Page 25 of Filthy Rich Brother’s Best Friends (Filthy Rich Harems #5)

Jude

I stare at the space where Blaire just stood, then glance back at Lola. Everything in her posture has changed. I can see the spiral starting already.

I sit up and reach for her without hesitation. My hand slides gently around her waist, anchoring her back to me.

“Hey,” I say, looking her in the eyes. “It’s okay.”

She shakes her head, panic in her eyes. I press my forehead to her shoulder and pull her in. Her muscles are pulled tight.

“She doesn’t know anything,” I say. “And she sure as hell doesn’t get to talk to you like that.”

“I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not.” I pull back enough to meet her eyes.

“I didn’t mean for any of this to get so fucked up,” she murmurs. “It just…happened.”

After a few seconds, she pulls out of my arms and stands. She goes back to throwing things in her bag.

“You want to talk about it?” I ask.

Her eyes meet mine, and for a second I see it. There’s part of her that wants to drop the whole act and just say yes. It passes fast. She turns back around and shakes her head.

“No,” she says. “It’s not worth it.”

I nod. “Okay.”

She crosses the room again and sits on the bed to lace up her sneakers. I sit up beside her, brushing the hair off her shoulder.

“I don’t need to know details,” I say quietly. “But I’m not blind.”

She freezes mid-lace.

“I see the way Reid looks at you,” I continue. “And I’ve seen the way you look at him. You don’t have to pretend with me, Lola.”

She stays still, staring at the floor.

When she finally speaks, her voice is hoarse. “It’s all a big mess.”

“Most real things are.”

She lets out a slow breath.

“I didn’t plan any of this,” she says.

“Reid?”

Her laugh is low and bitter. “All of you.”

I nod again, slower this time.

She doesn’t mention him by name, but I know she means Miles too. I’ve seen it in his face every time he sees her. His whole expression changes. The man tracks her every movement.

“I’m not asking you to figure it out right now,” I continue. “Or to give me answers you don’t have. No matter what you choose, I’m not walking away. You need to know that.”

Her head lifts, eyes finding mine.

“I’m not going anywhere, Lola,” I tell her. “You’re allowed to be overwhelmed. You’re allowed to be confused. None of it scares me.”

Her jaw tightens. “It should.”

I reach for her again, slipping my fingers between hers. “It doesn’t.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m crazy about you. I’m not here because it’s easy. I’m here because I only want you.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, sweetheart,” I tell her. “I don’t care who else is in the picture. We can figure it out together.”

She swallows hard. She looks down at our joined hands and squeezes mine gently.

“You’re sure?” she asks, barely above a whisper.

I nod. “Yeah. I’ve never been more sure of anything.”

“I don’t deserve you.”

“What are you talking about, baby? You deserve the best and we both know I am the best.”

I don’t want to scare Lola away. She’s still untangling everything in her head, so I don’t push for more conversations. Instead, I start showing up in ways I know she won’t ask for.

That first morning, I have a smoothie delivered to her studio. I know she skipped breakfast because I watched her walk out the door with not enough time to eat.

I start offering help on the admin tasks I know overwhelm her. She hesitates, but eventually agrees. So, I sort invoices, clear out her inbox as much as I can, and try to make things run a little more smoothly for her.

She stands in the doorway when I’m done, watching me. “You didn’t have to?—”

“I wanted to.”

The next few days, I continue.

She throws her arms around me the first time I show up with lunch, and she eats the entire meal, raving about how good it is.

I don’t flirt as much. She already knows how I feel, so I don’t need to. And I want her to know this is real for me.

She lets me in more than she has before. Not all at once, but little by little.

She falls asleep on the couch next to me one night. Another night, she calls just to say her day was shit and doesn’t hang up even when neither of us talks.

It’s not about grand gestures. Or trying to win.

It’s just about being there.

There are still moments where she pulls away. She’ll collapse into herself and close the proverbial door. I don’t knock. I wait patiently on the other side until she opens it again. And she does, eventually.

We start spending all of our free time together. I spend more nights in her bed than I do in my own. I know she’d be more comfortable at our house, but she’s not ready to address the feelings she has for Reid and Miles. So I don’t push.

Tonight we’re on our back patio. I flip the skewers on the grill and glance over at Lola. She’s snuggled into the corner of the outdoor couch with her laptop balanced on her lap. The hoodie she stole from my closet swallows her whole and I can't stop the smile that takes over my face.

She’s so insanely beautiful.

Her brow furrows as she types, mouth tugged in that focused line I’ve seen a hundred times now.

Reid steps onto the back deck with a beer in hand. I feel Lola’s energy change before I even look at him. She goes completely still.

Reid’s eyes flick from me to her. Then back to me.

“You playing house now?”

I meet his gaze without flinching. “Maybe. What’s it to you?”

He laughs under his breath, but there’s no humor in it. His grip tightens around the neck of the beer bottle. I watch as his jaw locks. I know him well enough to know he is physically biting back the words he doesn’t want to say.

“Nothing, man. You’re just giving her everything without asking for a damn thing back.”

“Maybe that’s what she needs.”

“Right,” he scoffs. “Because you know her so well.”

“Just because I haven’t known her for as long as you have doesn’t mean shit. I’m here for her and that’s more important.”

Reid’s jaw ticks.

Lola closes her laptop with more force than necessary. I can feel the tension rolling off her in waves.

“She always did go for the sure-thing option,” he says.

Lola stiffens.

“You really think she’s not gonna run again?” Reid asks. “You think you’re different?”

Lola stands.

“Don’t,” she says.

Reid watches her for a minute. Then he shakes his head and laughs a humorless laugh.

“Good luck,” he mutters. Then he turns and heads for the stairs, the screen door slamming behind him a second later.

Lola stares at him as he goes. Her mouth is a flat, unreadable line.

I step closer and gently take the laptop from her arms. She lets me.

“He doesn’t get to do that to you,” I say. “You don’t owe him anything.”

She looks at me then.

I touch her cheek. “You okay?”

She doesn’t answer right away. Then finally, she nods.

“Don’t worry about Reid, okay? I’ll set his ass straight.”