The Matchmaker's Replacement [Kindle in Motion] (Wingmen Inc. Book 2) (23 page)

Chapter
Forty-One

Gabi

I
wiped the tears from my cheeks and then splashed more water on my face. It would have to do.

I still looked semi-puffy, but knowing the guys, they’d probably be too focused on eating to notice.

Lex wasn’t in my room when I returned. Then again, he probably didn’t want to get caught hanging out on my bed where Ian or my dad could find him. It would look too suspicious.

My stomach clenched.

I was keeping secrets from Ian, secrets from Lex, and both sucked. I felt like I was ready to burst from it all.

“Hey.” Ian pulled me in for a hug once I was back in the living room. “You okay?”

Now he notices?
Whoa. Where had that come from? I was ready to lash out at my best friend. For what reason? I took a step back from him.

He’d been so preoccupied lately.

And I’d purposefully pulled away because of Lex.

“Gabs?” Lex rounded the corner. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Have you removed all pointy objects from the kitchen?” Ian teased.

Lex’s jaw ticked. “Laundry room. Safer there.”

He didn’t look amused.

I tried to read his expression, but he turned around and started walking away before I could do more than stare after him.

“Better go see what he needs. Just try not to kill him.” Ian pushed me after Lex.

The laundry room was small. There was only space enough for a washer and dryer and a small sink. It smelled like Tide.

“You
lied
.” Lex’s eyes met mine, nailing me to the wall, making it impossible to breathe, to move. He seemed hurt and sad. “You lied to me.”

I racked my brain for anything I could have lied about. I would never hurt him, and I had no secrets except—

“Your parents.” He clarified.

“No.” I shook my head, desperate to find my voice. “No, you don’t understand, I would never lie to you.”

“But,” Lex sighed. “It feels like a lie. Like betrayal, Gabs. It sure as hell equals a pretty large omission on your part. First about the food, next about your parents. Damn it, Gabs. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I was too embarrassed, and you guys had already done so much for me!” I clenched my fists. “And I didn’t want help! I had it under control!”

“Under control?” Lex roared back. “Under control?”

“Yes!”

“You mean when you were pressured every day to dance at the club? Or how about when you almost got raped in the freaking parking lot! Was that having things under control?”

“I didn’t ask you to save me!” I shouted.

“You didn’t have to!” He matched my tone as he charged toward me. “Because I always will!” His voice laced with hurt. “Because that’s what friends do, Gabs! They save each other. They hold your head above water when you’re drowning. They give you the life vest and promise you everything will be okay! Are we at least that, Gabs?”

Tears clouded my vision. “You said we were never friends.”

“Gabs—” Lex’s voice cracked. “We’re so much more and you know it.”

I nodded, unable to trust my voice.

“I don’t want this if I can’t have all of you.”

“What?” I jerked my head up. “What do you mean?”

“This.” He pointed between us. “I need you to be all in . . . I need all of you, Gabs. Not just the parts you think I want.”

I was terrified by the words coming out of his mouth, because I knew what they meant for me, for him. This wasn’t just a fling, it wasn’t just a onetime thing, a playbook training exercise.

It was me and Lex.

I could only stare at him. Was he sure he wanted this? “But—”

“I want the sickness.” Lex’s lips twitched as a heartbreaking smile flashed across his face, making me dizzy. “I want to bring you soup when you don’t feel well. I want to give you pot scones.”

I burst out laughing as tears cascaded down my face.

“I want your body, Gabs. Believe me, it’s probably unhealthy the number of times I think of you naked. But, Gabs, I need this too.” He pressed his hand against my chest. “I want it all. Or I’m out.”

“You ask a lot for a villain.”

“Hey, yesterday I was a hero. Can’t I be both?”

“You already are,” I whispered.

“Gabi.” Lex pulled me into his arms. “I love you.”

My heart dropped to my knees, then came flying back up into my chest, taking off in crazy cadence as words got caught in my throat. Finally, I found my voice. “I love you too.”

