Unwrapping Holly - A Holiday Reverse Harem Romance, page 21
Or maybe it was just my—
No! Not your imagination.
The path turned sharply, and I hustled ahead. There was a tree I knew, one with a large, thick trunk. One I could hide behind. One I could use to maybe get away from whoever was following me, or—
Or maybe see who the fuck it is?
In one quick movement I was there, pressed against it, my back cold against the hard surface. I could feel my heart pounding. The artery in my neck, throbbing, as the too-quick footsteps grew louder and louder and…
It all happened automatically, without me even thinking. In a mixture of fear and anger and raw adrenaline, I whirled on the man behind me and grabbed him by the parka.
“OOOF!”
Twisting my body sideways, I threw him up against the tree. He was surprisingly light. He went along surprisingly easily.
“HEY!” I shouted loudly, straight into his covered face. My hands jammed hard into his shoulders, and I thought I heard a cry of pain.
In an instant I had him by the hood. I whipped it backwards, pulling it off.
“WHY ARE YOU FOLLOW—”
My own words died in my throat. I was staring into the face of a woman! A short, anxious-looking woman, with dark curly hair.
“You…”
Her eyes were wild, her expression scared. I still had her by the shoulders. I could even feel her heart beating through my outstretched palm, thundering inside her chest like a frightened squirrel.
“Andrea!”
Brody’s ex-girlfriend stared back at me, all shaken and miserable. She looked exactly as she had in the photo I’d kept.
“Let go of me!” she snarled, yanking my hands away. She took a half-step from the tree and straightened out her wrinkled coat.
“You’re the one who’s been following me?” I asked incredulously, though I already knew the answer. “What is it you want?”
I got nothing but silence in return. I could sense a seething anger, though. An underlying hatred…
“WHAT DO YOU WANT?”
Her gaze dropped. She shifted uncomfortably.
“I… I was…”
“What were you going to do, Andrea?” I practically shouted. “Follow me around town all week? Beat me up? Boil my rabbit?”
Her thick brows came together in confusion. “B—Boil your rabbit?”
“Forget it!” I cried. “Honestly, what’s the end game here? You terrified me last week! What could possibly compel you to follow me through the City? You’ve been stalking me at work, putting all kinds of terrible ideas in my head…”
Her nose twitched and then it happened: a tear formed in the corner of one eye. It rolled down her cheek, even as a second and third tear joined it on the other side.
She was crying.
Fifty-Seven
HOLLY
“I— I don’t even know what I’m doing…” Andrea choked. I could tell she was totally exasperated. “I don’t have a clue, really.”
My first instinct was to hold her, to make her stop. To wrap my arms around her, the way girls do.
Are you kidding, Holly?
Whatever it was, she was monumentally upset. She was still a person. I wanted to fix it.
“Why are you crying?” I asked, my tone suddenly a lot more gentle. “I’m the one getting stalked here.”
Andrea shook her head. More tears dropped from her jaw, dripping down her jacket.
“I just… I don’t…”
All of a sudden I had a hand on her shoulder — a gentle hand this time. It was nuts! But still, something inside me told me it was right.
“Here.”
I handed her a tissue from my pocket. I had no idea if it was clean or not, but she took it anyway.
“Walk with me.”
Before I knew it, we were back on the path. Andrea was dragging her feet now, but we were still walking side by side.
“Look,” I sighed. “I get it. It’s hard, breaking up with someone. Especially if they’re the one who broke up with you. But you don’t—”
“I have to see him every day!” Andrea cried suddenly. “I have to look into his eyes!”
There was a lot of pain in her voice. A lot of frustration.
I took pity on her.
“I sit there miserably while he ignores me in the living room,” Andrea went on. “And he avoids me like the plague whenever we’re both home.”
“I get it.”
