Bri hated being stubborn, but she meant what she’d told Braden. She needed time to process what had happened, and that took her a couple more days. First she’d had to separate her past from her present, and that wasn’t easy. It meant she had to remember the assholes who’d used her, and there hadn’t been just one.
Then she’d had to deal with the fact that Hudson hadn’t trusted her enough to tell her the truth when all she’d done was stand by his side. She’d gone to New York, subjected herself to his rude parents, waited at the hotel while he went to ask his father for the money, and held his hand during his brooding silence on the flight home. He’d had a few weeks since then to open up, and he hadn’t. Trust was important, but was it a deal breaker?
She supposed that depended on his reasons, and she hadn’t let him explain. Which brought her to now, looking at herself in the mirror and admitting she’d been exactly what her brother called her. A stubborn princess and it was time she acted like an adult.
After stopping at a sandwich shop on the way to the clinic, she drove downtown and pulled into the gravel parking lot. Her hands had healed, and she wasn’t surprised when she saw Jimmy standing by a dumpster in the back of the lot. She drew a deep breath and climbed out of her car, food in hand, not surprised when Jimmy walked toward her.
“Hi,” she said, holding out the sandwich she’d brought him.
“Is that for me?” Surprise filled his gritty voice.
She nodded. “There’s water in there, too.” And also a twenty-dollar bill, but since she didn’t want a repeat of last time, she didn’t mention the money. He’d find it soon enough.
He grabbed the bag, and this time she released her grip fast so he didn’t drag her down. It helped that she was wearing sneakers and not heels.
“Take care, Jimmy.” She walked toward the building, in her mind already thinking about all the improvements Hudson and her brother could make once they were ready and excited about the prospect.
She let herself in, discovered a full waiting room, and resigned herself to wait. Striding up to the desk, she smiled at Nikki. “Hi. Do you think I could wait in the back office until Hudson has time to talk?”
The brunette smiled. “Sure. Dr. Northfield is the only one here, so it may be awhile.”
“That’s fine.” After the torture she’d probably put him through, she deserved to be kept waiting.
Bri made herself at home in the office Hudson and Braden shared, smiling at the pictures on the desk of her twin and Willow, whose wedding was coming up in a few months. May fifth to be exact. They planned a small affair at a local catering hall because July in Florida was just too hot to hold an outdoor event.
An hour passed and then another. The longer she waited, the more her nerves increased. Did Hudson not want to see her, or was he just so busy he couldn’t make time yet? Her stomach knotted, and she tried to kill time scrolling social media on her phone and occasionally attempting to read a book on an app, but she couldn’t concentrate. She was afraid she’d pushed him too far by not talking to him after the game, but then she reminded herself of the filled outer room and tried to calm down.
After a while, she rested her head on her arms on the desk and shut her eyes.
* * * *
What a fucking long day. Hudson had back-to-back patients, each one serious in its own way, and with Braden needing the day off and Thomas having abdicated the place to Braden and Hudson, he’d been on his own. Thank God for Janie, the nurse they’d recently hired, who was as reliable as she was efficient. Even Nikki had abandoned them midday when her mother called because she’d had an accident, and Nikki had to rush off to be with her. He hadn’t had five minutes to eat, let alone sit down and take a load off his feet.
He opened the door to his office and stopped short at the sight that greeted him. Bri sat in his chair, head resting on her arms on the desk, her dark hair falling over her shoulders and face. Even so, he knew it was her, and his heart started beating again for the first time since his fuckup at her mother’s house.
He supposed that Nikki, in the frenzied worry about her mother, had forgotten to tell him Bri was waiting, and he wondered how long she’d been here.
He unhooked his stethoscope and laid it on a filing cabinet and took off the white medical jacket he’d taken to wearing here before walking over and placing his hand on her back.
“Bri?” She didn’t move, so he rubbed her shirt with his hand. “Hey, beautiful, wake up.”
