Cursed Love: Cursed Love (Cursed, #1) (20 page)

“Okay, Etty, today is all about you. What should we do?”

I look to him and the wicked smirk he has plastered across this face.

“We really don’t have to do anything too crazy. I just want to go out and have some fun.”

“Well then, fun it is, lady. I was thinking of heading over to Pete’s Famous Hot Dogs for lunch and then maybe a challenge of go cart racing at Barber’s Motorsports.”

I turn my head over to him and smile. He’s so good to me, and without him I don’t know what I’d do. When we’re together I can be myself, let down my guard, and just be Etty.

“Sounds like a plan to me, but I
will
warn you. I’m a mean street racer with the go carts.”

A laugh escapes him and he looks to me while pushing on my shoulder.

“You’re a nut, Etty, but I’m glad to have you with me today. I know you want to move past what happened last night, and if you want to talk about it I’m all ears.”

“I know and I appreciate you for that, but I really don’t want to talk let alone think about him.”

“Fine with me,” he replies.

“How about we talk about you and Jo? I like that topic of conversation so much better.”

He looks to me with a solemn smirk on his handsome face.

“Don’t pout, Linc, it’s not a good look on you.”

“I don’t know what to do, Etty. I didn’t realize how important she was to me until she was gone. Talking with you has shown me that my feelings for her were so much stronger than I thought. She’s gone. I’ve lost her.”

“Don’t give up yet, Linc. It’s only been a little over a week since she left. If she really loves you, she’ll be back.”

“Yeah well, guess we’ll see. I don’t even know where to look for her.”

“Is there anyone that is close with her here in town that you could ask?”

“No one other than Dault, and we’ve made it clear not to put one another in the middle of that one.”

“Linc, he’s your best friend. If he had any idea how much she means to you, he’d want to help you find her.”

“He’s not my favorite person right now, Etty, and I think you know why.”

I do know why and it’s because of me. Not only will I have to deal with the weird moments when Dault and I are in the same room, but I’ve just put myself in the middle of these two best friends. I can only hope that they are able to fall back to their normal routines and not add me into the mix.

Linc parks the car along the curb and gets out. He opens my door and we make our way down the street toward Pete’s Famous Hot Dog stand.

My stomach starts to growl and I realize that I haven’t eaten anything yet today.

“You hungry?” he asks wrapping his arm around my shoulders.

“Yeah, actually I’m starved.”

“Good, ‘cause you’re in for a treat. This place has the best hot dogs around. You
do
like hot dogs, right?”

He looks down to me and I smile.

“Hell yeah, who
doesn’t
like hot dogs?”

We laugh together as we walk down the sidewalk.

Once at Pete’s, Linc orders us both some lunch and we walk back to the car.

Having him with me helps me in more ways that he realizes. I haven’t had a friend like this in years. It’s nice that there’s someone that can help me pick up the pieces to the mess of a life that I’ve fallen into.

I want to change. I want to lead a better life; it’s just going to take a lot of change and adjustments to make it happen.

Linc and I finish off our lunch in silence and hop back into his car. He drives us over to Barber’s Motorsports where we spend a good part of the afternoon acting like two kids on a sugar high.

On the way home, I watch the sights as we drive through town. Today was a great day and I couldn’t have asked for a better guy to spend it with.

It was exactly what I needed—a day away to enjoy my new town and to see that I can have fun even with all my excess baggage. Linc is a friend, the best friend I never saw coming.

He’s it for me, and through everything I know he’ll always be there to help pick up the pieces of my shattered life. It’s a decision I made the day I agreed to rent from him and I promised him that I’d never let him down.

As we pull in next to the house, the sun is beginning to set and a sleepy yawn escapes me.

“What the fuck?” Linc says, looking at the car parked in front of the house.

“What’s wrong? Whose car is that?”

“It’s Jo’s car. What is
she
doing here?” he asks with a huge grin plastered across his face.

We get out of the car and stand in front of the house.

“I don’t know, Linc, but Dault’s car is here, too. Do you want me to go in with you?”

“No, I’ll be okay. I just don’t know what to think or say to her when I see her.”

“Just be honest with yourself, Linc. You owe her that much.”

“I will. Thanks for everything, Etty. If it wasn’t for you coming into my life, I may have never realized what I have. You’re a good friend, and you’ve taught me a lot about myself. Even if you don’t realize it, you really did.”

I smile at him and pull him into a hug.

“Go get her, big guy, and don’t forget to give me the details tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Etty.”

I let him go and watch as he runs up the steps of the porch and into his house.

My heart is happy for him and I can only hope that Jo and Linc are able to work through this. He really does deserve to be happy after all he’s been through.

Chapter 25

I did it. I came back and my heart is hurting. I don’t know what to expect when Linc gets home.

I’ve been pacing the living room ever since Dault and I came back to their house.

When I called him this morning, he was more than willing to meet me at my apartment. I gave him a brief rundown of why I was back and in twenty minutes he was banging on my door.

I had no idea the sight that would present itself when I opened the door for him.

His face was busted up and there was dried blood running down the side of his cheek.

