Right after I found Emery.
“What could be taking her this long?” I asked.
Austin shrugged again. “Don’t know, man. There’s probably just a line. You know how the girls’ restroom is.”
“Right, line,” I murmured but didn’t believe it.
I didn’t know why exactly. Maybe I was paranoid. After the week we’d gone through, I’d been trying to be on my best behavior. I had a big surprise for her. I was finally going to tell her everything. It would be such a relief when it all came out.
I was about to go find the restrooms and make sure everything was all right when Emery appeared out of the crowd. She looked…shaken. Visibly shaken. As if she had seen a ghost.
She had her hands clenched in low at her sides, and her eyes were wide, darting here and there and everywhere. Her stride was fierce, like she was anxious to be away. Her shoulders were tight. Something had happened. Something had definitely happened.
“Hey,” I said, instantly stepping toward her.
Whatever had hurt her…I would destroy it. This was supposed to be our night.
“I want to leave,” she said immediately. She wouldn’t even look at me.
“Emery, what happened?”
“I said I want to leave,” she said, raising her voice.
“Okay, okay. I’ll get your coat.”
I reached for her jacket without a word and ignored the concerned looks on my friends’ and family’s faces. They knew what had been going on with me and Emery. They knew not to interfere.
I handed her, her coat, and she snatched it out of my hand.
“Let’s go.”
“Emery, what happened?” I asked. I followed behind her as she hurried from the room. I reached out and grabbed her elbow to stop her. “Please, talk to me.”
She jolted away, as if I had burned her. “Why don’t you ask Vanessa?”
I furrowed my brow in confusion. “Vanessa?”
“Yes, your ex-wife. She can help you out.”
My mouth opened and then closed. “She’s here?”
“What do you think?” she asked before storming back toward the door.
I followed, but my gaze was wandering around the room as I tried to figure out how my life had crumbled to ashes in a matter of minutes.
Why is Vanessa here today? What did she hope to accomplish?
I hadn’t even mentioned Emery the week that I was in New York. She couldn’t know that I had a new girlfriend, because I knew she’d try to wreck our relationship. Whatever her motive, I was not going to let her win.
We were almost to the door when Vanessa seemed to materialize out of thin air. I could see that she had made an effort. She was here for a reason, and the look on her face said that reason was me.
Emery noticed her presence, and her hackles rose. “I’m leaving with or without you.”
“With me,” I said automatically.
“Fine,” she said, passing into the foyer.
Vanessa reached me just before I followed Emery. “Hey, where are you going?”
“What are you doing here?”
“I came to see you, baby.”
“Colt was supposed to come tomorrow with the nanny. That is what we agreed on. Not that you would come here and bombard my girlfriend at a party that I never invited you to!”
“Well, you forgot to mention this fling to me, so I thought I would come spend time with you,” she said, placing her hand on my sleeve.
“Vanessa, just fucking stop. You know I don’t want to spend time with you, and you’ve clearly offended my girlfriend. I love her, and I choose her. Just her. Only her.” I snatched my arm back, feeling extra disgusted with her at the moment. It wasn’t enough that she had cheated on me with my own friend, but now, she was trying to ruin everything else, and I wouldn’t stand for it. “I think you’re scum on the bottom of my shoe. I wish you would stop trying to ruin my fucking life.”
“Jensen,” she murmured, her voice dipping an octave.
“You’re in my life for one reason, Vanessa. One.” I held up my finger. “Colton. That’s it. Otherwise, you can go to hell.”
I turned on my heel and walked away from her. The last thing I wanted was for Emery to think that I wanted to talk to Vanessa or that I had more interest in what she had to say than Emery hurting. Because that was the furthest thing from the truth. I sprinted out of the building and found Emery hovering by the valet stand.
She dismissively waved her hand at me. “I already called for a cab.”
“No. We have the limo.” I gestured to the valet to have the limo come around for us.
“I can’t—”
“Emery, please. I don’t know what Vanessa said, but she is just trying to get between us. There is nothing between me and Vanessa. Nothing.”
“She said you have a son,” she said in a deadly whisper.
Her eyes were bullets targeted on my face. She was waiting for a reaction. She was waiting for me to deny it. My heart sank. This was not how I’d wanted her to find out. I’d wanted to tell her tomorrow the best way that I knew how. Fuck, Vanessa ruined everything.