Page 16 of Healed Hearts (Mended Hearts #2)

Chapter Fifteen

Holden

I blink at Roman, my face flaming. “No? Not…really?” Ugh. Why is it coming out as a question? Why is he even here right now?

“Do you think maybe you should have said ‘Hey, Ro, not coming home tonight?’” Roman asks, a smirk on his lips and his eyebrow raised.

“Possibly, yeah.” I didn’t expect him to show up, though, if I didn’t. I’m not sure why. It’s not like he’s ever been put in this situation before. And that’s what the system is for. If I don’t show up or reach out, he comes to me.

“Are you going to stand there like a weirdo all morning, or are you going to introduce me?”

At his words, my gaze darts to Julian, who’s taking in the scene with amusement in his eyes and a bemused smile on his lips. “This is Julian and Wren. This is Roman,” I mumble, waving my hand around.

Roman hums, ignoring the introduction he just asked for. “Nice outfit. Very you.”

I glare at him, my cheeks flaming hotter as I realize I’m still wearing Julian’s t-shirt. “Fu—” I slam my mouth shut. Oops, almost said fuck you to him in front of Wren. I clear my throat. “Not nice, Ro.”

“No. What’s not nice is having me up half the night worried to death about you. Seriously? Not even a text message?” Ro asks.

“I’ll just… take her and…” Julian starts to say, walking toward us and reaching for Wren.

Roman speaks up. “No, you don’t have to do that. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to intrude on your morning.”

Julian pauses and looks into my eyes for a second before he turns and faces Roman. “You’re more than welcome to stay for breakfast if you’d like.”

Roman smiles, but I don’t trust that gleam in his eyes at all. Not even a little. “Yeah, that would be great.”

“Wren? Wanna come help me make breakfast?” Julian asks. She nods, pulling her hand from mine, and takes off to him. He stops in front of me as they pass by. “Can I kiss you, or would you rather not until he leaves?” His voice is low, like he’s trying to keep Roman from overhearing.

I have zero interest in hiding Julian from Roman, especially not after last night. “Oh, you definitely can.”

His eyes light up, and he leans in, dropping a kiss to my lips before pulling back. “Good morning, darlin’. Thank you for staying with me last night,” he whispers, and then he’s taking off with Wren into the kitchen.

I sigh heavily, a combination of swoon and what the actual fuck, before turning my attention back to Ro. “Wanna come sit down?” I ask.

“Yeah, I think that’s a thing we need to do for sure.”

I wave him along, and he follows me to the couch. I smile when I hear Wren singing in the kitchen. Her little voice is so sweet. I love how often she sings. Roman’s chuckle brings me back to attention. “What’s so funny?” I ask.

“You,” he says, laughing again. “My little Hold’s all grown up and in love. ”

“Shut up. No, I’m not.” But I’m definitely something because I can feel my cheeks heating up again.

“I think you might be,” he says, grinning like an idiot. I scowl at him, trying to look serious, but I can tell by his amused expression that it’s not working.

“You know,” he muses. “It’s the craziest thing. That mean look you’re giving me isn’t nearly as intimidating with all the love pouring from your eyes.”

I groan, flopping back on the couch. “Ugh, you’re the worst.”

“No. Beck is the worst. So you better start talking, so I can help you mitigate his ridiculous-ass overprotectiveness.”

I sigh. “We hooked up a few weeks ago,” I start, and Ro nods. He already knew that, of course, because I dropped the pin to this house. “And it was good. He was…” I let my voice trail off, considering how much I want to share. Fuck it, this is Roman . I can tell him anything. I drop my eyes to my lap and fiddle with the bottom of Julian’s shirt. Good God, I look ridiculous. Can’t believe I’m having this conversation dressed like this. “He was really nice to me.” My voice comes out in a whisper, and when I bring my eyes back to Roman’s, they’re soft with understanding.

“That’s good, Hold,” Ro says gently. “He should be nice to you. Anyone you hook up with should be.”

