Page 17 of From West, With Regret (NYC Billionaires #2)
ELEVEN
LONDON
I’m falling.
Falling, falling, falling.
It isn’t hard and fast. It’s slow and methodical. Like the blow of the breeze over the surface of the water. Like a whisper over bare skin. Like the sound of my name coming from West’s mouth as though he’s said it a thousand times before.
I’m falling.
The blood rushes to my head, and I crack my eyes open.
Charleigh and Julianna are sifting through the rack of dresses one of Julianna’s designer friends brought over thirty minutes ago.
I’m pretty sure some of them cost more than the average person will make in a lifetime, but what Julianna wastes in expensive taste, she makes up for with her charity work.
She gasps and pulls off a floral dress from the rack that’s covered in glittering sequins—not one I would pick out for myself. But it will look stunning on Charleigh, even if Julianna’s only holding it up to herself.
One thing I’ve noticed about my new best friend, Charleigh, is that she wears flowers at least six days of the week. Where she adores bright and obnoxious colors, I like fading into obscurity .
“Come on, London,” Julianna says to me. From how I’m lying on her bed, she and Charleigh are upside down. Julianna bends at the waist and talks to me with her head cocked to the side. “I know you’ll find something in Massimo’s collection.”
I sigh, lifting my head up and spinning around to sit on the edge of Julianna’s oversized bed.
“Your place is beautiful.” I glance around the large open space, noting the touches of white, beige, and green accents scattered throughout Julianna’s new apartment. She is a well-known interior designer in the city, but seeing her work in her own space, I can tell how talented she is.
“Thank you.” Julianna grins. “Asher got me a killer deal on this place. I hated the one on the other side of the city. The view is better from here.”
She’s right, it is. The view of the harbor isn’t obstructed, reminding me of where Holt’s yacht is parked, which brings me to being out on the water with West the other day.
I eye Charleigh as she studies herself in her reflection of Julianna’s floor-length mirror, running her hand over the dress that’s draped across her front.
“You seem to have an eye for picking out dresses that suit us,” I tell Julianna. “Is there one on the rack that speaks of me?”
Julianna claps her hands gleefully and spins on the ball of her foot with a squeal.
“Okay,” She’s already flicking through them as if she hasn’t already looked at them a thousand times over.
“You’re a little more on the introverted side, but I can tell you aren’t shy when it comes to your body.
” She gives me a cheeky grin. “I gathered that on the yacht.”
“I loved that gold bikini,” Charleigh gushes, her eyes finding me in the reflection. “You looked so hot in it.”
I stifle a laugh and bite down on my lip.
“For sure,” Julianna agrees, removing a red dress. She shakes her head and places it back on the rack. “I noticed West couldn’t keep his eyes off you.”
“Not true,” I’m quick to dismiss.
I’m lying, though. It’s all I felt the other day, his eyes on me, burning me from the inside out. I was a powder keg, ready and waiting to be lit.
I knew what I was doing when I wore that bikini. I wanted his eyes on me. My heart raced at the idea of what seeing me like that did to him, and it was obvious in the way he constantly cleared his throat or adjusted in his seat.
He couldn’t sit still.
Mission accomplished.
I haven’t pinpointed my feelings yet, but the thrill I get when thinking about West is addictive. Something I’ve never felt before.
“West was Heath’s brother, though. Then again, I heard they weren’t close. They didn’t even talk to each other at Julianna’s party,” Charleigh says.
“Yeah,” I agree. “I didn’t even know West was there. Ironic how small the world can feel even in the largest city in the world.”
“Do you know what happened between them?” Julianna asks. “Sounds like they were practically strangers, not brothers.”
“Sort of.” I look away, keeping West’s secrets to myself.
These women are two of my closest friends now, but I feel protective of what West has told me.
He doesn’t want everyone to know the depth of his past when I would give anything to know mine.
“But Heath and I didn’t have a good marriage. Not sure if Selene told you.”
“She hasn’t.” Charleigh’s sympathetic eyes find me in the reflection of the mirror.
I nod in appreciation for my sister’s discretion.
Charleigh and Julianna know about my amnesia, but they don’t know the sordid details of my marriage.
“He was abusive. More mentally than anything. At first, I felt awful he’d died, but it’s funny because the more time passes, the more I learn about myself. ”
“Like what?” Julianna asks, tipping her head to the side, her brows furrowing deeper.
