The Exception

  “How?”

  “You’ll figure it out along the way. You’re a strong and smart woman. Don’t underestimate your strengths.”

  I got up from my chair and gave him a hug.

  “Thank you, Ano. I better get going. I still have to pack and get to the airport.”

  “Take care, my child. Don’t be a stranger.”

  I gave him a smile as I kissed his cheek.

  “I won’t be.”

  Heading back to the hotel, I gave a lot of thought about what Ano said. My whole life had been spent being around people who controlled me, and now that I was alone, what I thought I knew I didn’t really know at all.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Drew

  “Thanks, Randall. I’ll see you in the morning,” I spoke as I climbed out of the Bentley.

  Walking up the steps of my townhouse, I saw my next door neighbor and friend, Liam Wyatt.

  “Hey, you’re back. How was Hawaii?” he asked.

  “It was eventful.” I smirked.

  “In a bad way or a good way?”

  “Both. I broke up with Jess and made her leave early.”

  “Oh. I’m sorry to hear that.”

  I gave him a small smile. “No you’re not. You never liked her.”

  He shrugged. “True. But still. You’re better off without her. She reminded me too much of Oliver’s ex.”

  “Yeah. I should have listened to you on that one. Stop by this week and we’ll have a drink.”

  “Sure will, Drew. Welcome home.” He waved.

  Stepping into the house, I took my suitcase upstairs and then headed to the kitchen for something to eat. I smiled when I opened the refrigerator and there were a couple of stacked containers sitting there with a note from my housekeeper, Jane.

  “Welcome home, Drew. I slaved all day to make these meals, so you better eat them.”

  Taking one of the containers out, I threw it in the microwave and walked over to the bar to pour myself a scotch. I already missed her. The moment I walked out of her hotel room, a feeling overcame me. A feeling that something was missing from my life. The time I spent with her on the plane. and the few times in Hawaii, made me feel like a different person, and now, I didn’t think I’d ever felt so lonely.

  Opening my eyes to the sound of my alarm, I stumbled out of bed, showered, and headed down to the kitchen for some coffee.

  “Morning, Jane.”

  “Good morning, Drew.” She smiled as she poured me a cup of coffee. “How was your trip?”

  I sighed. “Let’s just say that Jess won’t be coming over here anymore. I ended things with her.”

  She made the sign of the cross and then placed her hands together.

  “Thank you, lord.”

  I lightly chuckled. “I know you weren’t a fan of hers.”

  “No. No, I wasn’t. What did she do this time?”

  “Just her usual shit. She basically told me that I was a bad boyfriend because I wouldn’t buy her something.”

  Jane rolled her eyes. “Well, maybe if she wasn’t such a bad girlfriend, you would have bought her what she wanted. You’re a good man, Drew. Don’t let that little hussy tell you any different.”

  “Trust me. I’m not giving her a second thought. Thanks for the coffee and now I have to head to the office.” I gave her a kiss on the cheek.

  “Have a good day.”

  Jane had worked for me for the last four years. She was a godsend. Not only did I love her, but my parents and friends did as well. She did everything for me and had quickly become a part of my family.

  ****

  “Good morning, Lia,” I spoke as I walked past my secretary’s desk.

  “Welcome back, Drew. How was Hawaii?”

  “It was nice. Thank you. If Jess calls, don’t put her through. We’re over,” I spoke as she followed me into my office.

  “Oh. Okay. I left some papers on your desk that you need to sign and you have a meeting in thirty minutes to look over the new software proposal.”

  I sighed. “I know.”

  “Anything else?” she asked.

  “No. That’s all.”

  Taking a seat at my desk, I leaned back in my chair and picked up the papers that needed to be signed. After looking them over, I threw them back down. The only thing on my mind was Jillian and our night together. God, she was by far the best woman I’d ever had sex with. Everything she did aroused me. Her soft moans, her gentle touch, her smell, and the way her body moved with mine was undeniable. How long was this going to last? Me thinking about her non-stop? Fuck. I should have asked for her number or at least asked where she was headed to next. I was worried, something I generally didn’t do with women. As I was deep in thought, my friend and VP, Lance, walked in.

  “Hey, buddy. Welcome back.” He smiled.

  “Thanks.”

  “So did you get things resolved with Jess?” he asked as he took a seat across from my desk.

  “Actually, I did. I broke up with her and sent her home.”

  He chuckled. “In Hawaii?”

  “Yep.”

  “Classic and so deserved. It was about time, man. She was toxic.”

  “But now that I got rid of that problem, I have another.”

  “What’s that?” He leaned back in his chair.

  “I met someone and I can’t stop thinking about her.”

  “In Hawaii?”

  “Actually, she sat next to me on the plane to Hawaii and we stayed at the same hotel. Jess invited her to dinner one night to try and prove to me that she changed.”

  “And I can see that worked out really well.” He laughed. “So now you have me curious. Who is this mystery girl?”

  “Her name is Jillian Bell and she’s the most beautiful, fun, kind-hearted, selfless, amazing woman I have ever met.”

  “Hmm. I’ve never heard you describe a woman like that before.” He rubbed his chin. “Did you fuck her?”

