Page 27 of Trust
“Sure.”
“Have a good day, Lani.”
Then he was gone. Lani lay in bed, staring out the window, thinking Jakob Wulf was still as confusing as ever.
Jakob stood at the kitchen counter waiting for his tea to steep, and he felt like a slug. He had panicked and lied to Lani. It was partially her fault, but he shouldn’t blame her. He couldn’t help but flirt with her a little bit. She sounded warm and cozy, with her lyrical voice all husky from sleep. He lost control of his mission. Lani didn’t trust him, and he knew coming on strong was going to screw everything up.
So he lied and said his sister called. Knowing it wasn’t the same, he called his sister to assuage his conscience. The moment the phone started to ring, he realized how early it was.
Didn’t matter. Jules picked it up on the second ring.
“Good morning.”
She sounded exhausted, and he instantly felt even worse. Jules was seven months pregnant with her first child.
“I’m sorry for calling so early.”
“No worries. I’m just not sleeping well right now. Still, wake up at four in the morning, but this little one is sitting on my bladder.”
He heard a deep voice in the background and knew his brother-in-law was nearby. He seemed to not want to be far from Jules, but Jakob understood, especially as they approached the due date. The truth was, Alek seemed to be handling it better than their brother, Jensen, had. He had been a bear about Nicola walking down the stairs…or basically anything.
“I’m fine. Stop worrying. I’ll take a nap today.”
Another growl in the background, and he had a feeling what Alek was worried about.
“Hey, why don’t I fly to you on Sunday?”
There was a brief pause. “I miss you.”
The sadness he heard in her voice was odd. From the moment they’d found each other, Jules had sounded happy.
“Is everything okay?”
She sniffed, and his worry escalated. Jules wasn’t a crier.
“Yes.”
“Jules, maybe you should wait until Sunday, and I’ll fly over there.”
“But I miss you.”
The longing he heard in her voice hit him square in the chest. He thought Jules was happy in Hawai’i. She had sparkled anytime he had seen her with Alek. It was really disgusting, but he had been happy for her.
“It’s just two days. I’ll stay a few days. I think Alek would agree with me.”
She sighed. “You’re probably right. I just miss you. And Mother. And Nicola and Jensen.”
He couldn’t wait to tell his brother he ranked last on Jules’ list.
Another growling comment from his brother-in-law, and she sighed.
“Alek wants to talk to you, and I must use the toilet. This baby hates my bladder.”
“Love you, Jules.”
“Love you, Jake.”
Then, there was a jostling sound, and he heard his sister’s voice.