“No, you don’t get it it,” she countered. “It’s torture! It’s—”
“Yeah, but you can’t just go all totally psycho!” I shot back. “Do you know how you look, Andrea? Did you see what you did to his room?” She stared down again, at her shuffling feet. “No wonder why he avoids you!”
We walked a dozen steps in silence, while my words sunk in. I hoped I was getting to her. It was tough to tell.
“He could go to the University, Andrea,” I said. “You’re both students, both in subsidized housing. If he took this up with them you’d get thrown out of school.”
Her head spun my way. She looked suddenly terrified.
“Would he…. Is he…”
“No, Brody’s not like that,” I said dismissively. “You know he isn’t.”
The girl walking alongside me let out a long, deep breath. In the bitter cold, the steam leaving her mouth looked like dragon’s fire.
“I… I know,” Andrea admitted. “He’s great. That’s part of what makes this so hard, seeing him with someone else. Seeing him with you.”
I nodded in acknowledgment. “He doesn’t know what to say to you, Andrea. He doesn’t know how to act around you. It’s uncomfortable for the both of you, not just yourself.”
“I… I can’t afford to move out. The school pays for a good chunk of the rent, and—”
“Brody isn’t happy there either,” I said. “And not because of you,” I added quickly, “he just needs more space. Four people, one living area. One television. Ugh! How do you ever decide what to watch?”
More silence. More walking. We were almost out of the park.
“You both need to move on,” I said. “It’s not going to get better until you’re not in each other’s faces anymore.”
Andrea jammed her hands in her pockets. Her expression was still miserable.
“He’s staying with you, isn’t he?”
“Yes,” I replied. “But whatever happens next, he probably needs to get out of that apartment. For your sanity as well as his.”
Out in the street, we walked a little more. A delicious aroma reached my nostrils, and ten steps later I found myself buying a hot pretzel. The street vendor smiled at us and wished us both a merry Christmas, which was funny, in an odd sort of way. To anyone looking at us for the first time, we could’ve been friends.
“Here.”
Tearing the pretzel down the middle, I handed half of it to her. She hesitated only a second before accepting it gratefully.
“Thanks.”
“Don’t mention it,” I smiled. “As delicious as street pretzels are, I think I bought it more to keep my hands warm.”
Andrea actually laughed, and we both stopped walking at the same time. She tiled her head to stare at me.
“You know, for a bitch I really hate you’re not half bad,” she chuckled.
I grinned right back at her. “Well as far as psycho ex-girlfriends go, you’re pretty reasonable yourself.”
Fifty-Eight
HOLLY
“Alright,” said Lincoln, taking the Santa hat from Donovan’s head. He plopped it down on his own and pulled it tight. It barely fit. “My turn.”
We watched as he took his place in front of tree, kicking aside a big pile of discarded wrapping paper. Everyone else had gone already. Everyone else had given their gifts.
“Best for last?” Brody asked hopefully.
“You’ll soon find out.”
Lincoln’s studio apartment was bigger than five of mine, a contemporary masterpiece of steel and glass. Every piece of furniture looked clean and unused. Every smooth surface and countertop gleamed with newness. I knew it was because he seldom spent time here. That he worked so much, and so often, he barely used his place, except to sleep.
“Who wants to go first?”
I glanced up at the clock. It was almost midnight. Almost Christmas. So far though, Christmas Eve had been the most magical night of all.
“I will,” said Brody.
We’d gotten together not long ago, and eaten a late dinner. My cooking was interrupted only twice; once by Lincoln carrying me into his bedroom before the guys even got there, and again by Donovan and Brody while I was making dessert.
I didn’t mind that dessert came out very late.
“Here you go,” said Lincoln, handing over an envelope. “Merry Christmas, brother.”
It was cute, watching the guys give each other gifts. Brody and Donovan had exchanged sports memorabilia. They’d given Lincoln gag gifts at first — old-man joke stuff of course — before finally giving him a set of Ranger tickets, center ice. And then the gifts they’d given me… well, they’d all melted my heart.
