“This is temporary, baby girl,” he said. “When we get back to our homes, I’ll call you. We need to talk about logistics. Send me your addresses, the university you go to. We’ll work this out. I’ll fly to London as often as I could. Who knows? Maybe someday, I’ll move there after I’m done with my masters.”
“I… I won’t be going to London.”
“What?” He blinked.
“I’ll be here in the States,” I said. “My father asked me to come back home.”
His eyes gleamed, and he kissed me on the lips again.
“Hey, lovebirds! We’re on last call!” Marie shouted.
“All right, go!” Zach said. “We’ll talk later.”
He gave me one final kiss, and then I turned around and ran off toward Marie. Before I entered the station, I took one last look at him. He gave me a small salute. I smiled and blew him a kiss.
I boarded the train with a heavy heart. I was scared that I might never see him again. I was regretting that I didn’t fully make love to him because I knew, I’d fallen in love with him.
I couldn’t believe this was happening. He was a stranger. I knew him for barely twenty-four hours. And yet, I felt like I’d known him forever. I’d only been with him for a short time, and yet I knew he was everything I was looking for—and more.
We settled on our couches. This was going to be a very long ride. I settled in my room with a single bed, while Marie and Jessie stayed in a double one. They would be getting off on Jacksonville to board the trains to New Orleans, where Marie’s cousins lived. Then they’ll both go back to London after a week.
I didn’t have to tell them everything that happened between Zach and myself. They knew I held up my end of the bargain. It was probably written all over my face. Plus, the fact that I was wearing Zach’s shirt.
Zach Reed. That’s his name.
I promised to send him all my details. I took my phone and started typing.
Blaire Stewart. Then my parents’ house number and address. But before I could hit send, my phone powered off.
“Great!” I groaned.
I went to Marie and Jessie.
“Hey, where’s my charger?”
“Shoot! I left it in the motel! I’ll pay you back for it.”
I rolled my eyes. That’s so typical of Marie. She meets a guy and boom! Her brain is instantly everywhere else.
I guess I would have to send Zach my details when I get home. I hoped he wouldn’t think that I was running away from him. Because even though this would be a long-distance relationship, I thought we could make it work.
“Forget it,” I said. “I hope you didn’t forget my brother’s locket too, because I would literally throw you off this train and ask you to fetch it!”
“Relax!” she giggled. Then she pulled something from her bag. “Here it is! Safe, as promised.”
I snatched the locket from her, examining it for damages.
“I took care of it. Don’t be paranoid.”
“I have to be sure,” I said. “All right, I’ll go and change my hair back.”
“Such a pity! Are you sure Zach would like you the same without your unicorn hair?” Marie teased.
“Well, he happens to like girls with ash-blond hair,” I said smugly.
“My god! You’re a match made in heaven!” Jessie groaned.
“Let’s talk boys later,” I said.
I went to the bathroom with the solution to remove the color on my hair. After an hour, my hair was back to its ash-blond glory. I also removed my black contact lenses.
Ten hours later, I had my backpack in hand, walking out of the train station. I found a man at the entrance holding a piece of paper with my name on it. I assumed he was my father’s driver. He led me to a limo without a word.
The house was exactly how I remembered it. It was a massive six-bedroom, two-story house. The bricks were well-preserved, the landscape up front was well-maintained. My father’s cars were parked in the wide front driveway. I noticed a red Aston Martin parked in front, and I thought my father was too old to be driving that sexy car. If I could drive, I could borrow that… or steal it for a night.
I was led to the living room where my mother was waiting. I had mixed emotions about meeting my family. It had been too long. I doubt they would even recognize me. But to my surprise, my mother was beaming at me.
“My god, Blaire! You have grown so much! And you look fabulous, darling!” She gave me a hug, which I felt compelled to return.
I wondered what possessed her to be nice to me or to even mind me at all. All my life, she made it clear she wanted nothing to do with me because looking at me only depressed her.
“You look healthy, glowing, and beautiful,” she said. “There must be a sweet boy who’s giving you all this lovely aura. You look in love.”
Now, she wants to talk boys? Seriously?
“So, is there?”
No, shit! She wants me to answer.
“Yes, there is. It’s early, but yeah… he’s the real deal,” I said, thinking about Zach. The thought of him was the only thing I could hold on to, to endure all these.
“Well, you can tell us all about him during dinner.”
I wasn’t really hungry. “Dinner?”
“Of course. You’re here. We’re a complete family again.” She beamed excitedly.
What is she on? Prozac? Meth?
She leaned forward and whispered, “He’s back, you know.”
“Who?”
“Your brother!”
It took me a long moment to process that. My brother?
It’s been fourteen long years since I last saw him. He was taken away from us. The courts nullified his adoption papers and ordered that he be returned to his real father. I felt like my world crumbled down that day I lost him. I tried writing to him, but his biological father forbade further contact with us.
Zachary was my everything back then. He was my protector, my knight in shining armor. He was the only person who really cared about me in this family. He was probably the reason why I couldn’t date guys. He was the benchmark. At a young age, I remembered him to be super smart, funny, protective, trustworthy, and responsible. I knew he would fight for those he loved. He fought our parents for me when they were being mean. He was my rock.
“Be brave, okay? Always take care of yourself. Someday, we’ll see each other again. When I’m older, I will come back for you.”
Tears ran down my cheeks.
He kept his promise! I knew he would. Zachary was one boy who could keep promises. His word was oak.
“Whe-where is he?” I could barely speak.
“I’m right here, baby.” I heard a familiar voice say behind me. I quickly spun around, and what I saw weakened my knees, darkened my eyesight, almost making me faint.
He stared back at me in complete shock. He stood as still as a marble statue.
“Oh, how wonderful it is to see both my babies together again,” my mother said. But I was barely hearing her. I was barely breathing as I stared at the guy whom my mother said was my big brother. Equally, he was staring at me like he was seeing a ghost. “Aww, come on. Go give your brother a hug.”
My mother nudged me forward, encouraging me to walk toward him.
When I stood a foot away from him, I stared up, still unable to believe what was happening. He was staring down at me, searching my face, looking at my hair, which was now back to ash-blond, and my contacts-free eyes, showing its amber color.
He reached forward and nudged the collar of the shirt I was wearing to reveal the base of my neck, which we both knew had several red marks on it.
Tears rolled down my cheeks as I bit my lower lip. I was going to faint any minute, and he realized this. He finally took a step forward and pulled me into his arms. He hugged me tightly as I buried my face against his chest.
“Oh, isn’t that sweet? We’re one happy family once again,” I heard my father say behind us.
I whimpered against Zach’s chest. He hugged me tighter.
“Oh my god, Zach!” I whispered.
“Shhh… it’s gonna be okay, baby girl. We’ll figure this out together,” he whispered to me in a soft, soothing voice.
I wanted to cry even more. It felt the same as when we were little. He would take care of me. He would always be there to protect me and make things right.
But how could he fix it this time? How could we undo the last twenty-four hours? How could he say it was going to be okay when I just spent the most erotic night of my life in bed with him—my former big brother?