Page 124 of Forbidden Billionaires, Vol. 9

Monday

J.J. exhaled through his teeth as I put some peroxide on his elbow.

He was already sporting the start of a black eye.

Fortunately the only other injury seemed to be the cut on his elbow.

He had scratched it pretty badly on the cement.

All in all he was in a lot better shape than Aiden.

I blotted the wound as J.J. winced again. “Sorry.”

He adjusted the ice pack on his eye so he could get a better view of me.

I dropped his gaze. I wasn’t even sure what I was apologizing for. The sting of the peroxide? The fact that Aiden was even in the state? All of it? I applied some Neosporin on the cut and one of the big Band-Aids I never thought I’d have a use for from the variety pack.

“What made you snap back there?” I asked.

J.J. slowly lowered the ice pack. “You know what.”

I did. He’d said it weeks ago. He was protective of me. He could handle insults thrown at him or someone trying to dig under his skin. But when it came to me? He wouldn’t let anyone harm me. And Aiden had put his hands on me when I’d asked him not to. “I’m sorry,” I said again.

“I don’t know why you’re apologizing. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“No?” I gestured to his black eye.

“You’re not responsible for your ex-boyfriend’s actions.”

I knew that. But I still felt guilty. I bit my lip so I wouldn’t say “I’m sorry” again. “Does it hurt?”

“It feels like someone punched me in the face.” He smiled and then winced.

I took the ice pack out of his hand and held it against his eye for him. I’m so so sorry. Despite what J.J. said, he was hurt because of me.

“How’d he know where you worked?”

“Earlier this summer I left him a message with my address, asking him to ship all the stuff I left at his apartment. Which he never did. But I don’t know how he knew about Sweet Cravings.” I pressed my lips together. “I guess he followed me there…”

“From where? How long has he been here?”

“I don’t know how long he’s been in town. But I ran into him when I was leaving my apartment. I asked him to leave. I couldn’t have been any clearer about it. And I thought I lost him on the boardwalk. I guess I was wrong.”

J.J. nodded. “So today was the only day you saw him?”

“Of course.”

“What were you two talking about before I came?” he asked.

I knew that J.J.’s ex had cheated on him. I knew he was already worried about long distance with me this fall. But he had nothing to worry about. “He kept saying what happened between us was a misunderstanding and that he wanted to talk.” I shook my head. “I’m pretty sure he lost his mind.”

“No, he just finally realized what he lost.”

Maybe. I didn’t want to be talking about Aiden anymore. “Good. Because he did lose me. I’ve moved on.”

J.J. smiled but his heart wasn’t in it. “He seems to still think he has a chance. If you end up moving back…” his voice trailed off. “You might think differently.”

This conversation was ridiculous. I’d never ever get back together with Aiden.

I was freaking in love with the man sitting in front of me.

But this wasn’t the moment to tell him. Not when Aiden had just been here.

I didn’t want J.J. to think I was saying it because I felt bad.

When I did tell him, I wanted him to believe it. I wanted him to say it back.

It may not have been the moment to tell him I loved him. But it was a good moment for some other news. I lowered the ice pack from his eye. “Well, I absolutely won’t be moving back.” Despite the heavy conversation, I couldn’t help but smile. “Because I got into the University of New Castle.”

“You got in?” He didn’t sound surprised, just excited.

“Mhm.”

This time his smile was as real as mine. “You got in!” He grabbed me around my waist and pulled me backward onto the bed.

I laughed as he hugged me tight, like he never had to let go. “I got in!”

“I knew you would. Congrats, Jellyfish Girl.”

I smiled against his neck.

“Oh my God, what happened?” Kristen asked.

I turned to look at her coming into the apartment.

“My girl got into the University of New Castle!” J.J. said.

My girl. I was pretty sure I melted into his touch even more.

Kristen squealed. She had the exact reaction I’d expected. She ran over and jumped onto the bed with us. “East coast living! Screw Cali. God, it’s going to be so fun to have you on campus.” She hugged both of us and then screamed again. “What the hell is freezing cold?”