I roll my eyes. “I know, I know. Anyway, we hooked up. I fell asleep on him.” Roman’s eyes go wide. It’s no secret how little I trust people, especially in situations like that. Ro knows I don’t trust easily, but there’s a lot he doesn’t know—like my rules. “Like literally on him. I was lying on top of him.” I chuckle a bit at the memory and Roman laughs too.

“That must have been a little scary.”

I nod, thankful he knows me so well. “It was, and it wasn’t. And I think the fact that it wasn’t was the most scary of all.” I drop my voice to a whisper. “He kept asking me stuff the whole time. Like ‘what would make you feel more comfortable’ and ‘is this okay?’”

Roman’s eyes light up in understanding. “He should do that. Anyone should.” It’s very similar to the conversation I had with Beck, but Ro is handling it completely differently than he did and for that, I’m thankful. I still feel bad for getting mad at Beck that day.

“I had this same talk with Beck, you know? I yelled at him. I felt bad about it.”

Roman nods. “Yeah, he told me. There’s no reason to feel bad. He knows he pushed too hard. He felt bad about it too.”

I lean forward until my forehead lands on his shoulder. Being in this situation is scary. I don’t know how to navigate it, and I don’t know how to trust that Julian is genuine. “I really like him, Ro,” I whisper.

Roman reaches up and rubs my back. “I can tell. You’re not exactly good at hiding it.”

“And Wren is sick. Which adds a whole other layer of complication. I don’t know what’s going on, but the doctor on her case is a fucking idiot.”

“Is that how you guys met?”

“Kind of. I mean, we hooked up, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it— him. And then a week later, he shows up with a sick kid. Kinda took the breath right out of me, you know?”

“Yeah, I get it,” he says, still rubbing my back. “Can I offer some advice?”

I sit back and look at him. “Yeah, of course.”

“If he’s good, and nice, and it seems like he is because your walls are sky-high, and you’re here anyway, sleeping in his bed and wearing his clothes—which is adorable by the way,” he adds with a smile. “Then don’t fight it. It’s okay to be scared, but be scared with him. Not without him. Don’t make my mistakes, okay?”

I nod. “Okay, I think I can do that.”

He pulls me into a hug. “I’m happy for you, Hold. You deserve this.”

I’m not sure that I believe him, but I want to. I really fucking want to. Ro used to think he didn’t deserve Beck, but they’re perfect for each other. And maybe I don’t need to feel like I deserve Julian to be perfect for him too. “Thanks, Ro.”

“Don’t mention it,” he mumbles. He takes a big breath. “Well, come on then. Let me go grill this man of yours.”

I pull back in alarm. “No, don’t do that!”

He laughs. “I have to. You’re my best friend. We take care of each other, them’s the rules. Besides, if he can’t handle me grilling him, he’s definitely not going to be able to handle Beck.”

I giggle, some of the tension easing from my body. “Yeah, you’re not wrong. Okay, let’s go.”

Ro left after breakfast with a hug and a stern warning in my ear that I’m not allowed to disappear without letting him know. The “grilling” was actually pretty mild, all things considered. I thought for sure he was going to really let loose, but he’s right. That’ll definitely be Beck. Speaking of Beck. “Hey, I have a friend, Beck. He’s Ro’s fiancé, and he works in the ER. Would you be okay with me sharing the details of Wren’s case with him? I mean, he’s not a doctor.” I laugh, and Julian looks at me in confusion, so I explain. “So Beck is a physician assistant, and I pick on him because people are always asking about what PA stands for. And then they’re appalled when they find out he’s not a real doctor. Anyway, he’s really good at stuff like this. Looking at the clues and figuring out what’s going on.”

Julian grins, letting out a little chuckle as he shakes his head. “Yeah, at this point, I’ll take any help we can get. I get the feeling the doctor on her case wants to make me feel guilty instead of actually helping her.”

“Ugh, I can’t stand him. He’s my least favorite doctor in rotation. It was pure bad luck you got him. After the way he talked to you after Wren’s transfusion, I seriously considered telling you to ask for a new doctor, but I felt like that would be crossing a line.”

“It wouldn’t have been. Not in our personal relationship or for the medical side of things. I figure you know better than me at any rate.”

