by Lauren Rowe
I giggle.
“We’re gonna need to do a good-old-fashioned sleepover when I get back so I can tell you all about it.”
“Coolio. I’ll bring the champagne,” I say.
“Hell yeah, you will,” Sarah says. “Seeing as how you’re now a fancy mill-i-on-aire.”
“Hey, aren’t you a fancy mill-i-on-aire, too?” I ask.
Sarah giggles. “Why, yes, as a matter of fact, I am.” She squeals. “I keep forgetting about that.”
I roll my eyes to myself.
“Okay, I’ll bring the champagne,” Sarah says. “You bring the chocolate. If you can peel yourself away from Josh for a night, that is,” she says coyly. “Have you two gone off like a nuclear bomb yet?”
“Um, yeah, pretty much,” I say, my eyes drifting to Josh’s face. He’s watching me intently, his blue eyes sparkling.
“The good kind of nuclear bomb, I hope?” she asks.
“Is there a bad kind?”
“Uh. Yeah. There is.”
“Well, it’s the good kind, then. The very, very good kind.” I sigh. “Oh, Sarah.”
“Oh, Kat.”
“So when are you coming home?”
“A couple days. We’re gonna swing by New York first to visit—oh hang on.” She says something obviously not intended for me. “Okay, my sweet love, hang the fuck on. Yes, I know. Patience, hunkster.” Now she’s back to me on the phone. “Jonas wants to talk to Josh again. He’s a wee bit amped right now,” she whispers. “He’s kinda bouncing off the walls. God, he’s so cute.”
I laugh. “Okay. But—” My voice breaks with emotion again. “I love you, Sarah. Please just know I love you so much. I’m so frickin’ relieved you’re healthy and safe.”
Sarah’s voice instantly floods with emotion. “I love you, too, Kitty Kat. And I’m so frickin’ relieved, too.”
I hold out the phone to Josh, wiping my eyes, and he grabs it from me.
“Yo.” Josh listens for a beat. “Tonight?” He suddenly looks stricken. “Dude, no way.” Josh looks at me pointedly as he listens again. “Because I have something extremely important to do here in Vegas tonight, that’s why.” He rubs his face. “Jesus Fucking Christ.” He exhales. “Fine. But I’ll come tomorrow night, not tonight... . Because I can’t, that’s why, motherfucker... . Because I’ve got something I need to do here in Vegas tonight... . So what? You head out to see him tonight and I’ll come tomorrow—no big deal. Because I’ve got something to do, Jonas. Chill the fuck out.” He listens and then grins broadly. “It’s none of your business what it is.” He laughs. “Well, I’m not saying yes or no, but if it were that, then I think you’d agree that’s something extremely important.” Josh looks at me lasciviously, like a wolf scoping out a bunny. “Oh, bro, you have no idea.”
My clit begins faintly buzzing.
Josh laughs. “It’ll be fine, Jonas, trust me. When you’re telling Uncle William the news, just hold up a photo of a trout and he won’t even notice what you’re saying.” He belly laughs. “Okay. Bye. You, too. Oh, hey, Jonas?” He pauses. “I’m proud of you, man. Remember the text I sent the other day? Pretend I just sent you another one just like that.” He snickers. “Sorry. I know. Fuck me.” He slaps his cheek hard, making me jump back with surprise. “Yeah, I did it, cocksucker.” He laughs. “Okay. See you tomorrow, bro.”
Josh hangs up and looks at me mournfully. “Well, Party Girl, I’ve got some bad news. I gotta hop a flight to New York tomorrow morning, first thing.”
“Oh,” I say, the wind completely knocked out of my sails. I was really looking forward to spending a few days (and nights) alone with Josh in Vegas, just the two of us living out our sick-fuck fantasies together before being forced to leave this bizarre bubble and return to real life (and our separate cities). I don’t know if this thing with Josh (whatever it is) is going to carry over into the real world or not—and if not, I don’t feel ready to find that out. “Why do you have to go to New York?” I ask, trying to keep my voice from sounding too hurt.
“Jonas and I have to talk to our uncle about something important,” Josh continues, “and Jonas insists we do it as soon as humanly possible.” He twists his mouth. “And, unfortunately, Jonas is one hundred percent right about that. It’s not something that should wait.”
“I’ll be heading off tomorrow, too,” Henn says. “Jonas said the feds want me to meet with them in D.C. to help them sort through the database. But, hey, that still leaves us tonight to celebrate, right guys? It’s not every day a guy (or girl) saves the world, huh? And especially not with his best friends.”
