Page 37 of Before You (Reckless Love #2)

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

JJ

I LEAN DOWN, hugging my sister’s short frame. It’s a relief being in the same room as her again, even if I’ve been fraying at the edges trying to predict what it’s going to be like with my family here. I’ve been worried I won’t be able to keep my shit together without the pills numbing everything.

Factor in the bullshit with Trent last night, and the practice from hell we had today, I’m barely keeping it together as it is.

I thought Coach’s head was going to explode at practice earlier because of how out of sync our offensive line was today.

We ended up having to run suicides before Coach dismissed us, and my knee is feeling every one.

“JJ, you won’t believe how glad I am to be with you again. Everyone else is crazy,” Mira whispers, and I smile at her as she pulls away.

“What about Henry?”

“He’s the craziest of all. Dude must be insane for wanting to be stuck with me for life,” she says, holding up the sparkling emerald cut diamond on her finger.

“Must be quite the workout wearing a rock this big on your finger,” I tease, but I couldn’t be happier for them.

“Lord help him because he’s going to need it. I can’t wait for him to take you off my hands,” Dad says, and Mom hits his arm with the back of her hand.

“Shut up, Bash. You were just whining last night about how she’s not your baby girl anymore.

” She rolls her eyes, winking at me. They seem like themselves, and as nice as it is, it only furthers my anxiety that I shouldn’t trust my mom— or Mira, let’s be honest —not to say something unhinged in front of Marley.

It’s a little painful to see Hunter because seeing only him standing there without his twin is a stark reminder that Bailey isn’t here.

Still, I love my brother, refusing to let anything else show as I embrace him tightly.

He’s nearly as big as I am, his sandy blond hair an unkempt style of mess.

Oceanside has been good for him. “Hey, bro.”

“You’re getting skinny. Think I can outlift you by now?” Hunter says, keeping the mood light. I think it’s something we’ve all learned to do because if we acknowledge the void left by Bailey’s absence, the mood sinks faster than the Titanic in the ocean.

“You wish.” I step back toward Marley who was hovering behind to let me greet my family. I interlace my fingers with hers, immediately feeling centered by her gravity. “This is Marley—my not fake girlfriend.” I clarify the second part, causing Mom to smile and Mirabelle to roll her eyes.

Marley gives me an odd look, and it dawns on me I’ve never told her how Henry and Mirabelle’s relationship started. “Definitely real last time I checked, but it’s lovely to meet you. JJ talks about you all the time.” Marley smiles, and I have no doubt they’re going to love her.

“Hi, Marley. I can only hope you don’t believe everything he’s said—or maybe believe everything. JJ’s the most likely to say something nice,” Dad teases, and his dark eyes glimmer as he smiles.

Maybe I’ve been worried for nothing.

Mom’s gaze bounces from Marley to me, her short blonde hair swishing over her shoulders. “Elle est belle.” 21

Marley’s audible inhale is the only reaction she gives, but I’ll leave it up to her if she wants to explain she’s fluent in French.

Mom’s not wrong—the blue sundress she’s wearing today brings out her eyes, and it stands out nicely against her warm olive skin.

“à l’intérieur comme à l’extérieur,” 22 I say, squeezing Marley’s hand.

“Welcome to the family,” Mom says, smiling at Marley.

“Could you come up with something more disgustingly sweet?” Hunter asks, pretending to gag, and I snort, giving him the finger. Way to ruin the moment, Hunt.

“Ignore him, he’s grumpy because his girlfriend, Kaitlyn, couldn’t come with us,” Dad says.

Marley giggles next to me, giving my hand a squeeze of her own. “How was your flight?” Marley asks, changing the subject as I reluctantly let go of her hand to hug my mom.

“Just so you know, I could always use an upgrade on my ring if you want to propose with mine,” Mom whispers, and I feel my cheeks heat because I like the idea a little too much for someone who hasn’t been dating my girlfriend longer than a week.

“Mom.”

“I wanted to sleep, but someone talked the entire time,” Hunter says, and I see the pointed look he sends in our sister’s direction after pulling away from Mom, just as Mirabelle begins bouncing on the balls of her feet.

“Do you have to pee or something?” I ask, but she ignores me.

“Can I hug you? I feel like I’ve known you for years from everything JJ’s told me,” Mira blurts out, staring at my girlfriend. Oh jeez. I clearly jinxed myself by thinking everything would be fine.