A knock at the door interrupts our conversation, and Julian rolls his eyes. “Who now? Jesus.” He stands and heads to the door. I don’t hear anything at first, but then a woman’s voice carries through the house. I wonder if I could sneak back into his room, and why have I not changed my clothes yet?

The chance to run is taken from me when Julian walks into the kitchen with an older man and woman trailing behind him. “Holden, this is Ruby and Henry, Maya’s parents.”

I’m meeting what are basically his in-laws—his daughter’s grandparents—in an oversized t-shirt. Love this for me.

“Hello, I’m Holden. It’s nice to meet you both,” I say, trying to slip into confident work-Holden.

Ruby smiles at me. “It’s a pleasure to meet you too. We’ve heard so much about you.” I shoot my gaze to Julian, and his cheeks are bright red.

“Good things, I hope?” I ask, working hard to cover up my nerves.

“Yes, definitely good things,” Julian says before either of them can respond to me.

“All the good things,” Ruby says with a smile. “Now, where’s my granddaughter? She’s due for a sleepover with Mamaw and Poppy.”

“She’s in her room, playing. I’ll go get her things together for you,” Julian says.

“No. You stay put with your company. We’ll go get her ready,” Henry says.

Julian nods. “She’s been feeling pretty good since they did the blood transfusion, but don’t hesitate to call me if she starts feeling bad again. Like I said, we still don’t know what’s going on.”

“Okay, we definitely will,” Ruby says as she and Henry take off toward Wren’s room.

“So they’re just going to steal Wren?” I ask, trying not to pout.

Julian catches my expression and laughs. “Yeah, they do that from time to time. How do you think I met your gorgeous self?”

“Do you want the real answer to that?” I ask.

He gives me a strange look. “Maybe?”

“Well,” I say, giggling a bit. “I thought possibly you were cheating on your wife.”

He stares at me blankly for a second, and then he laughs. “Nope. Not me. I’m a one-person man. You know what this means, though?”

“No. Should I? Did I miss something?”

“It means I can take you on a date, if you’d be so inclined.”

“A… date?” No one’s ever taken me on a date before, although to be fair, I’ve never actually met anyone I wanted to go on one with, anyway.

He nods at me. “Yeah, I’d really like to. If you want to.”

“Can I go home and change first?” I ask, dropping my gaze once again to Julian’s shirt. You know, you’d think that I would have changed already. But the truth is, I like it. I like wearing his clothes. Even though they look stupid on me. Ro and Beck are lucky that they’re basically the same size. Although… I glance at Julian, my eyes tracing his muscles, his height, and yeah… maybe I’m not jealous of Ro and Beck after all.

“Of course. How about after they leave, I run you home so you can change, and we’ll go out from there? It sounds like I need to meet Beck, anyway. If you’re ready for that. I know Roman kind of forced your hand this morning.”

I cock my head at him. “Do you think I don’t want to introduce you to my friends?”

“No, of course not. It’s just very new. Besides, when I opened the door, Roman said something about you not wanting Beck to know.”

“That’s because he’s crazy overprotective,” I say, laughing. “He hated me when he first met me. But when the switch flipped, it flipped hard. Now he’s like a big brother.”

Julian gives me an indulgent smile and leans in, brushing his nose against mine. “I can’t imagine anyone hating you, darlin’.”

I hum, unable to form words because his lips are so close, and I love kissing him so much, but he doesn’t kiss me. He pulls back with a soft smile right as Wren comes barreling into the room. She stops at Julian first, giving him a big hug, and then she runs to me, giving me the same treatment. My heart swells in my chest. God, I love this kid already. Julian, like always, is watching us with a smile.

She takes off running and grabs Ruby’s hand. “Bye, Daddy! Bye, Holden!” she shouts, and then she’s practically pulling her grandmother out the door.

“I love you, baby girl,” Julian calls as he watches them leave, and then turns his attention to me. “Are you gonna wear that home? Or do you want to change into the clothes you had on yesterday?”

“I’ll wear this. Beck’s gonna give me shit no matter what I wear. At least this way, I’m comfortable.”