  “Yes, but that’s not important. What’s important is that I don’t think I’ll ever see her again.”

  “Why? Where does she live?”

  “She lived in Seattle, but she won’t go back there. I don’t know where she went after she left Hawaii.”

  “Okay, Drew. Seriously, I’m so confused right now, man.”

  “She left her fiancé at the altar on her wedding day and hopped on a plane to Hawaii to start a journey of self-discovery.”

  “Wow. She left her fiancé at the altar?” He raised his brows at me. “Right off the bat, the two of you have something in common.”

  I sighed as I rolled my eyes.

  “Did you at least get her phone number after you fucked her?”

  “No, and stop saying it like that.”

  “Huh?” He looked at me in confusion. “Shit, Drew. What has this girl done to you?”

  “I don’t know.” I turned my chair and looked out the window. “I put my number in her phone before I left. I told her if she ever needed anything to call me.”

  “Drew. Drew. Drew. Why didn’t just tell her how much you liked her?”

  “Because she’s focusing on her journey and has made it very clear that she’s living in a man-free zone.”

  “So what? You never let things stop you from going after what you want. Damn. Who are you and what have you done with Drew Westbrook?”

  “Just drop it, Lance. Let’s go. We have a meeting.” I sighed as I got up from my seat.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Jillian

  “It’s so good to see you.” Kristen hugged me tight as I stepped inside her apartment.

  “It’s good to see you too. How are you?” I broke our embrace.

  “I’m okay. I just put on a fresh pot of coffee. You must be exhausted after that flight.”

  “Not really. I slept well on the plane.”

  My flight from Hawaii didn’t get in to New York until ten a.m. I really had no choice but to sleep, because if I didn’t, I would have spent the entire twelve hours think
ing about Drew, and I was trying so hard to put him to rest. Following Kristen into the kitchen, I took a seat at the table while she poured us each a cup of coffee and set a plate of assorted donuts in the center of the table.

  “My favorite.” I smiled as I took a vanilla frosted one. “Did Noah go to work?”

  “Yeah. He left about an hour ago. He said to tell you hello and that he’ll see you later. So, tell me all about Hawaii.”

  As I sat across from Kristen, my heart felt sad seeing her so frail. Her skin was pale, her eyes were sunken in, and the beautiful blonde hair she once had was replaced by a headscarf. Six months ago, she was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor and had been undergoing chemotherapy and radiation to try and shrink it. Not only was she my best friend, she was also my half-sister. A sister I didn’t even know I had until she contacted me, via Facebook, two years ago and asked if my father was Donald Bell. Our father had an affair with her mother when they met at a business conference. It lasted about a year until she told him she was pregnant. He gave her silence money to quietly walk away and agree to never let anyone know who the father was. He made her sign a contract that his crooked lawyer drew up stating that she wouldn’t put him as the father on the birth certificate or ever disclose that he impregnated her. She saw what kind of man he was and took the money and ran as far away from him as she could. Before Kristen’s mother passed away a couple of years ago, she told her everything about our dad. Who he was, where he lived, and about me.

  When she contacted me, I wasn’t surprised. I always suspected my father cheated on my mother. Kristen was my secret and I loved her; after all, we were sisters and only born one month apart. After she found me, we skyped almost every day and I came to New York a few times to visit her. Of course, I lied as to where I was going because if my parents ever found out that we found each other, it would open up a scandal that would rock the business world. It saddened me that my father could be so cold as to know he had another daughter and didn’t care about how she grew up. He was a soulless man who was married to a soulless woman.

  “Hawaii was great.” I gave her a small smile.

  “Did you by chance meet anyone there?” She grinned.

  “You talked to Kellan. Didn’t you?”

  “Yeah.” She took a sip from her cup.

  “Drew is a great guy. He’s fun, sweet, caring, and really hot.”

  “You slept with him, Jill. I can tell,” she spoke with excitement.

  “Ugh.” I laid my head down on the table. “I didn’t mean to. It just happened.”

  “And?”

  Lifting my head, I looked up at her. “And then we said goodbye.”

  “You said that as if you were sad to say goodbye.”

  “Sort of. I don’t know. Drew is —” I sighed. “He’s the type of guy who I could see totally falling head over heels for.”

  Kristen gave me a small smile. “It looks to me like you already have.”

  “No.” I held up my finger. “I’m in search of me, nobody else.”

  “Maybe you found yourself already the moment you sat next to him on the plane. The world works in mysterious ways, Jill. Of all the hotels in Hawaii, he stayed at the same one you did. Plus, he broke up with his girlfriend.”

  “I see Kellan filled you in on every little detail.” I smiled. “I was going to tell you everything when I came here. I didn’t want to burden you with my problems when you’re going through so much already.”

  “But your problems are my problems, dear sister. Without your dysfunctional life, I’d be bored to death.” She smiled.

  I couldn’t help but laugh. “You look tired.” I pouted.

  “I am. I hate that I feel like I need to go take a nap when you just got here.”

  “Go take a nap and when you wake up, we’ll go to Central Park and sit under a big tree for some sisterly bonding time. In the meanwhile, I think I’ll take a shower and change. I feel gross from the plane ride.”