Giddiness swept through me as my stomach erupted with butterflies, as if I’d been keeping this giant secret, maybe from myself and clearly from Lex and Ian. I loved him. I’d loved him a long time. It felt so good saying it out loud, as if the pieces I was holding so close to my chest finally broke free and found their home.

In his arms.

His lips twisted into a half-smile. “Of course you do. I’m awesome.”

“You ruined our moment.” I giggled as he picked me up into his arms and set me on the washing machine.

“Guess I’ll have to create another one.” He nipped my lips once, twice, then kissed me hard across the mouth. His tongue teased my lower lip until I whimpered in frustration.

His hands gripped my butt as he slid me closer to his body. “You’re mine, Gabi. Always have been. Always will be.”

“Yes,” I agreed, rocking into him as he rained kisses down my neck. “Yes.”

“What the HELL is this!” Ian’s voice boomed from the door.

Lex’s mouth froze on mine.

Our eyes locked.

And for the first time in my life, I saw legitimate fear in Lex’s eyes as he slowly turned his head toward Ian. “Man, listen—”

“Listen!” Ian repeated. “You want me to listen?”

In a blur of yelling and obscenities, Ian was on top of Lex, punching the crap out of him while Lex took it.

“Ian, stop it!” I wailed. “Stop!”

“You bastard! I warned you!” Another punch to the jaw, while Lex still refused to defend himself. “You promised!”

“Ian, stop!” I tried prying him free, but he shook me off.

Blood poured from Lex’s nose and maybe from his mouth—it was impossible to tell.

Crack, thump.
Ian struck with a one-two motion. Bruises were already forming on Lex’s cheeks, and a cut above his right eye smeared a trail of blood down his temple.
Crack.
Another hit sprayed blood across the top of the dryer.

My screams and pleas didn’t faze him as my best friend kept hitting Lex until I was convinced the man who’d finally declared his love was going to pass out from blood loss.

Finally, my dad came charging in and pulled Ian free from a battered Lex.

I ran to Lex’s side, tears blurring my vision. “Are you okay?”

“Can’t feel my face,” Lex muttered through a swollen bottom lip. “Isn’t that a song?”

“We’re done!” Ian screamed. “You hear me? We. Are. Done!”

He stalked out of the room.

The front door slammed.

And Lex Luthor, super villain, my hero, boyfriend, and the strongest guy I’d ever known, crumpled into my arms and didn’t let go.

Since Ian had driven us, my mom had to drop us back off at the house. We could only hope Ian hadn’t burned it down by then.

Lex couldn’t see out of one eye, and his face was turning more purple by the minute. One cheek was so swollen I worried it was broken. Surely some of those cracks had been bones shattering. He hadn’t said a word to me since the fight.

It was my fault.

I was the one who had pressured him to wait.

And now his face was broken. And quite possibly his heart.

I kept the tears in—a huge effort on my part, since it felt like someone had just died in my family and I hadn’t been given enough time to grieve.

“Mija,” my mom said from the front seat. “Just give Ian some time.”

“Yeah,” I croaked. “I will.”

“And Lex.” She reached back one of her hands. He squeezed it. “Take care of my girl.”

“Always.” He answered quickly, though his words were thick and a little slurred.

Once she drove off, we both stared at the house.

Unsure of what would greet us once we made it inside.

Lex reached for my hand just as I reached for his.

“He’s not going to get over this.” Tears clouded my vision as I looked up at Lex. “Is he?”

Lex’s eyes were sad as he glanced down at me, not answering but choosing to kiss the top of my head instead.

We walked hand in hand into the house.

From the deathly silence inside, it was clear no one was home. The house was completely empty, but Ian’s car was there.

A note sat on the counter beneath the walnut knife block. At least all the knives rested in their slots.

“
Went to Yakima. Airport taxi picked me up. Don’t call
,” I read, each word sounding like an explosion in the hushed kitchen.

“Shit.” Lex wiped his face. “Isn’t his sister in Yakima?”

I nodded dumbly. “They don’t really get along anymore. The last time he was there was—”

“After Ian got injured,” Lex finished.

I stared at the counter, at the note. “What do we do?”