“What the heck is it?” Brody asked, tearing open the envelope. He pulled out a sheet of paper, unfolded it and squinted.
“It’s your tuition for next year,” said Lincoln. “All paid up.”
Brody blinked three times, then swallowed hard. “Bro… I can’t. No way I can accep—”
“Yes you can,” said Lincoln simply. “I’m happy to do it. I’m in position to do it. Plus, you deserve it.” He smiled and glanced at me. “Not to mention it’s another good write-off. Right?”
Seeing the awe and excitement on Brody’s face filled me with happiness. “Yes,” I smiled, just as Lincoln was practically decked by Brody’s man-hug. “Yes it is.”
We took a minute to calm down, and then Lincoln pulled out two tiny boxes. Each was wrapped with ribbon, each had a bow.
“Who’s next?”
I looked at Donovan. He nodded, giving me the go-ahead.
“I— I guess I will,” I said.
I couldn’t imagine what was in the box! After what Brody just got…
My hand trembled as I opened it.
Inside was a single key. Attached to it was a sleek grey key-fob.
“This… This is a car key…” I choked.
“Sure is. For an Audi Q7.” He paused for a moment. “Now it’s not new, it’s actually a company car. It was Kathy’s car, up until a few days ago.”
Lincoln took my hand in his. With the other, he tilted my chin up to look at him.
“The key comes with a job offer,” he said. “I want you to work with me, Holly. Come be my CFO.”
All of a sudden there was a lump in my throat. It felt like a bowling ball.
“W—Work for you?”
“No,” said Lincoln. “Not for me, Holly. Come work with me. Help me take things with my company to the next level. As my girlfriend, as my financial officer… as my business partner.” He smiled and caressed my cheek. “I can’t do this alone anymore. And I can’t do the long hours by myself, while neglecting the people I love.”
My arm was shaking now too. No, that wasn’t right. My whole body was shaking.
“Of course, it’s a lot easier to work late when your girlfriend’s office is right next to yours,” grinned Lincoln. “Makes the whole ‘got stuck at work’ thing a lot more manageable.”
Off to one side, I heard Brody laugh. “And fun,” he added.
I was too choked up to speak, at least initially. A key. To my own car. To the company car. And a job offer…”
“I… I can’t…”
“Yes you can, Holly. Please.”
Somehow I regained control. Pushing my emotions down for a moment, to keep them in check, I gently squeezed his hand.
“No, Lincoln listen to me. I’ll take the job. God knows I need it! The place I’m at now is a total dead end.”
The relief in his grin told me he’d been worried. There was a part of him that didn’t think I could work with him, or that I would take the offer. But I wasn’t finished.
“I can do good for you,” I said. “Good for us…” I smiled and opened his hand with mine. “But I can’t take the car.”
He looked down as I pushed the key into his palm. His face was expressionless.
“I’ve managed to save a little money,” I said, “and I’ve got my eye on a few options. For reasons I don’t expect you to understand, I need to buy my own car. This one little thing, I need to do by myself.”
His eyes flashed. My eyebrows came together as I saw the corner of his mouth twist into a grin.
“What?”
“Well I thought you might say that,” he smiled again. “So I came prepared.”
He took the back the key, and held out his other hand. “I’m not gonna be the boyfriend who gave you a job for Christmas,” he said with a laugh. “Not just a job, anyway. So here, I’d like you to meet present number two: pretty jewelry.”
Lincoln opened one big fist. Curled inside was a breathtaking gold tennis bracelet, shimmering with diamonds.
Tears flooded my eyes. He took my hand again, and I held my wrist out while he clasped it on.
“Better?”
“Much!” I nodded, tears streaming down my cheeks as I hugged him. “Pretty jewelry is definitely a present I can get behind!”
Lincoln laughed. “Thought so.”