  As the hot water streamed down my back, I couldn’t stop thinking about Drew, and I wondered what he was doing and if he had heard from Jess. She didn’t seem like the type of woman to go away quietly. Running my hands down my body, I swore I could still feel his tender touch. He was a god in the bedroom and I’d never had so many orgasms in such a short period of time in my life. I needed to put him to rest in the depths of my mind. I was living a single, free life now and nothing or no one was going to get in the way of that. My focus was solely on me now and, of course, my sister. She needed me. The only family she had left was Noah, her boyfriend of five years, and me.

  Stepping out of the shower and wrapping a towel around me, I sat on the edge of the bed and dialed Kellan.

  “Hello, Jilly Bean.”

  “Hey, Kel. I finally made it to New York.”

  “How’s Kristen doing?”

  “She’s okay. She’s napping right now and then I’m taking her to Central Park for a while. Any news on the home front?”

  “I saw your mom yesterday and she gave me the evil eye.” He laughed. “Then she had the nerve to come over and try to talk to me.”

  “What did she say?”

  “Just asked if I heard from you yet and that she can’t believe you would do what you did. She said poor Grant was so broken up, and that the wedding that didn’t happen was the talk of the yacht club. She said she had to leave because of the embarrassment.”

  “Ha ha. Good.”

  “I told her that I saw Grant with some sleazy-looking chick the other night and he didn’t look too broken up to me. She just huffed and said goodbye.”

  “Good for you. Thank you.”

  “Anything for you, babe. Hey, how about if I come to New York next weekend for a visit?”

  “Ah. I would love that and so would Kristen and Noah.”

  “Are you going to get your own apartment there?”

  “I was thinking about it, but I don’t want to get stuck in a lease for a year. I may not be here that long.”

  “True. I’m sure you can find something with a six-month lease, or hell, just buy a place. It’s not like you can’t afford it. Then when you leave, rent it out, and it becomes an investment.”

  “I might just do that.”

  “Hey, how are you doing after your little romp with plane guy?”

  “I’m okay.”

  “Jilly, that wasn’t very convincing. Are you still thinking about him?”

  “Sort of. He’s a hard man to forget.”

  “Then maybe he’s not worth forgetting. You have his number. Call him.”

  “I can’t.”

  “You won’t. I dig your whole self-journey, but if he put a real smile on that pretty face of yours, don’t you think maybe, just maybe, he was thrown in your path for a reason?”

  “Now you sound like Kristen.”

  “Great minds think alike. Listen, Bean, I have to go. I’m being summoned into a meeting. Love you.”

  “Love you. Talk to you soon.”

  I met Kellan Jones at the yacht club when were thirteen years old. His family had just moved to Seattle when his father took the CFO position for one of the biggest hotel chains in the country. It was love at first sight. We created a bond that day and had been best friends ever since. My parents disapproved at first because he was a boy and they feared some sort of romance was brewing. They couldn’t grasp the concept that a boy and a girl could be nothing more than friends. There was a period of time when my parents tried to stop me from seeing Kellan, but that quickly dissipated when they found out he was gay and no longer a threat.

  ****

  I wheeled Kristen to The Lake in Central Park. Since receiving her chemo and radiation treatments, she tired easily and walking would have been too much for her. I found us a spot on the grass under a big tree near the lake. After helping me spread out the blanket we brought, we both kicked off our shoes and sat down.

  “God, it’s so beautiful here,” I spoke.

  “It’s one of my and Noah’s
favorite spots.”

  It was a beautiful June day. The sun was shining brightly and there wasn’t a trace of wind anywhere. Despite all the people that were around, I found comfort and peace here.

  “Tell me you have pictures of Hawaii.” Kristin smiled.

  “Of course I do,” I spoke as I pulled my phone from my pocket.

  Opening up my pictures, I began to show her the serenity and beautiful world of Hawaii.

  “These are the dolphins I swam with.” I smiled.

  “Wow. They are adorable. I’d love to do that.”

  “You will. As soon as you get better, I’m taking you there and we’ll swim with them.”

  She gave me a small, unconvincing smile. I knew exactly what that smile meant and it scared the hell out of me.

  “Is this him?” she asked as she stopped on the picture of me and Drew.

  My heart started to ache at the sight of him.

  “Yes. That’s Drew. I took that picture of us on our last night there.”

  “He’s hot.” She grinned.

  The corners of my mouth curved slightly upwards. “Yeah. In more ways than one.”

  “Why did you take this picture?” she asked. “I mean, you knew you were never going to see him again and you have no plans of ever contacting him.”

  “I guess for a memory,” I spoke in a mere whisper as I looked down at my hands.

  “It’s okay to like him, Jillian. You’re human just like everyone else.”

  “If only I had met him a little later in life.” I stared straight at the lake.

  She reached over and took hold of my hand. “Sometimes life is too short to worry about the small stuff.”

  “You’re going to be okay, Kristen. I truly believe that.”

  “Maybe or maybe not. And if not, I’m okay with that. I’ve come to terms that the chemo and radiation may not be helping.”