“Well . . .” Lex wrapped an arm around me. “I think the only option we have is to give him space and, of course, take a lot of ibuprofen. Be honest, has the swelling gone down?”

I winced and then scrunched up my nose.

“Good thing I wasn’t wearing my glasses.”

“Yeah.” I wrapped my arms around Lex’s neck. “I’m sad, Lex.”

He sighed, his forehead touching mine. “Me too.”

“It’s my fault,” we said in unison.

“No way!” I smacked his chest. “I’m the one who wanted to wait.”

“Right, but I’m the one who, in a moment of pure insanity, decided I was going to go after the girl that got away . . . even though I knew I could lose my best friend in the process.”

“I’m not worth this,” I admitted, shaking my head. “I’m not worth your friendship.”

“And you think I’m worth you losing a family member?” Lex fired back. “Ian’s a hothead. You know how he gets. Let’s just wait it out.”

“I think it would help if he knew . . .”

“Knew?”

“That I love you.” I shrugged.

Lex’s face fell as he pulled me into his arms. His mouth caressed mine with a soft kiss. “And the damsel fell for the villain. Write that, Disney.”

I rolled my eyes, then finished it off with a yawn.

“Bed.” Lex smacked me on the butt and stepped back. “Let’s go.”

Was he serious? He couldn’t be serious. “Lex, as much as I love you, I can’t have sex with you right now. I don’t think I have the focus to pay attention to the manual.”

“Manual,” Lex said gruffly. “When have I ever made you use the manual?”

“True.” What I needed was our banter, our joking. I needed to know that even after everything, we were still us, Lex and Gabi.

“And what type of guy sleeps with his girlfriend after she’s been sobbing her eyes out over losing her best friend? Am I that bad of a person?”

“Do you really want me to answer that?” I teased, turning my back so he wouldn’t see the fresh tears forming. “You’re Lex.” I shivered as he wrapped his arms around me from behind. “The world could come crashing down around you, and if I flashed boob—”

“Shh.” Lex nipped my neck. “My sensitive ears send bad signals to my body when I hear trigger words.”

“Any other words I should know about?”

“Gabi, don’t make me talk dirty.”

I squirmed as he kept kissing my neck and then untangled me from his arms. I slowly led him up the stairs and over to his bed. I lay down, waiting for him to follow.

Lex watched me, a playful smile crossing his features as he pulled off my shoes, pants, and shirt, then tucked me in, drawing the covers all the way up to my chin.

When he didn’t join me, I frowned. “Where are you going?”

He sighed and pointed to his computer. “Crime doesn’t fight itself, Sunshine.”

I fell asleep with a smile on my face.

Even though my heart hurt.

Chapter
Forty-Two

Lex

I
an finally showed up three days later. I had spent most of the evening finishing the new coding and then gone downstairs to hook up the coffee machine when my steps faltered.

Ian was sitting at the breakfast bar, reading the freaking newspaper and drinking coffee as if he hadn’t just basically kicked both Gabi and me out of his life.

“Ian,” I mumbled as I walked over to the coffeepot and poured a generous amount in my favorite Yoda mug.

“How
long
?” he said from behind the newspaper. I couldn’t see his face, didn’t need to see it to know he was pissed. “How long have you been sleeping with her?”

I was running on three hours of sleep.

Not the conversation I wanted to have, especially before my first sip of coffee.

“Does it really matter, Ian?”

“Yes.” He slammed the newspaper down onto the table. “It matters. How. Long.”

I did the mental calculations. “A month.”

“A month!” he roared, jumping to his feet.

I calmly set down my mug. “Ian, I’ve had a thing for her since freshman year.”

Holy shit, did he just stop breathing?

Hell. I killed my best friend.

Ian’s left eye started a slow tick while I backed away to put space between us just in case he decided to slam me against the oven.

“Four years,” he repeated. “So, what? You’ve been practicing with all those women since then?” Voice raised, he covered his face with his hands. “Lex, what the hell do you expect me to do with this?”

“Not kill me, for starters,” I grumbled. “I’d like to live to have children someday.”

Not the right thing to say, not at all.

“SHE’S PREGNANT?”

