Page 48 of I’ll Find You

I shake my head immediately. “No.”

“Then don’t look away when you say things like that,” he murmurs. “She came here to hook up with me. It’s something we did, until that day I met you. I can’t change the past, Rose, but I don’t want to lie to you. Ever,” he says, and the conviction on his face makes me believe him.

I search for something, anything that might contradict his words. I don’t find it. “Not anymore,” he adds. “We may have had sex, but that was it. I never even kissed her. There was nothing romantic about it. It was simply two people satisfying a physical urge. I have only had those feelings for you. Kissed you.” He meets my lips. “Made love to you.” He kisses me again, deepening it and pulling away too soon for my liking. “You don’t have to give me space for anyone ever, because only you will ever have my heart.” His hand skirts along my jawline. “You’re mine to stand next to, baby,” he says.

My heart stutters, but this time I keep my feet firmly planted. Right where I belong. Because standing beside him was always where I was meant to end up.

Chapter

Twenty-Seven

Rose

The drive to Houston takes a couple of hours, but it passes more quickly than I expect. When Ezra said that we were going out with his cousin, I didn’t think he meant in Houston, but it makes sense because that’s where most of his family lives. The close-knit group of cousins all have a couple of apartments in the city, and that’s where we will be staying.

Ezra and Alex fall into an easy rhythm, their conversation effortless in a way that only comes from years of knowing one another. I catch myself watching them more than I should, wondering what it must be like to belong somewhere so completely. Spending the weekend with his extended family leaves me equal parts excited and anxious. If they're anything like Alex describes, I'm either about to have the best weekend of my life or realize just how out of my depth I really am.

Downtown Houston rises around us in a sea of glass and steel. The afternoon sun catches each building, throwing light in every direction as the skyline stretches higher with every mile we drive. As we get closer, Alex points toward the building we're heading to, where he has his own room whenever he's in Houston. It's impossible to miss. Tall and sleek, it blends in with the surrounding towers until you're close enough to realize it doesn't blend at all. It commands the skyline. To say Alex's cousins have money is an understatement. Then again, what would I know? I didn't grow up around anything like this. That doesn't stop me from wanting to be part of it, even if only for a little while.

The lobby is nearly empty, with polished marble floors and soft lighting. The faint echo of footsteps carries in the large, open stone spaces. I notice there’s a front desk with security stationed behind it. Eyes track us without being obvious about it. Ezra waves, and I hear someone chuckle inside a mirrored one-way enclosure, where more are stationed. I bet nothing goes unnoticed either.

The elevator glides upward so smoothly it's easy to forget how quickly the ground disappears beneath us. Floor after floor slips away in silence. Cold air drifts from the vent overhead, raising goose bumps across my skin. I wrap my arms around myself, staring at my reflection in the polished brass doors. When I notice Alex watching me, he steps closer and slips an arm around me. The doors open to a long hallway, and he releases me only long enough to lace his fingers through mine.

As we walk beside one another, our footsteps disappear into the plush carpeting beneath our shoes. The dim lighting stretches the corridor, making it seem to go on forever. The doors are spaced so far apart I doubt you ever hear your neighbors, let alone see them unless you want to. Everything about this place feels private, almost insulated from the outside world.

Ezra searches for his key as we approach a door, but he doesn’t get the chance because the door opens quickly, startling me, and causing Alex’s grip on my hand to tighten. A raven-haired woman close to my age stands there with emerald green eyes that cut through you as she looks at each of us. She stops on Ezra, a wicked smile forming on her lips as she stabs one of her fingernails into his chest. “You’re late,” she says, looking at him with annoyance.

Ezra hooks a thumb in our direction as he glances over his shoulder. “Blame the lovebirds. I was at their mercy,” he says coolly before sidestepping her and walking into the apartment like he owns the place. As it turns out, he does. At least part of it. He lives here with his cousins.

“Hey, Rave.” Alex walks over, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek as she turns toward him, kissing the air. She holds the door open wider, eying me, but doesn’t say anything. I hear the click of the door shutting as Alex turns around, pulling me into his chest, my back to his front, and arms splayed over.

“This,” he says, placing a kiss on my temple, “is my girlfriend, Rose.”

Her smile breaks free, showing white, straight teeth, and her eyes sparkle with the same mischief Ezra’s do before he’s about to say something Alex isn’t going to like. He groans, already anticipating her remark.

“Well,” she says, sauntering toward us like a cat. She's barefoot, her crimson-painted toes flexing with every step. I watch her curiously, my eyes narrowing as I tilt my head. She catches the movement, follows my gaze to her feet, then back up to me before looking down again.

“I thought I'd never see the day, Allie,” she says with a laugh, waggling her fingers in front of her.

I notice her fingernails are painted the same color, giving me a better look. “I’m not really a waitress,” I blurt out, and Alex swings his head in my direction. He reaches over to me, cupping my neck.

“Of course not, baby,” he coos. “You’re an amazing doctor. No one thinks that.” He looks at me, confused, and a frown pulls at his lips. “I’d love you even if you were,” he says with the utmost sincerity, and I open my mouth and close it a couple of times before Raven shrieks.

“I knew I was going to like you! We are going to be besties for sure,” she says as she pulls me into her embrace, hugging me tightly for such a small woman. Alex is forced to release me, but the look on his face is priceless.

“First of all, you oaf,” Raven says by smacking Alex with the backside of her perfectly manicured hand, “that is a lot to unpack right there, but she’s talking about this.” She waves her hand, palm down, fingers moving like she’s playing a difficult classical air composition. The look on Alex’s face is priceless, and I can’t help the chuckle that leaves my mouth.

I decide to save him and talk about his declaration of love in front of his cousin in private at a later time. “It’s nail polish, babe. The red color is called I’m not really a waitress,” I say, nuzzling into his chest, and he sighs with an eye roll.

He lifts my chin before bending to kiss me. It ends far too quickly for my liking, leaving me wishing for more before he steps back with a smile.

“Great,” he says. “Let’s introduce you to everyone else.” He lets me go just as Raven slips her arm through mine.

“Yeah, Rose, let’s introduce you!”

I’m led into a room that opens up into a large room with floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook the downtown area. The sun is setting, painting the sky in an array of pastel colors of pale pinks and blue hues. It’s Friday evening, the end of the work week and the traffic that is beginning to flow. The city is alive with cars that seem to be suspended in time, barely moving. My enjoyment of the scenic view is short-lived as I walk into the room and my attention is immediately pulled to a woman making her way toward us. Unlike Raven, she is tall and lithe. Her movements are graceful, and she glides with a fluidity that makes me think of a dancer.

She stops in front of us, hugging Alex before she steps back, smiling at me and doing the same, and forcing him to release me. He huffs in annoyance, causing a couple of guys around Ezra to laugh. “See?” He hits one of them, and they laugh until tears spring free from one man that seems to be a little older than the rest. “I told you, he’s all growly with her.”