I gave Brielle everything she needed, of course, people to help her wrangle the sea of paparazzi that followed, and even Mom worked out things on campus. University staff were in the middle of final grading, but Mom made sure Brielle didn’t have to worry about that. Mom even offered to let Brielle stay at her place while all this blew over.
Of course, Brielle couldn’t stay at her own house or even my properties. People, the media, were well aware we were both together and that I’d been there the day of the confrontation. TMZ was after us both, had a field day, but we didn’t split up. I set us up in a private place upstate, a place where we both took some time. We stayed there together until the day of the commencement ceremony.
I had no desire to even walk that day, didn’t care, but Bri wanted that for me. In fact, it was the one normal thing she said we both should have. She wanted to be there for me that day, to support me, and she also didn’t want me to miss the experience with my friends. Knight, Royal, and December were also graduating with me. We’d all passed our final classes, with flying colors even.
I did walk with the rest of my friends that day, did experience that time, but after, it was just Brielle and me again. It stayed that way until nearly a month later.
And that was only because my mother begged me to surface.
My graduation party couldn’t very well happen without me. My mother’s words, not mine. She’d waited to throw the whole thing until after Bri and I felt comfortable, and I made completely sure Bri was before telling my mom yes. I didn’t push Brielle, but ironically enough, she’d been the one to push me. She said she wanted to party, party with me, and hell, if I’d turn down a moment to actually show her off to my world.
That was exactly what I did, my girlfriend not far from me that whole day in the manor I’d grown up in and around the people I cared about the most. Even my grandparents and some of my extended family had come out from Syria, and my mom’s family too, who were normally sprinkled across the country. I introduced my girlfriend to everyone, mine, and even Brielle’s parents showed up from Jersey. She said she’d invited them because she wanted them to meet me.
And how crazy was that?
How crazy our worlds were combining, a new future I could see happening right before me. If it were up to me, it’d be a lot sooner, but I did tread lightly when it came to my girlfriend. We were still very new, and even though I felt the way I did about her, I resisted defaulting to old habits and rushing things.
Even still, that didn’t keep me from taking her father aside later that evening and having a little talk with him. I wanted to get a few things out in the open, and I felt better after I did. Ironically enough, after I shook her father’s hand, I had a hard time finding Brielle. She’d said she was going to mingle and had spent the most time with my mother and even December today.
My best friend wasn’t quite showing yet, and I did get on her for keeping that little detail from me. I’d confronted her via text not long after Prinze had spilled the beans, and she must have handed Prinze his ass immediately after.
I knew because he’d shot daggers at me most of the grad party.
It seemed our little coalition may have been short-lived because he scowled at me pretty much all damn afternoon. I mean, he always scowled but definitely more than normal. Even Knight, LJ, and Jax asked what his deal was. They’d come to the party too, brought their girls. Jax and LJ went to different colleges out of state, but it appeared they were already making plans to come back home following their own commencements.
We were all about to be permanent residents in Maywood Heights. At least, for the foreseeable future, and some of us may have been surprised about that. This town had some crazy shit happen to all of us, yet we were all here. Coming back to our roots. We were all about to be in each other’s lives again, and at the present, it seemed like for a very long time. I couldn’t seem to get rid of these people.
And that might be okay.
LJ and I actually had a very healthy discussion regarding our future business endeavors. Well, as much as we could before Knight decided to bust it up. These boys really loved to one up the other, Jax and Royal coming in at one point too. Once that happened, of course, talks traveled to Royal and December, their baby. The couple had decided to make all us guys godfathers, and I think we all, at least me, were in awe of that. A new generation was coming and as it appeared, really soon. I even gave Prinze one of my father’s best cigars, and I got that scowl of his to melt away for a little bit. We were going to be in each other’s lives for a very long time, might as well start showing the world now we didn’t completely hate each other.
I clasped Prinze’s shoulder with a smile before leaving the group and heading off and finding Brielle.
She didn’t leave my lap once I had.
In my mom’s parlor, I kept a hand on her hip while the pair of us chatted with various guests, and it took me a second to realize Brielle kept filling up her wine glass during the conversations. Well, my mother’s attendants were filling her glass. Mom had this event catered, and every time a server would come around to ask if we needed something, Bri would wave for a fill up.
Currently, she chugged it back while we watched Billie, Greer, and Cleo (LJ’s, Knight’s, and Jax’s girlfriends) attempt to nudge details from December and Royal about their baby. It was too early to know the sex, but they wanted to know about the baby shower and all that, and they were inquisitive with the couple. Of course, this turn of topic had their guys about to fall asleep, but I was listening because I had a feeling I’d be the one to buy the pacifier cupcakes. It was a job I planned to volunteer for and wanted to. That kid would be terribly spoiled, by me and probably all his or her god-dads.
My hand on Bri’s hip, I juggled my attention between my girlfriend and December, who spoke. The other couples were seated around us. This party was at my mom’s manor, an open house. This room was about half full with party guests, but what wasn’t was Brielle’s glass. In fact, she snapped to have it filled again, and I nudged her.
“Everything okay?” I kissed her shoulder. My woman was sexy as fuck in all black once again. Her tight top exposed her shoulders, her pants cropped at the ankles. With her strappy heels, she basically looked like Olivia Newton-John at the end of Grease, which I’d fucking take. I frowned. “You’re really laying into that wine.”
“Am I?” she squeaked like she’d been caught, and Brielle Whitman-Quintero didn’t squeak. She placed a hand on her chest. “Sorry, I’m just kind of all over the place.”
Which worried me, about the need for it. She hadn’t been this way all day, not even when I had her meeting the rest of my family. Of course, she expressed she’d been nervous prior but had handled it well.
My mom was a part of this powwow as well in the parlor, and curiously, I noticed her looking at us. She was with James, who she’d been dating for a couple of months now, and surprisingly, I’d been okay with that. I’d known the guy for a while. Our community was big, but also small. He was a divorcee himself, and after I’d probed him about his intentions (which I did, heavily), I deemed him suitable for my mother.
She deserved the best after all.
Anyway, I definitely noticed her looking at Brielle from across our conversation circle. She eyed her, her smile coy under James’s arm. I even observed a little nudge of Mom’s glass in our direction, and Brielle lifted a hand at her. At this point, something was going on, but before I could voice it, Brielle shifted on my lap.