Damn me to hell. “No, you bastard, she’s not pregnant.” Though I’d be lying if I said the idea didn’t make my heart flip a bit. Any child of ours would be . . . a complete and total hellion.

“Stop smiling,” Ian barked.

I was smiling?

“Lex, you’ve stuffed your dick into some pretty bad situations. And now you’re telling me you like my sister? You’ve been keeping it from me, and what’s worse, you’re inevitably going to break her heart. And you expect me to just stand by and do nothing? She’s always been off-limits for this very reason! You wouldn’t know commitment if it bit you in the ass!”

“Careful, kettle,” I warned as anger tore through me. “You do realize that two months ago you were screwing anything that looked at you cross-eyed, right?”

“That’s different!” Ian said defensively.

“How?”

“Blake wasn’t your sister!”

“And if she were?”

He opened his mouth and closed it.

“Would it have stopped you?”

Again, silence. And he wasn’t quite meeting my gaze.

We were at an impasse. I wasn’t going to back down, and he refused to give me an inch or any slight acknowledgment that I could be right.

Footsteps sounded behind me and then Gabi appeared on my right, and her hand gripped mine. It was hard as hell not to give Ian a smug smirk followed by the finger. Hey, I never said I was completely mature!

It would push him over the edge he was oh so ready to push me off.

“Ian.” Gabi’s voice was hoarse. In an instant she released my hand and jumped into his arms. He held her tight.

And I watched.

Like I’d always done when they had a moment, but this time it was different. Before, it was like watching from the outside.

Now? Even though she was in his arms . . .

She was mine.

I felt her even when she was a few feet away.

I knew her taste.

Her smell.

What made her laugh.

What made her cry.

And I wasn’t ever going to let her go, no matter what Ian might think. She was mine.

When he dropped her back to her feet and kissed her forehead, his gaze darted between the two of us as Gabi made her way into my arms.

“But—” He shook his head. “You hate each other.”

“We still do,” Gabi piped up. “Like last night, when he was working on your computer program . . . You know the one, right? The one you asked him to fix? He’s been up three nights straight, only going to sleep after I crumbled melatonin in his coffee.”

“Hey!” I barked. “I knew something was wrong with my vision!”

“You’re fine.” Gabi ignored me. “See? I still drug him, he still yells at me, and when I eat a donut, I feel his judgmental eyes.”

I choked out a laugh. “Bullshit! I just wanted the donut, and you promised to share!”

“See?” Gabi spread her arms wide. “Still very dysfunctional. But it works for us.”

“Damn right it works.” I tugged her harder against me, swearing to never let go.

“Okay.” Ian sighed and leaned back against the counter. “So help me God, if you break her heart, I will make your death look like an accident, Lex.”

“Still friends?” I asked.

“That depends.” Ian crossed his arms. “Do you love her?”

“Of course I do,” I said quickly. “I wouldn’t put our friendship through this if I didn’t.”

Ian looked ready to swallow his tongue. “I . . . thought that would be harder to get out of you.”

“He told me he loved me right before you beat the crap out of him at my parents’ house,” Gabi said sweetly.

“Talk about a mood killer.” I rubbed my still-sore jaw.

“You were . . .” Ian swallowed. “You were . . . fondling!”

“I don’t even know what that means.” I burst out laughing. “Really, man? Fondling is what you do in junior high when you don’t know if you’re touching a girl’s breasts or her stomach.”

Ian glared.

“No fondling.” I held up my hands.

“Ian.” Gabi stepped away from me. “Lex found out already, but I thought I’d tell you, um, about my parents—”

“I took care of it.” Ian dismissed her with a quick shake of his head.

“What exactly did you do?”

Ian shrugged. “It wasn’t me. It was my sister. I went to visit her in hell, and she talked some sense into me, gave me an idea, and I hauled ass back to Seattle to see if it would work.”

“To see if what would work?” I asked, confused.

“We’re getting too big. Gabi’s not going to want to make out with random clients, and we can’t work out of the house anymore. We’re almost ready to graduate. It only made sense.”

“What only made sense?” I had a bad feeling.

Ian smirked. “Ready for your field trip?”