Until Now by Cristin Cooper

Author:Cristin Cooper [Cooper, Cristin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-311-99347-2
Publisher: Cristin Cooper

Chapter Twenty-One

August 1:00 PM

Bridget

Phillip took a quick breath. “Yeah. I think I’m ready.”

Bridget took his hand and squeezed. “Do you need a few more minutes?” His face paled as he wiped sweat from his brow.

“I’ve wanted this for so long, and now that it’s here… I’m not sure what I’m going to say. I can’t believe I’m finally going to meet her,” he confessed. “Do you mind if I call Jenny first? I need her support right now.” He gave a strained laugh that ended with a sigh.

“Go ahead. You can use Billy’s office. We’ll be in the corner booth when you’re ready.”

“Thank you.” He turned and disappeared behind the swinging doors.

She shook her head. Her feelings for that man had changed drastically in such a short time. At one time, she couldn’t imagine feeling anything but hate, and now they were almost friends. Or, at the very least, friendly.

Billy tightened his grip on her hand. “You okay?” His demeanor had softened since he caught her in Phillip’s arms. He was her sweet Billy again.

She shook her head. “I’m anything but okay.” Her stomach dropped at the realization that it was finally happening.

Letting go of her hand, he slid an arm around her waist and guided her to the booth. She wanted to cover his hand with her own to make sure he never let go. But he did. He let her in the booth first then followed close behind. She slid to the middle of the half circle, allowing enough room for Phillip and Katie to join them.

A sigh escaped her lips when he placed an arm around her and pulled her to his side. She wanted the right to be at his side and to have him touch her all the time. “Thanks for being here.”

He lifted her chin with a finger so she could see his face. “I’m always here for you, Bridget.”

“I know.” Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Tightening his hold on her shoulder, he kissed the top of her head. Her heart broke just a little when she thought about going back to their normal friendship. She was going to miss his touches, and how right it felt to be in his arms.

Katie’s laugh reminded her why she was sitting next to him. “I should’ve introduced them the first time he came to the diner years ago.” She nervously adjusted and readjusted the place settings and wiped away pretend crumbs off the table.

“Bridget.” He let out a long sigh and placed a hand on top of hers to still her movements. “You were protecting Katie. No one can blame you for it.”

She faced Billy and shared her greatest fear. “Katie might.”

He shook his head ‘no’. “Katie loves you.”

“Will she forgive me for not allowing Phillip to be in her life? She was only a toddler when he came looking for us. They could’ve had a relationship this whole time, but I was too afraid of him hurting her…and me.”

“They’re just meeting today, right? Give them a chance to get to know each other before you worry about something that might not happen.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.