Josh and I exchange a look. What have we been thinking? We went on and on about launching into our sick-fuck fantasy fulfillment the minute our mission was complete—but, clearly, that’s a nonstarter. There’s no way in hell either of us would ever let our beloved Henny celebrate this incredible victory all by his little, brilliant, quirky self. I make a face at Josh and he smiles wistfully, obviously resigned to our sudden change of plans for tonight.
“Of course, we’re gonna celebrate, Henny,” I say.
“Wouldn’t have it any other way,” Josh says, fist-bumping him. “And we’re gonna do it in style, my man. Leave it all to me—I’m gonna make sure we have the night of our fucking lives.”
Henn flashes Josh a look of appreciation and excitement that’s so freaking adorable, I want to throw a little rhinestone vest on him and toss him into my brand new Gucci purse.
“Hey, I’ve got a brilliant idea,” I say. “How ’bout we fly Hannah Banana Montana Millikin into Vegas on the next flight to celebrate with us?” I look at my watch. “There’s still plenty of time to get her here in time for dinner, isn’t there?”
Josh looks at his watch. “There sure is. Great idea. I suddenly feel like we need some additional staffing on that PR campaign.” He winks.
“What do you think, Henny?” I ask. “You up for letting Hannah Banana Montana Millikin crash our party?”
Henn grins. “Awesome.” He raises one eyebrow. “As long as you tell her to wear her glasses.”
“I’ll tell her,” I say.
“You know,” Josh begins, his wheels obviously turning. “As long as Hannah Banana Montana Milliken is gonna come all the way out here, it’d be a crying shame to send her back home tomorrow. How ’bout you two girls hang out for a few days and have some fun? We’ve still got Jonas and Sarah’s penthouse suite—I forgot to check out of it like Jonas asked me to.” He makes a face that says, Yeah, I’m a fuck-up. “When Henn and I leave, you and Hannah can stay a couple days in the penthouse like a couple of mill-i-on-aires. Have yourselves a mini-vacay, on me.”
“Really?” I squeal.
“Sure. Book spa appointments, go shopping, see Thunder from Down Under or whatever.” He laughs. “Order drinks by the pool, dine like queens, get pedicures and massages, do whatever the hell you girls wanna do for however long and I’ll pick up the tab. Go crazy, all of it completely on me.”
I’m trying to contain myself, but a strange noise erupts from my throat.
Josh laughs. “You’ve earned it, babe—you kicked ass today. We literally couldn’t have done it without you. And there’s no rush going back to Seattle, right?—you’re still on my dime for the PR campaign for another couple weeks.”
I’m giddy; I’m not gonna lie. But this seems too much to accept, even for me. “It’s too generous,” I say. “I’d love to hang out with Hannah for a few days, but I can certainly foot the bill myself, you know. If you haven’t heard by now, I’m gonna be a mill-i-on-aire.”
Josh swats at the air. “Fuck no. You can’t piss away your finder’s fee money on debauchery—you’re gonna need every dime for Party Girl PR, remember?” He winks. “If anyone’s gonna piss away their money on debauchery, it’s gonna be me. It’s kinda my specialty.”
I throw my arms around Josh’s neck again, and for a second, I’m in serious danger of bawling again. “Thank you, Josh,” I breathe.
Josh
kisses my cheek and squeezes me tight. “I’ll be counting the days ’til I see you again,” he says softly into my ear, his voice low and sexy. “I can’t wait to get started on what we talked about.”
“I can’t wait, either,” I say into his neck, inhaling his cologne.
We break apart from our clinch and I move on to Henn, wrapping him in a tight hug. “This is gonna be the best night ever in the history of the world, Henny. You’re gonna absolutely adore Hannah.”
“Hey, when it comes to celebrating victory over the Evil Empire, the more the merrier, I always say.”
“Well, duh,” I say. “Isn’t that what everyone always says after a long day of saving the world? ‘The more the merrier.’”
“It’s what they always say,” Henn agrees.
“Tell Hannah I’ll book the three o’clock flight for her on Alaska,” Josh says, looking at something on his phone.
“Okay, I’ll call her now. Thank you so much, Josh. She’s gonna be thrilled.”