I was still staring at my gift, watching it shimmer with each change of the Christmas tree lights, when Lincoln tossed the other little box to Donovan. One hand snapped up reflexively, and he caught it easily.
“Pretty jewelry?” Donovan quipped.
“Not even close.”
We all watched as he undid the ribbon and opened the box. Inside was another key, gleaming, shining brightly. But it wasn’t a car key.
“What’s this?” he laughed, but his laugh was nervous.
“That,” said Lincoln, “is the key to Donovan’s…”
Fifty-Nine
HOLLY
For a few seconds, the apartment was so silent we could hear the traffic outside. I was hyper-aware of everything: the blinking lights, the distant rumble of the building’s elevators moving somewhere beneath us. A ‘click’ from the kitchen, as the compressor for the refrigerator kicked on.
Donovan was still staring at the key. He hadn’t looked up. “You’re not serious…” he breathed.
“Oh I’m quite serious.”
“Donovan’s.”
“The gym, yes,” said Lincoln. “The lease doesn’t get signed until Thursday, but the preliminaries are all taken care of and the building is ours.” He cleared his throat. “I mean… yours.”
I was enraptured, watching it all sink in. Seeing the expressions on all three of their faces as reality took hold.
“Is—”
“Yes, this is the place on 5th street. Yes, Holly told me about it. And yes, I’m doing it no matter what you say, so don’t even tell me you don’t want in.”
Lincoln reached out and slipped an arm around me. It felt amazing as he pulled me close. “Beats the shit out of a laundromat or a car wash,” he said. “Doesn’t it?”
I nodded happily, but my eyes were locked on Donovan. He was still looking at the key. Turning it over and over in his hand.
“I have three different equipment vendors coming in next week,” said Lincoln. “Architect is Monday, builders after the New Year. You can sink whatever you have into this, I’ll take care of the rest of the initial investment.”
Donovan finally looked up. His expression was one of total and complete disbelief.
“P—Partners?”
“For now,” Lincoln shrugged. “Until you buy me out, at least. Shouldn’t be too long, considering the location and the space. Personally, I think it’s going to be wildly successful. Between you bringing in your client base, my marketing skills… maybe some Crossfit or spin classes or—”
Donovan shot forward, and Lincoln was knocked backward by his sudden embrace. They hugged for a long time, a really long time, while Brody and I just grinned at each other.
“You have no idea what this means to me,” Donovan said at last. His voice was heavy, and shaking with emotion. “I’m going to— I mean, we’re going to do the most fantastic—”
“I know bro,” Lincoln interjected, ending the hug with two bear-sized pats on the back. “I know.”
Suddenly something flashed through the air, and landed in Brody’s lap. It was another key. A set of keys, on a small ring.
“Who the hell are you?” Brody gasped. “The keymaster?”
“Those are for your new place,” Lincoln said, as if it were nothing. He jerked his head at Donovan. “Both of you, if you want to risk living together.”
I’d known about the gym. It was all Lincoln’s idea, based on what I’d told him about Donovan, and his need for investments anyway.
But this… this I hadn’t known about.
“I’m not taking a new apartment from you,” said Brody with a hesitant laugh. “It’s just way too muc—”
“You will if it’s part of the building,” said Lincoln. “The floor above the gym is zoned residential only. And since we already have the lease… we may as well make use of it.”
For a long moment, no one spoke.
“That floor is already done,” said Lincoln. “It’s a big loft. Two baths, open kitchen.” He shrugged with one shoulder. “I figured one or both of you moves in there, and any rent you pay goes directly into the gym. You’re living above the place you work, so it cuts your commute down to about fifteen seconds.”
Brody’s face lit up. “I could work the front desk,” he smiled. “I need a job anyway!”
“You could,” said Lincoln. “And you could also get away from your psycho ex. Two birds, one stone.”
“Andrea,” he agreed. “Can’t wait. I’m on borrowed time at my place as it is.”
“About that…” I broke in, using my sing-songy voice.
