Along The Way

Chapter 19 - When I Tell Her Everything

"THANK YOU FOR coming to the wedding." Charlotte murmured against the skin of my neck, minutes after we'd emptied the plates and set the tray and glasses aside.

I ran a hand up and down her back, over her silk f**king nighty. It took everything I had to resist the urge to slide my hand under the thin fabric and pull it completely off her. "I can barely recall the last time I wore a suit."

"You looked hot." She admitted.

"Did I?" I teased.

She buried herself deeper against my chest, "Uh-huh."

I smiled up at the ceiling as I listened to her even breaths. I could stay like this, feeling the warmth of her body, the rise and fall of her chest, for hours on end. I'd never take a moment with her for granted again.

"Dylan?"

"Hmm?"

Her finger traced a pattern over my shirt, "Did my brother give you a hard time yesterday?"

My hands combed the hair away from her face, so I could look into her face. "Angel, don't worry about that. Your brother knows where I stand." I placed a kiss on her forehead. "Beside you, always."

"He knows where I stand too." My precious, brave Angel. Had she faced off against her brother? He'd better not yelled at her.

I took a deep breath, "So, he doesn't get a say. And even if he did, it would not affect us."

She seemed to process what I'd said for a moment.

Her next question was so soft I almost didn't hear it. "What happened between you?"

f**k me.

I knew she'd go and ask me that.

I could always pretend I hadn't heard her, but that would not help the trust we'd been building back from the moment she stepped into the auto shop after two years.

I let out a drawn-out sigh. "I don't know if I should tell you this."

She gave my side a squeeze, "I want to know."

Running a hand trough my hair I let out a frustrated breath. "It's not just something between me and your brother. Reed is involved too, and I—"

"Did you promise not to say anything?"

I thought back on it, "Well, no...but I don't think it's my place to—"

She rested her chin on my chest, those wide green eyes staring deeply into mine, "Please, Dylan. I need to know."

I stared at her, debating. "I don't know if anything good is going to come out of this."

"I'll risk it."

"I don't want to risk you." I confessed. Letting her in on my deepest fear.

Her face softened, "You won't. No matter what you tell me, you won't."

I ran the pad of my thumb over her cheekbone, "You can't promise that Angel."

She waited.

I sighed.

"What do you know about your brother's ex-girlfriend?"

She frowned, "Not much. Just that they broke up and she left all of a sudden."

I nodded, taking a deep breath. "Reed met her through Emily, somewhere along the way they exchanged numbers, then things picked up from there."

Her jaw dropped, "She cheated on Ryan?"

My mouth pursed. "I don't know for sure."

"But she was with Ryan while she texted Reed, wasn't she? Is that why you can't stand each other?" She lifted a golden brow.