Total pages in book: 44
Estimated words: 41687 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 208(@200wpm)___ 167(@250wpm)___ 139(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 41687 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 208(@200wpm)___ 167(@250wpm)___ 139(@300wpm)
And I couldn’t claim not to have used him similarly. When it came down to it, our relationship had been the reason I’d been able to get him to say yes to starring in certain projects, even when he or his agent were unsure. My own people had enjoyed roping Robert into our charity efforts and inviting him to all of my parties. It had become a mutually beneficial relationship, even if we’d stopped confiding everything in each other.
And then there was his family. I’d loved Roxana and then Robbie. And my commitment to Robbie had solidified after Roxana was gone.
At what point did that commitment change into being more about my own love for him than my promise to his mother? Did it matter?
“So what are you going to do?” Nadine asked, reminding me I’d called her for a reason.
“What do you mean? I’m going to get up early in the morning and fly back home. I’ll send the plane back for him, but he made it clear he doesn’t want to see me.”
She groaned. “Kit, of course he wants to see you. You’re probably his favorite person on Earth. He just wants a real relationship. He doesn’t want this quasi-uncle stuff or the lurking guardian angel routine. He wants a lover. A partner. When are you going to stop this ridiculous, self-imposed game of keep-away with yourself? You know he’s in love with you. And you’re probably the reason he hasn’t been able to find someone else.”
“It’s not a game. Do you think for one minute that the sweet boy crying himself to sleep right now, who’s spent his entire life just wishing for a small Craftsman cottage surrounded by a white picket fence and friendly neighbors with goddamned golden retrievers and two-point-five kids, would be happy shackled to a too-old, too-boring, workaholic asshole?”
She didn’t say anything.
“Exactly. Believe me, I’ve considered it. Losing my relationship with Robert is obviously not the problem anymore. But swooping in to take advantage of Robbie while he’s vulnerable is not on the table. He’s grieving. He’s already lost Roxana. And now, his best friends are coupled up, so he doesn’t see them as often. He deserves someone perfect, Nadine. A fucking fairy-tale prince. He doesn’t need someone who’s been jaded and burned, someone who’s been avoiding serious romantic entanglements longer than he’s been alive. Which he’d see for himself if he ever managed to date a man who doesn’t have a drug problem, a gambling addiction, or a motherfucking criminal record!”
“If you’re going to keep playing hot and cold with him… you need to let him go, Kit,” she said gently. “You need to stop being this superhero, guardian angel guy in his life. As long as he still has you, he holds on to the dream.”
“Disagree. As soon as he finds the right man, he’ll forget all about me. I just need to help him find that guy.”
My stomach churned with acid, and every inch of my skin felt too tight, too raw. It wasn’t something I enjoyed thinking about, but I’d do it. I’d do it because I loved him.
Because he was mine. And his happiness came first.
“Yeah?” Nadine challenged. “Okay then. I think I know the right guy. I’ll introduce them.”
I opened my mouth to bark, No! Absolutely not! but then quickly snapped my teeth closed.
After taking a breath and swallowing around the lump in my throat, I calmly replied. “Yes. Great. I’d appreciate it.”
When I ended the call, I changed his name in my contacts from Magpie to Robbie, even though it nearly killed me.
Three weeks later, Nadine introduced him to Jacob Spellman. Three weeks after that, they had their first date.
And not long after that, Robbie fell in love with him.
6
ROBBIE
Over the next few months after my dad’s funeral, my friends kept closer tabs on me which meant that Sam and his husband Griff made a point to visit the city even though they lived in Napa now. It also meant they were around when Jake Spellman started trying to get me to go out with him.
“Give the man a chance! He’s a total sweetheart,” Sam had insisted.
“Cute, too,” Griff had said with a wink.
“He’s a lawyer with a steady income and a good family,” Jason had said via video call. “When was the last time someone told you they’d wait for you as long as you needed?”
He was right. Jake had given me time and space to grieve my father’s passing without pressure.
So in February, I agreed to be his boyfriend.
Our relationship progressed gradually after that until it fit around me like a comfortable shell. Warm, supportive, and loving.
The more time I’d spent with him, the more I realized Jacob Spellman was as close to a dream boyfriend as it was possible to get. He was kind, thoughtful, and successful. Intelligent and driven but down-to-earth and with a great sense of humor.