“So, is the eyeliner an occasional thing or an all the time thing?” he asks.

I narrow my eyes at him. “Is it a problem either way?” I ask.

“No. I was hoping you’d wear some on our date. I think it looks really nice on you. Makes your eyes pop. That’s what got my attention, you know? That night. Your eyes. They were gorgeous, even from across the room.”

My stomach flutters. That’s so crazy to me. That it was my eyes of all things that caught his attention. “It’s usually an all the time thing. I had washed it off before bed the night you called me, and I wanted to get back to you, so I didn’t even mess with putting any on.”

“Hmm, that makes sense. Roman told me you ran out of the house like your ass was on fire,” he says, his lips turning up in a teasing smirk.

I groan. “I’m going to kill him.”

I’m a nervous wreck as we walk toward the front door of the house, so I reach over and grab Julian’s hand in mine. I have zero idea what kind of crazy shit Beck is going to do and say. Even though holding Julian’s hand yesterday felt like an Olympic feat of bravery, it feels like nothing compared to the bravery I’m trying to summon right now. Why is introducing Beck to Julian so much more scary than it was with Roman?

Part of me feels like it’s the fear of rejection. Roman has stood by me for ten years, without wavering even once, and Beck has stood by me too. But it’s like there hasn’t been enough time for me to fully believe it, even though I fully trust him. Honestly, who knows? My head is a mess.

I open the front door and walk in with Julian right behind me.

“So nice of you to finally join us, CT,” Beck says, and I groan.

Julian freezes beside me. “Um, I thought your name was Holden.”

Beck laughs like the fucking menace he is. “It is. Fuck you, Beckett.” Already starting his shit. Already . Ugh.

Julian shakes it off, clearly wanting to make a good impression. He holds his hand out to Beck to shake it. “Hey, I’m Julian. It’s nice to meet you. Beckett, right?”

I stifle a giggle, and Beck shoots me a glare. “It’s just Beck,” he says, taking Julian’s hand. They shake hands, and Beck’s eyes light up. “Oh hey, I remember you!” Julian squints at him like he’s trying to figure out where he knows him from. “You were in the ER a few weeks ago. Damn, I sent you up to Holden, and you really ran with it, huh?”

Julian chuckles, recognition lighting up his face. “That’s right! You told Wren that Holden would give her extra stickers. Sorry I didn’t recognize you at first. I barely remember that day at all. My anxiety was through the roof.”

Beck’s asshole smirk slides off his face and compassion takes over, showing that he can have a good bedside manner when the situation calls for it. “Yeah. How’s your little girl doing? She was a little sweetheart.”

Julian’s eyes dart to mine like he wants me to take that one. “She needed a blood transfusion a couple of days ago,” I say. “Dr. Mays is being his usual shitty self and is swearing it’s a folate deficiency. I ripped his ass, and he’s doing more tests, but I was going to have you look at her case and see what you think.”

“Of course. Bring her chart down to me next time we’re working. Anyway, make yourself at home.”

“Oh, we won’t be staying long,” I say. Where the fuck is Roman, and what happened to “helping me mitigate the overprotectiveness?” “Where’s Ro?”

“In the kitchen. I promised him a blowjob if he let me have five uninterrupted minutes with you guys.”

My jaw drops open in shock as Julian’s laughter rings out beside me before he says, “I like him.” Beck grins like that’s the best news he’s ever gotten.

“Idiots. All of you. Roman!” I yell. “Get in here.”

Ro walks into the living room. “Can you blame me?”

“Yeah, actually, I can. I know damn well you don’t need to strike deals to get your dick sucked. Be so serious. Ugh. You suck.”

“This is payback for making me worry about you all night,” he says, smirking at me.

I roll my eyes. “Well, I’m going to change. I will not be leaving Julian in here with you two. And then we’re going on a date.” When I glance at Julian out of the corner of my eye, he’s already looking at me, a soft smile on his lips.

I’m dragging Julian past the idiots in the living room when I hear Beck say, “Our little chaos twink is going on a date, beautiful. Isn’t that exciting?”

Fucking menace. And he has the audacity to call me a chaos twink?