“Chase, don't leave.”
“Emily, introduce us,” I hear a few girls from my cheer team say as I’m being pulled away.
“Let go.” I try to jerk my arm from his hold.
“Not happening.”
“Hey—” I stop talking when he suddenly does release his hold on my arm, but it’s to grab a boy I don’t recognize. He’s probably from another school.
“You have a staring problem.”
“Not my fault her tits are out,” the boy responds. I glance down to see I do have a nice amount of cleavage showing, having tugged too hard on my dress when I pulled it over my head.
“Hope you can swim.” Chase shoves the boy who is fully dressed in khakis and a pink polo shirt backwards right into the pool. “Actually, I hope you fucking can’t.”
We don’t get the chance to find out because Chase once again has me by the arm, pulling me around the side of the house toward the front to where I parked my car. I don’t try to break his hold on me again. I should, but part of me loves it, and I’m going to soak it in even if for only this short moment because I can’t remember the last time Chase touched me.
3
Chase
That little shit wasn’t wrong. When did Emily get those tits? She is no longer a girl, but on some level she will always be my girl. When we were younger, it was a protectiveness I had over her. Hell, I could be more overbearing than Asher when it came to her.
Emily spent so much time at my house when Asher and I were in high school. At first, he would ask me if he could bring her, but then after a while, he always did it without a thought. She became just as much a little sister to me. I was sure I was trying to protect Emily from her own mother, but as time went on and she grew up, things started to change.
There was a moment in time I thought something was wrong with me. Girls in high school wanted to date or fool around, but it never interested me. I thought I was so involved in making sure I was learning all the ins and outs that I might need for taking over the Silverstein business that I didn't have time for any of that.
Then there were my parents. They were the epitome of a happy, healthy relationship. They were even high school sweethearts. I never missed the glint in my mom's eyes when she said Dad would only ever belong to her.
My father could be very possessive of her, but that was her way of showing her possessiveness. I wanted to be able to give that to my wife one day. Getting a front row seat to Asher's parents' marriage, I knew what I wanted, and I wasn’t going to settle for anything less than what my parents had.
Then one day, my father pulled me to the side. I think prom was coming up or something. He told me not to take a date or maybe not to go at all. Honestly, prom hadn’t been on my radar. But the words he said after that stuck with me.
“The greatest things in life are often the things that we wait for. That we cultivate and let grow. We must give them room to bloom because our shadow might not give them all the light they need, son, and I promise you that you don’t want to look back and not know if they fully chose you because knowing they did is the greatest gift you’ll ever receive in life, and it’s not one that can be bought.”
At the time, I had no fucking clue what he was talking about, but when my father spoke, I always listened. Then two days later, Emily was standing in front of me with flour still smeared on her cheek from whatever she and my mom had been baking that afternoon, and she’d asked me about prom—if I was going and with who. She never gave me a chance to respond. All she said was, “Don’t break my heart.”
She was so young then, and I realized that she had this crush on me, one that I was sure would be fleeting. She was too young to know what she was talking about. I told her so. That was the last day she ever came to my family home.
Pretty sure Mom didn’t talk to me for a month after that. Dad's words still didn’t make sense to me at first. Until Emily started to change and grow into a woman. Then I got it. I understood more of my overbearing protective ways of her. I think on some subconscious level, I hadn’t even realized I knew one day she would be mine, and it all began to make sense.
“Why do you have to ruin everything?” she mutters when I open the passenger door of her car.
“I’ve never stopped you from going to other parties. But the McDonalds are different. Even the father is under investigation for some shady shit. This is not the place for you.”
“Whatever.” She drops into the car with a huff. I don’t know if it’s the drinks she’s had tonight or what, but something is off. I’m used to her cold shoulder, but this is different. There are no smiles lighting up her face or the normal bounce to her step.
“Are you hungry?” I ask when I slip into the driver’s seat and pull out and down the street.
“Am I hungry?” she repeats.
“You’ve been drinking. Some food might do you some good. Tomorrow is a big day for your father. Don’t want you to be hungover.”
“I’m not that drunk.” She folds her arms over her chest in a defensive gesture. I hate that I make her feel as if she has to protect herself from me. Emily is always on guard when I’m around. She has those walls up as high as she can get them. I don’t respond to her. Instead, I do the one thing I shouldn’t. I drive back toward my place in the city.
It’s not until I’m parking out front of the building that she asks where the hell we are. “I’ve got her door,” I tell the bellhop before he can try to open it for her. I toss him the keys and open the door for her. She glares up at me, so I lean in and unclick her seatbelt. “You’ll get out of the car, or I’ll make a scene.”
“Make a scene?”
“Yes, make a scene. I’ll toss you over my shoulder and carry you inside.”
“You can’t do that.” Her face turns to an adorable scrunch.
“You think someone will stop me?” She rolls her eyes. Emily is a Score; her family name holds weight, but I don’t think many know her from her face alone. She’s still too young to be drifting across the socialite scene. As for me, people know who I am with only a glance.
“You probably own the stupid building.” She ignores my offered hand and gets out on her own. “It’s ugly, by the way.” She drops her head back to look up at it. I snort a laugh.
“I don’t own the building. Only my unit. It is an eyesore,” I admit. It’s flashy and overdone, but for me, it’s in a good location, and my new place wasn’t ready yet. I take her hand and lead her inside.
“You live here?”
“Most of the time. Sometimes I crash at the parents’. You know how my mom can be.” I go over to the private elevator and slide my key in. It’s another reason I picked this place. It gives me some security and privacy.
“No, I don’t know how your mom is anymore. I haven't seen her in a while.” I can hear the hurt and anger in her voice. The elevator doors slide open. Emily turns her face away from me so that I can’t see it.
As soon as the doors close, I gently grip her chin, turning her beautiful face toward me. Her hair is still damp from swimming, and her face is free of makeup. The sprinkles of freckles that cross her cheeks and nose are on full display. I’ve always loved them, but for some reason, she covers them up. She’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.