“I do now, Pix.”
The silence that greeted my announcement was more dramatic than it needed to be. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she demanded after a moment, sounding hurt.
Groaning, I dropped back onto the pillows. “I don’t know. You’ve had a lot going on, and…” I clenched my eyes closed, guilt swamping me. “You’re all I have, and this thing with Doe is brand-new. When I was with her, I was able to turn off all the chaos of your illness and forget for a little while. I’m sorry, Pixie.”
“No, I’m sorry. Ugh!” she grunted. “I probably scared her off. She no doubt thinks I’m a heinous bitch right now.” She gasped, and my eyes snapped open.
“What?” I asked cautiously.
“I’m pretty sure she hung up on me before I told her I’m your sister.”
My gaze drifted back over to the open closet and the empty hangers. “Yeah, I got that loud and clear. She took all her clothes with her.”
“I’m so sorry, Jenner.”
Grimacing, I forced myself out of bed. “How are you feeling?”
“The nurses are wonderful. They have been taking such good care of me. I even ate a little breakfast.” She sighed. “I’m about to start my chemo for the day, though, so I wanted to talk to you before I was too sick to function.”
“I’ll be over as soon as I shower and talk to Doe.” I paused at the bathroom door. “Is it okay if I bring her with me?”
She hesitated for a moment. “Is she really that important to you, Jenn?”
“She’s the one, Pixie,” I told her honestly, my throat tight with suppressed emotion. “I love her.”
“Okay then, yeah, bring her with you,” she encouraged softly. “I would like to meet the girl who stole your heart. And who knows, it might be nice to grow our little family of two.”
“You’ll love her, Pix. I swear you will. Let me clear all this up with her, and I’ll be over.” I knew it would cost her to let Doe see her so sick and vulnerable, so I was all too aware of what she was giving me. Promising myself I wouldn’t let her down, I ended the call and jumped in the shower.
Fifteen minutes later, I pulled up outside Doe’s house and jumped out of my car. As I walked up onto the porch, the front door opened. “Hi, sweetie,” Marissa Niall greeted with a frown. “Um, Doe isn’t here.”
“Do you know where she is?” I asked, already backing down the steps. I needed to find her as soon as possible so I could clear everything up and get over to Pixie.
“Well…” She twisted her hands together and glanced over her shoulder into the house. Muttering something under her breath, she took a step toward me and lowered her voice. “She told me she was going to Nashville to stay with Aspen for a few days.”
“Aspen?” The name sounded vaguely familiar, and then it clicked. The friend Doe had been with on Monday.
Marissa grimaced. “Aspen Williams. He’s a friend from school.”
“He?” I repeated, jealousy turning my voice hard. I didn’t know Aspen was a fucking guy. I’d assumed it was a girl, and Doe hadn’t elaborated on her friendship with Aspen. We were going to have a long conversation about that, but first, I needed to straighten out her misconception about Pixie. “What do you mean, he?”
She smiled. “It’s not like that. Doe and Aspen could never be anything more than friends, although I’m hoping he becomes a part of our family sooner than later. If Jackson ever gets his head out of his ass,” she grumbled to herself.
“Where does Aspen live?” I gritted out.
“I’m not supposed to tell anyone where she is, but she didn’t say why. Did you two argue?”
“No, my sister called this morning, and she and Doe got their wires crossed.” There was no use in lying about it. I’d made a mistake, but I’d amend it as soon as I got my hands on Doe. “I hadn’t told either of them about the other yet. My sister has been going through some health issues, and I didn’t want to freak her out about my relationship. And I guess I had my head up my ass with not telling Doe about Pixie. I’m not sure what is going through Doe’s mind right now, but it will be better for everyone if I find her and clear this up.”
“Ah, I see,” Marissa said with a shake of her head, a smile teasing at her lips. “Well, I’ll text you the address.”
“Thank you.” I walked back to her and kissed her cheek. “You’re a lifesaver… I want you to know, I love Doe.”
Her smile grew as she looked up at me. “Sweetie, I think I knew that long before you did. Now you go talk to my stubborn girl. Good luck. She’s so much like her father, you’re going to need it.”
I tried not to speed on my way up to Vanderbilt, but every time I thought of this Aspen guy, my foot would press a little harder on the gas. Whoever the fuck he was, Doe was alone with him in his apartment. If he touched her, he was a dead man.
As soon as I pulled into the apartment parking lot, I spotted Doe’s truck and pulled up behind it so she was blocked in. Getting out of my car, I jogged toward the apartment building while trying to call her again. But it went straight to voice mail like all the other times I’d tried to reach her.
As I punched the elevator call button, something finally went right for me when the doors immediately slid open. Moments later, I stepped off onto Aspen’s floor and pounded on his door. When I heard movement inside, I covered the peephole and pounded again.
“Yeah?” a deep voice called from the other side of the door. “Who is it?”
In answer, I knocked again, harder this time.
The door was jerked open, and a guy stood in front of me. He was a good-looking dude, blond hair and blue eyes. He looked like the all-American heartthrob boyfriend type. His gaze narrowed on me as soon as he looked at me, and I instantly wanted to punch him in the face.
“She doesn’t want to see you, dickhead,” he informed me, putting his arm on the doorframe to block my entrance. He wasn’t a small guy by normal standards, but if he thought he was man enough to keep me from my girl, he would find himself through the fucking floor.
“You Aspen?” I gritted out.
He smirked. “The one and only.”
“Doe, if you care about your friend, you better come talk to me,” I called out. “If you’re not out here by the time I count to five, I’m going to—”
She appeared behind Aspen before I could even finish the threat. The moment I spotted her red, swollen eyes, my knees went weak. “Baby.”
Glaring at me, she nudged Aspen out of the way. “It’s fine,” she told him in a hoarse voice. “I’ll talk to him.”
“You sure? I can get rid of this jerk-off if you don’t want to deal with him.” Aspen stroked her hair back from her face. I couldn’t contain my growl at seeing him touch her and took a step inside the apartment, but one glare from her had me stopping midstep. Clenching my teeth, I shoved my hands into my pockets to keep from wrapping them around the fucker’s throat.
Turning her gaze back to him, Doe gave him a trembly smile. “Thanks, Asp, but I’ve got this.”
Shooting me a cold glare over his shoulder, the other man walked back into the apartment, and Doe stepped into the doorway. “What?” she snapped, crossing her arms over her chest defensively.