It didn’t take me long to figure out what had happened. He told me about the new girl, Etty, who moved in next door and how Linc had told him to stay away from her.

I gave him a quick lecture while I cleaned him up. He wasn’t in any mood to argue with me and let me give it to him.

Dault’s been known to break a few hearts over the past few years, but I thought this one girl was sure to fight through his lustful ways.

After getting him cleaned up and ready to go, we left my apartment and headed back to his house. My stomach was in knots the entire way because I didn’t know if Linc would be home or not.

Now, here I am—waiting. Dault has come down to check on me a few times and even offered to put on a movie for us until Linc got home. I refused and told him that I’d be fine to wait it out on my own.

There’s so much I want to tell Linc. I need for him to realize that the love I have for him isn’t going anywhere. He’s been the one guy that I know I can start a future with; if only he could just give us that chance, I know I can make him happy.

I look out the front bay window to see him pull in behind my car.

My heart sinks to the ground and I can feel my hands begin to sweat. I look down at my hands to see that they’re shaking. I don’t know if being here is the right move, but I have to talk to him. If I only get this one time, I need to know where we really stand and if he’s willing to give us a chance.

I watch as he gets out of the car to meet a girl that I can only assume is Etty on the sidewalk. I see her pull him into a hug and he wraps his arms around her. Jealousy begins to course through my veins and I’m scared that I may be too late.

Has Linc fallen for someone else?

Did Etty find away to break through the brick walls that Linc built around himself so that no one could ever get close?

I move away from the window and take a seat on the couch. My nerves are in panic mode and I stand back up.

Fuck me.

I feel as though I shouldn’t have come. All of the thoughts that ran through my mind the past few hours are now all over the place.

Being here could be a huge mistake, and now he’s walking through the door and I feel like a deer in headlights as his eyes meet mine for the first time in ten days.

Chapter 26

It’s seems as though my world is crashing down on me. I’m nervous, my body is trembling, and I can’t find the courage or words to tell her what I so desperately need to say. I don’t know what to do or how to act; I just stare back at her.

She’s looks just as amazing as the day she walked out on me. Her long dark hair is pulled back in a low ponytail and she’s wearing a fitted shirt with her jeans. She’s absolutely perfect; I just need to tell her.

I know now that her leaving me was my fault, but I never expected her to run away. She has to know what I’ve been dealing with to really understand why I acted the way I did.

“You came back,” I say in a whisper.

She walks toward me and I can smell her sweet vanilla scent.

“I had to,” she replies.

“Jo, we need to talk. I wish you would’ve stayed and not left me. There’s a lot I need to tell you and I feel like I never got the chance.”

“Please don’t tell me it’s too late Linc.”

“No, Jo, it’ll never be too late for us. I’ve missed you since you’ve been gone. You’re all that I’ve thought about for days. Maybe it was good to have some time apart, but one thing is for sure—I know now more than ever how important you really are to me. Etty has helped me see a whole new side of me that I’ve hidden from for far too long.”

I don’t know if mentioning Etty was a good choice. The look on her face is hurt.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t be that person for you, Linc, maybe I should go.”

“Damn it, Jo, stop running from me.”

I reach for her arm and she stops in front of me.

“I don’t want to run from you anymore, Linc. I want nothing else but to fall into your arms and have you tell me that we’re going to be okay.”

“Come here, baby,” I say, extending both arms out to her. “Fall into me and I’ll be sure to always catch you.”

“God, Linc, I’ve missed you so much. I was scared that you could never love me and I didn’t know what else to do but leave. The morning I left, I went to my parents’ house in Florida; I didn’t know what else to do or where to go. Once I got there, I thought a lot about us. I couldn’t stay there knowing that you were here. I had no other choice but to come back and find you.”

“We’re together now, Jo, and I promise you that I’ll never let you go again.”

“I love you so much, Linc, you have no idea.”

I pull her chin up with my fingers so that she’s looking me in the eyes. I need her to see how sincere I am when I tell her how I feel about her.

“Jo, you left and I felt as though my world was empty. Yes, Etty did help me to see things more clearly, but had it not been for her helping me to open up I may not have been able to tell you this.”

I let out a heavy sigh and swallow the lump in my throat. She’s watching me intently, waiting for me to share those words with her.

“I love you, Jo, you and
only
you. I don’t know why it’s been so hard for me to tell you, but I do, Jo, I really do love you.”

Tears begin to fall from her eyes and roll down her cheeks. I wipe them away with the pad of my thumb and bring her face to mine.

Her soft lips touch mine and a bolt of electricity runs through my body. The feel of her this close to me and knowing that I almost lost her is like nothing I ever want to go through again.

She slides her tongue into my mouth and the taste of her is something I’ve missed. My hands begin to roam her body as I pull her in closer to me. She lets out a moan in my mouth as I tangle our tongues together. This kiss is soft and full of something I never thought was possible.

Telling Jo how I feel and that I love her was easier than I thought. Opening myself up to her should have happened a long time ago, but now that I have I need to make sure that I never lose her again.

I hear a throat clear from behind me and pull away from my kiss with Jo. Turning my head, I see Dault standing at the bottom of the stairs.