “Because I never questioned you. I know for a fact that boy loves you, you love him, and that baby is his. I have no questions.”
Her heart did a flip-flop in her chest because, unlike her father, she had a lot of questions, and they all revolved around Jensen. Before she could say anything else though, the music was indeed starting, and the doors opened. Standing in place behind Alex’s man-maids, as he was calling them, she felt like she was about to cry her makeup off again. For so long, she couldn’t fathom that someone like Jensen could love her. And then the moment she accepted it, and believed it deep inside of her, it all came crumbling down on top of her.
But she refused to put up with that.
And she didn’t want to wait.
She needed to fix this.
She loved him.
And damn it, she knew he loved her.
When it was her turn, she walked out, her eyes on the prize. She didn’t look anywhere but at him, standing in all his beautiful glory. When he finally looked at her, she held his gaze as she closed the distance between them before standing beside him, not missing that he tensed up.
“I can’t wait.”
“Wren, stop. After the wedding, I swear we’ll talk.”
“But that’s not okay with me.”
“Wren, dude, shut up,” Vaughn snapped over at her, and she glared.
“Don’t talk to her like that,” Jensen whispered at him before looking to her. “I promise, we’ll talk after this.”
“Like you promised you’d never leave me?”
“Wren, I’m not leaving you.”
“Oh, you’re not?” she yelled, louder than she expected to, and when she looked up, Wells shot her a look that killed her dead three times over.
Whoops.
Lowering her voice to a whisper, she muttered, “It sure feels that way.”
Setting her with a look, Jensen shook his head. “Please, we’ll talk.”
As the music changed, Céline Dion’s “Because You Loved Me” blaring through the room, the doors opened once more, and Alex came out in a white suit with diamond-encrusted lapels, but Wren wasn’t paying attention. All she could do was listen to the song. “I could seriously sing this song to you right now,” she said, and Jensen’s eyes widened.