“That I’ve been spending the last year of my life with him pretending to be someone I wasn’t. That my love for myself was greater than the love I had for him.”
“Wow,” Julianna whispers.
“You deserve someone better than that tool bag.”
I stifle my laugh at Charleigh’s comment. It sounds more like something Julianna would say than her.
“It’s okay to want to move on,” Charleigh adds. “You know, Holt was looking at you, too.”
I’m surprised by her comment. I never thought much of Holt. He’s usually quiet around me, and whenever Selene is around him, she doesn’t have much to say.
“Ugh.” Julianna rolls her eyes. “We’re all adults, and I obviously can’t tell you who to date, but there are better men than my brother.”
“Why do you say that?” I ask.
She shrugs, pausing at looking at a dress. “He’s just consumed with his magazine, and there’s this matter of him trying to get close to the Montgomerys all of a sudden.”
“Are you saying you don’t trust your brother?” Charleigh asks.
“No.” Julianna inhales a breath. “It isn’t that. I just don’t know what his angle is. He’s just being secretive.” She pauses. “More so than usual.”
“Huh.” Charleigh looks at me, raising her brows with a shrug of her shoulders.
I shrug back.
“Anyway…” Julianna blinks her thoughts away. “I have en ough going on in my dating life, or lack thereof, to pay attention to what my brother is doing.”
I see the war in Charleigh’s eyes, wanting to ask Julianna to elaborate on her dating life, but she clamps her mouth shut. I’ve been around them enough to know Julianna is constantly finding the worst men, and this rivalry with Rome Montgomery is curious.
“Selene asked me to set this one aside for her.” Julianna twists her mouth in thought, moving the dark blue dress to the end of the rack. It’s stunning, with a slit driven straight up the thigh and a deep v-cut neckline.
I check my messages for one from Selene but find none. Instead, I find myself wandering to her Instagram account. There’s a new post of her open laptop at a coffee shop. Her caption reads: The work never stops. News coming soon.
I’m closing out my screen when Julianna gasps.
“Yes!” She rips one of the hangers off the rack and crosses the room to meet me. Stopping in front of me, she holds the dress out, staring at the back of it.
“With your dark hair and those golden rings you always wear, this will be perfect for our girls’ night at the club.” Julianna giggles.
I’m wondering why Julianna picked a club for our first girls’ night. All four of us are in at least our late twenties to early thirties. Never being a club goer myself, even when I was in my early twenties, I’m nervous. Mostly because of other people and tight spaces.
But this is New York City . Ever since my newfound freedom from my controlling mistake of a marriage, I’m telling myself to break out of the box I’ve placed myself in, despite the anxiety I might get from it.
I reach out and slide my hand along the black sequins.
The bottom portion of the dress is covered in them.
From the waist up it is all thin, black lace.
Although the dress has long sleeves, it’s incredibly revealing.
And short. At least shorter and more revealing than I would typically gravitate toward.
The neckline is similar to the dress set aside for Selene.
“It is beautiful,” I say quietly.
“Try it on.” She holds it out for me, but I know I need to get going. I promised West I would meet him at The Veiled Door.
“I actually need to head out.” I sit up from Julianna’s bed. “I finished my first piece for the bar and need to show it to West.”
“Oh.” She frowns, then spins on her heel. “Take the dress home and try it on. See if you like it.”
“No, no, no.” I hold my hand up. “I can’t do that, Julianna.”
“Yes, you can.” She slips the short dress into an equally short, protective bag. Like it was made specifically for it. She crosses the room and hands it to me, draping it over my arm. “I need to get these other dresses back to Massimo tonight, so if it doesn’t work then just let me know.”
“I don’t know.” I’m still hesitant. I don’t have time to drop the dress off at Selene’s apartment before heading to The Veiled Door. They’re in opposite directions. And I don’t want to be late meeting West. He always sticks to his word when it comes to meeting me. I want to return the favor.
“London.” Julianna places her hand over mine, forcing me to look into her gorgeous eyes. Her gaze brings me comfort and reassurance. “You’re like a sister to us. Well, you’re already sisters with Selene, but you know what I mean. To Charleigh and me. Take the dress.”
Emotion is thick in my throat, and I look down at the bag hanging over my arm before looking back up Julianna. “Thank you.”
She smiles. “Of course.”