“What?” Startled, she jumped in her seat, her entire body jerking upright, twisting her head up to meet his gaze. “Hudson! Jesus, you scared me. I must’ve fallen into a really deep sleep.”
“Apparently,” he said with a chuckle. “How long have you been here?”
She blinked and glanced at her watch. “Three hours. Nikki didn’t tell you I was here?”
He shook his head. “Her mom had an accident, and she rushed out. Sorry about that. But it was an insane day. I just locked the place up before coming in here.”
“It’s fine. I didn’t mind waiting.” Now that the fright had passed, she looked wary of him, and he didn’t like the feeling.
He pulled Braden’s chair over and settled in beside her.
“Your eye looks better.” Obviously she wasn’t ready to jump into the heavy conversation.
“It’s fading to a nice shade of puke yellow.” Damon had a mean punch, but Hudson refused to out which brother had hit him.
All three had seen their sister crying, and Damon had gotten to him first. It had taken Braden and his shrill whistle to calm everyone down and tell them it was a misunderstanding and none of their business. Then Christine Prescott had issued a stern warning to her sons, but the joy of the day was gone.
Hudson had driven Macy and Jaxon to Bri’s house to get her car, and Jaxon had remained there, watching, until Hudson had gotten into his car and gone home. By then he’d already texted Bri a few times and called twice. He’d figured out she wasn’t ready to talk to him, so leaving was his best option. He owed her mother a happier birthday party and Bri a lot more.
Bri reached out, and this time, she allowed herself to touch him, gently palpating around his eye. “Does it hurt?”
“Nah. I’m fine.”
She rolled her eyes. “Of course you are. Far be it from a man to admit weakness.”
He took her soft hand in his. “You’re my weakness, and I’m not ashamed to admit it.”
She glanced down at their hands, and he did, too, noticing how much more tanned and rough his skin was than hers.
“I’m so used to expecting the worst from men, I overreacted. I heard something, and I jumped to the worst possible conclusion, but that would never have happened if you’d just told me the truth.”
“You’re right. But you have to understand my position. You’d just admitted to me that I was the first guy not to want something from you. I knew how you felt about it, and there was no way I’d ever put you in a position where you didn’t know if I was asking you to marry me for money or because I loved you.” Just the thought made him physically sick.
“And if I told you what my asshole father wanted, you’d probably have offered to marry me so I could get the clinic money, and then you’d always wonder and be insecure.“ He waited until she lifted her head and met his gaze. “And I’d never do that to you.”
Her eyes filled with tears. “I should have stayed and heard you out, but your words were so damning, and on top of saying you loved me just an hour or so before? I thought for sure I’d fallen into the same trap all over again.”
“I made the wrong choice, and though we all know I’ll make more mistakes in the future, I promise you’ll never doubt that I love you again. Do you forgive me?”
She nodded, a smile on her beautiful face. “Do you forgive me for stringing this out and making you wait?”
He grinned. “I’d wait forever for you, and don’t you forget it.”
“I can promise you I won’t.”
They each leaned forward, their mouths meeting in a long kiss that ended too soon.
“Now about that fundraiser.” She’d left the folder in his possession when she’d run from the house, and in the days that had passed, he’d been through it over and over. “I cannot believe what you put together in such a short time. The items the guests will bid on will go for thousands each.”
A trip to the Bahamas on Asher Dare’s private plane and a week in his beach house, front-row seats to concerts and sporting events, a visit to a movie set, and more.
He couldn’t begin to name them all or imagine how much money the event would raise. “You did all that for me?”
She nodded. “Because I love you.”
“So you’ll be my date for the event?” he asked.
“You know I will.”
Satisfied, he held her hands tighter. “Just so we’re clear, you’re mine, Bri. And I love you for the amazing, wonderful woman that you are.”
Her answering smile hit him in the heart.
“I know,” she said, a saucy glint in her eyes. “You love me enough to take a punch from my brothers and not tell me which one hit you.” She shook her head and laughed. “I’d call that true love.”
“You’re damned right,” he said and sealed his lips over hers.