I pulled the ice pack out from beneath her hip.

“Oh. Yeah,” she said. “I got distracted for a second, but what I really wanted to know was what the hell happened to your face, J.J.?”

He touched his eye. “I got in a fight with Mila’s ex.”

“No.” Kristen rolled a little away from us and propped her head up on her hand. “Aiden the dickweed? Here in little old Delaware?”

I nodded.

“What a creep,” she said. “He came here to try to break up your new relationship? Low blow. Your poor face.”

J.J. laughed. “You should see the other guy.”

“I bet. So was that why he was here? To mess with your new life?”

I opened my mouth to respond but J.J. beat me to it. “He was trying to win her back.”

Kristen raised both eyebrows. “Not a chance in hell. First, my girl doesn’t play nice with cheaters. And second, she’s madly in love with you, obvs.”

Oh my God, Kristen.

I felt J.J.’s body tense.

“But forget about Aiden,” Kristen said. She grabbed the ice pack from me and handed it back to J.J. “We need to celebrate the good news! What do you want to do, Mila? Go out for drinks? Dancing? Binge watch some Project Runway?”

All I could focus on was the fact that J.J. seemed so uncomfortable. I slowly sat up on the bed, looking anywhere but at him. What did his reaction to Kristen’s comment mean? Did he not love me back? Because she wasn’t wrong…I was head over heels for him. And he was as stiff as a board.

He’d been spending most nights here. We were inseparable when we weren’t working.

He’d just referred to my place as his home.

Kristen didn’t seem to mind having a third roommate.

We’d become the three amigos. Although, definitely no margaritas.

But J.J. and I? We’d become an us. And as an us he wasn’t supposed to freak out at the mention of love.

I was moving back to Delaware for him just as much as I was for myself.

Didn’t he see that? I hadn’t told him that I was in love with him, but I hadn’t told Kristen that either and she saw it. Was he just hoping it wasn’t true?

“Earth to Mila,” Kristen said. “What’s it going to be?”

I cleared my throat. “I don’t know. What do you guys want to do?”

“It doesn’t matter what we want to do.” Kristen lightly shoved my thigh. “It’s your night. Pick anything. Aside from streaking. I don’t want you to get kicked out of your new school before you even step foot on campus.” She laughed at her own joke, but I wasn’t really paying attention.

J.J.’s face was hidden by the ice pack. I couldn’t bear sitting on this bed with them another second.

“Yeah, let’s go out.” I hopped off the bed.

“Unless you need to ice that longer, J.J.?” I wasn’t sure why I asked.

It was like I was trying to give him an out.

But an out from what exactly? Him and I? That was the last thing I wanted.

“I might keep the ice on for a few more minutes,” he said. “How about you two go ahead though. Get us a table somewhere before it gets too crowded.”

“Sounds good,” said Kristen.

But I didn’t think it sounded good at all. It sounded awful. I had this pit in my stomach that was growing by the second. What if I just never heard from him again? What if he was about to ghost me like Aiden had? Love was a game that I wasn’t good at. And it felt like I was about to lose again.

When Kristen ran to the bathroom to check her makeup, I turned back to J.J.

I needed to backtrack. I wasn’t ready to lose him.

“I’m sorry about what Kristen said.” I swallowed hard, wishing I could muster the courage to tell him it was true though.

That I was in love with him. And ask him why he was so freaked out by those words. But I held my tongue as he laughed.

“Not a big deal. We both know how she loves to exaggerate.”

Right. I pressed my lips together. If he would bother to make eye contact with me, he’d be able to tell it was a big deal to me though. And that it was truer than he wanted to believe.

“Ready?” Kristen asked as she reemerged from the bathroom. She grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the door without waiting for a response. “We need to get our drink on!”

No, what I needed was to go back to tequila nights when my ex wasn’t in town and J.J. hadn’t freaked out at the prospect of love. What the heck had he been doing all summer if he wasn’t falling in love with me back?