Marley laughs, her smile growing brighter. “Yeah,” she barely says before Mirabelle is throwing her arms around her, nearly knocking them both to the ground. I’m aware it’s just Mirabelle, but I still feel a lurch of protectiveness as Marley wobbles, before stabilizing them both.

“God, Mira, I think you missed your calling as a lineman. Take it easy,” Dad jokes as Mirabelle leans up to whisper something to Marley, then turns around to stick her tongue out at him.

“Absolutely not. I prefer to sit pretty on the sidelines, but we’ll meet you at the car. We have things to talk about,” Mirabelle says, hooking her arm with Marley’s to pull her toward the parking lot of the private airport, conveniently leaving her bag on the ground before I can say anything.

“I guess we’re past how excited you are to see me again. Do you have the keys for the car?” I ask, looking at Dad. It’s crazy how much can change in two months, but I swear he has more grey streaks in his salt and pepper colored hair.

“The crew slipped me the keys after we got off the plane, and the car is in the lot,” Dad explains. “I’m going to make sure we’re set for our flight back on Sunday first. I wouldn’t leave Mira alone with Marley for long, so you guys go ahead.”

He’s probably not wrong about leaving them alone. I’m glad Mira wants to make Marley feel welcome, but holy shit, I’d appreciate it if she didn’t scare the shit out of her at the same time.

“Is Asher joining us for dinner?” Mom asks, and there’s honestly not a chance in hell he’d miss it.

I wonder if Marley would want to invite Bria?

Wait—no. This is supposed to be about my family getting to know Marley, not Asher having another opportunity to strike out with Mirabelle while staring at my dad with stars in his eyes.

He’s going to kill me, but he’ll have to get over it.

“Nope. It’ll just be us,” I say, begrudgingly grabbing Mira’s bag as Hunter grabs his. “You have the address, right?”

“We’ll be fine. Go save your girlfriend,” Mom says, and Hunter doesn’t need to be told twice to start walking toward the car.

“How are things going with the team? Oceanside is ranked pretty high,” I say, looking at my brother who tugs a hand through his blond hair.

“We’d be ranked higher if you transferred—you’re having one hell of a comeback season.

How’s your knee holding up?” he asks, turning it around on me without answering my question.

I guess things still aren’t going well with the running back, but I guess the same could be said for me and Trent at the moment.

“Have you thought about transferring here? Our quarterback graduates this year, and you’re twice the player he is.

” I swear, I’m not just saying this because I can’t stand the guy.

Hunter made a name for himself when Oceanside started him as a freshman over their senior captain from the previous season and led them to their first Bowl game in five years.

This season, they only have one loss on their record so far, even with the tension between Hunter and his teammate.

I’m great at football, but Hunter has started to show he has the type of talent that only comes around once in a generation.

There are whispers of him being on the shortlist for the Heisman as a sophomore, which is practically unheard of, but we won’t know until December when the finalists are announced.

“Is your college right on the beach?” he asks, and I have to admit, that is a perk Oceanside has over Beaumont.

“No, but it’s a top five ranked university in both academics and athletics,” I point out as we get close enough to the Jeep to see Mirabelle and Marley.

I can’t help the smile tugging at the corners of my mouth because I actually can’t wait for them to get to know each other.

I know it’s sappy, but Mirabelle’s my best friend.

“Have your coach call me if the campus moves within walking distance of the ocean,” Hunter says, and I shake my head.

It’s geographically impossible. It only takes twenty minutes by car to get to the beach from Beaumont, but I understand the appeal Oceanside has being located on the beach, while still having a top-notch athletics program.

Aside from Hunter transferring to Beaumont, the only other thing I would change right now is having Bailey here. The clock is ticking on when he’ll call next, but knowing we’re anywhere near the window of possibility has me crawling out of my skin from the anxiety.

Fuck, I shouldn’t be thinking about Bailey right now.

“JJ?” Hunter asks, and I clear my throat.

“Sorry, wasn’t paying attention. What’d you say?”

The sadness in his green eyes contrasts with the smile he forces, and it’s like looking in a mirror because I recognize the expression from all the times I’ve seen it on my own face. “It’s fine. Doesn’t matter.”

It hurts that this is what our once close relationship has become, but as long as I’m the only one Bailey calls, I’m not sure we stand a chance at fixing it. I hate how when I look at Hunter, I’m also looking for Bailey.

I think we’ve all put our lives on pause in some manner for Bailey, but eventually, we have to start living. I only wish living didn’t also feel like dying.

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