Josh pulls me into him and kisses me gently. “It’s my pleasure, Kat.” He pushes himself into me and his erection juts against my hip. He presses his lips into my ear. “Have fun with your girlfriend—but make no mistake about it: the minute I get back from New York, you’re all mine.”
Fifty-Five
Josh
“Excuse me, fellas,” Sarah says, scooting back from the dining room table. “Gonna head to the ladies’ room.”
When she stands up from the table, Uncle William stands, too, which prompts Jonas and me to do the same.
Sarah smiles shyly. “Wow, so chivalrous, fellas. Golly gosh. Thank you.”
The minute Sarah’s left the dining room and the three of us have settled back into our chairs, Uncle William leans forward, his blue eyes fixed on Jonas. “You gonna marry this girl?” he asks.
I’m utterly shocked by the question. I mean, I know Uncle William is an old-fashioned kind of guy and all, and Sarah’s obviously an incredible girl, and a perfect fit for Jonas, too, but Jonas only just met her, for fuck’s sake. There’s no way in hell Jonas is even thinking about taking a giant leap like marriage—
“Absolutely,” Jonas answers smoothly. “As soon as humanly possible, in fact.”
Uncle William chuckles and leans back in his chair. “Glad to hear it. Congratulations, son. Don’t let this one get away. I loved her the minute I met her.”
Jonas nods. “Me, too.”
I’m in total shock right now. I knew Jonas was head over heels in love with Sarah, but I had no idea he was ready to marry her.
“You’re sure, Jonas?” I ask.
“Never been more sure of anything in my life.”
“That’s awesome, bro,” I say, my heart racing. “Does she know?”
“No,” Jonas says, suddenly looking anxious. “Am I supposed to ask her if I can ask her?”
I laugh. “No, Jonas, you dumbshit,” I say. “That’s not what I meant. I’m just saying if you’re gonna surprise the girl, then make sure you blow her socks off. This is the story she’s gonna be telling her grandkids one day. So don’t fuck it up.”
Jonas nods, but I’ve clearly put the fear of God into him.
I lean back in my chair, my mind reeling. I can’t believe it. My brother’s gonna ask a girl to marry him. And not just any girl. Sarah Fucking Cruz—a badass of epic proportions. A girl who doesn’t take any of his shit. A girl with a heart of pure gold.
All of a sudden, I feel an overwhelming surge of relief flooding my body. Jonas is gonna have a wife. Holy shit. Someone to love him forever—and someone for him to love in return. He’ll finally have someone (besides me) to take care of him, to listen to him, to rein him in when his thoughts start spiraling out of control. And he’ll finally have someone besides me to tell him he’s a beast every fucking day of his life.
If Sarah says yes, that is.
Oh my God. I clutch my chest. Sarah Cruz had better say yes to my brother. Oh, please, God, let that woman say yes. Let her look past Jonas’ fuckeduppedness and stupidity and constant Plato-izing and see what I see—the greatest guy in the whole fucking world.
“You’ve got to get a huge-ass ring,” I blurt. “So big, it sears her fucking corneas.”
Jonas nods. “Well, duh.”
“You say that but you weren’t already planning to do that, were you?”
“Yes, I was. I was already planning to get her a diamond so big she needs a wheelbarrow to carry it around.”
Uncle William laughs. “Good boy. He’s got it handled, Josh. Now leave the poor boy alone. Jonas loves her. He’ll do it right.”
“No, Jonas can’t be trusted to do this right,” I say defiantly. “If this were a business deal, sure, he’d be all over it and I wouldn’t say a goddamned thing. But this is a girl. Left to his own devices, he’ll do some crazy-ass metaphor that’ll either scare her or bore her to tears.”
Uncle William laughs and Jonas scowls at me.
“So what’s your big plan for the proposal, Jonas?” I ask, crossing my arms over my chest. “Because it’s got to be rock solid, man, I’m telling you—it’s got to be a homerun. There’s absolutely no room for failure.”
Jonas runs his hand through his hair. “Jesus, you’re freaking me out. I thought I had the perfect idea, and now you’re making me doubt myself.”
I’m practically hyperventilating. If Sarah says yes, then she’ll live with him. In his house. Forever. Which means she’ll always be there to keep Jonas on track and make him laugh and, most importantly, I won’t have to worry about him anymore. Or, well, at least, not nearly as much as I currently do.
“Dude, listen to me,” I say, my voice spiking with sudden urgency. “We’ve got to pull out all the stops—trick Sarah into saying yes.”
Jonas looks indignant. “Fuck you. I don’t need to trick her.” He looks at Uncle William, apparently hoping for a little backup, but Uncle William doesn’t say anything. “Well…I’ve tricked her pretty well so far, haven’t I?” Jonas says, and we all laugh.
Sarah enters the dining room and Jonas’ entire face lights up like a bonfire.
“Hi, baby,” he says.
“Hi, love,” she replies, returning Jonas’ goofy smile and taking her seat.
Love? Sarah called my brother ‘love’? Oh my fucking God. Sarah Fucking Cruz is gonna say yes. Praise the lord—she’s gonna agree to become Mrs. Faraday. If I were capable of shedding a tear, I’d surely shed one of happiness right now.
Fifty-Six
Josh
Dessert and coffee are done. And for the past thirty minutes, Uncle William’s been telling Sarah stories I’ve never heard before about his late wife, Sadie, (a raven-haired beauty who died in a car accident about a year before Jonas and I were born).
“Do you have any photos of her?” Sarah asks.
“Of course,” he says. “I’ve got our entire wedding album upstairs.”
“Oh my gosh,” Sarah breathes, her cheeks flushing. “May I see it?”
“Of course. And I’ve got a whole bunch of pictures of Jonas and Joshua from when they were little I’ll show you, too. You’ll get a kick out of those.”
Sarah squeals. “And do you have photos of yourself as a little boy, too, Uncle William?”
“Sure, I might be able to dig up one or two,” Uncle William says, standing up from the table with Sarah. “Boys? Care to join?”
“Come with us, baby,” Sarah says, holding out her hand to Jonas.
“Sure,” Jonas says smoothly—shocking me for the billionth time today. He takes her hand.
I never would have predicted Jonas would say yes to voluntarily going down memory lane. As Jonas well knows, almost all of Uncle William’s photos of Jonas and me as happy little kids include Dad—and normally, like me, Jonas bends over backwards to avoid seeing a photo of that bastard every bit as much as I do. But, damn, I guess up is down and right is left when my brother’s in the presence of little Miss Sarah Cruz.
Uncle William look
s pointedly at me and I shake my head.
“I think I’ll sit on the veranda and look at the Hudson for a bit,” I say.
My reply can’t possibly surprise Uncle William. As far as I’m concerned, if I never see Dad’s face again, it’ll be too soon for me—and Uncle William knows it.
“Okay, son,” Uncle William says softly. “Katya’s got the blue room in the back all ready for you. Just make yourself at home, as usual.”
“Thanks,” I say. “I appreciate it.”
The trio walks toward the far hallway, Sarah’s arm threaded into Uncle William’s.
“I bet Jonas and Josh were the cutest little things,” Sarah says happily.
“Oh, they were adorable little buggers,” Uncle William says, just before they exit the room. “Oh my, did those boys climb every rock and tree and chair and piano. I remember this one time, I found Jonas and Joshua...”
They’re gone.
I smile to myself. I so rarely see Uncle William outside of a business context. I’m not used to seeing him acting like this—so relaxed and nostalgic. I can only assume he’s acting this way thanks to Sarah. Our crew’s fearless leader puts everyone at ease, doesn’t she? Especially my high-strung brother. She’s like aloe vera on a sunburn for Jonas—a soothing balm for his soul. And anyone can see it. Uncle William obviously has.
I didn’t detect even a hint of skepticism about Sarah from Uncle William, not even a whiff he thinks Sarah’s a gold digger. His demeanor toward her has been one-hundred-eighty degrees from the cold way he reacted to Amanda when Jonas brought her here that one and only time—and Jonas had been with Amanda almost a year by then, I’m pretty sure. And now he brings Sarah here after a fraction of that time, and Uncle William falls all over himself to make her feel like part of the family? Wonders never cease.
I get up slowly and stretch, groaning, and then amble toward the French doors leading out to the veranda overlooking the river from on top of the world, patting my stomach as I walk. Damn, I’ve got to start hitting the gym like a madman when I get home. I’ve been a glutton this whole week in Vegas. Shit, especially now that fitness is gonna be my business, I’ve got to kick it up a notch, take a page out of Jonas’ book. I certainly can’t let my stupid brother show me up in the gym. Ha! Oh, fuck, I’m excited. I’m so fucking excited, I feel like a kid on Christmas Eve. My awesome life’s about to get a whole lot more awesome. Sayonara, Faraday & Sons, I won’t miss you.