Bound to Hope: A Forbidden Romance (The Hope Series Book 2) Read online

  “Do your parents know you’re coming today?” I ask her after we get our bags and head toward the rental counter.

  “They know I’m flying in, but not today. If I told them, I knew they’d want to pick me up, and I didn’t want to have this out in the middle of a crowded airport.”

  I squeeze her hand for some reassurance.

  I park the car on the street in front of Hope’s parents’ house. Without even thinking about it, I look across the street at the house I shared with my family. The grass is cut. The bushes and flowers that line the porch are growing well. Everything looks the same — everything but the family inside.

  “Do you miss it?” she asks.

  I shake my head. “Na, I just hope they have better luck than we did there.”

  She leans over the center console and places her hand on my cheek. “I love you, Holden. And no matter what happens here today, we’re going to move forward with our lives. I promise.”

  A big breath rushes out of me before I press my lips to hers. “I love you too, angel.”

  “Are you ready for the fight?”

  “Let round one begin.” I open my door and rush around the car to open Hope’s, but she’s already out by the time I get there. She latches on to my hand as we walk up the sidewalk. We climb the two steps to the porch, and then we freeze, just looking at the front door.

  “It’s okay, Hope. Nothing between us will change.”

  She nods, then she reaches to push the doorbell.

  It rings throughout the house. These few seconds between the doorbell being rung and waiting for the door to be answered, are worse than the whole plane ride. Am I going to be punched the second the door opens?

  After what feels like an eternity, the door is pulled open, and her mom stands behind the screen door. Her eyes are wide with excitement, and her lips are agape with surprise. But the second she notices me, everything falls. Her mouth snaps shut, and her eyes narrow in on Hope and me.

  “Gary,” Lisa yells. “Your daughter’s here… And she brought a guest.” She opens the door and holds up her hand as she looks directly at me. “Holden, his health isn’t well. He’s already had one heart attack, if any trouble starts, I will ask you to leave.” Her tone is serious, down to business.

  I nod. “I completely understand. We didn’t come here to start trouble.”

  She opens the door and allows us inside. Lisa leads the way into the living room I haven’t been inside in years. Hope follows, and the minute Gary sees his daughter he says, “Hi, pumpkin. I’m so glad you’re —” His words cut off when his eyes land on me. “What are you doing here?” His cheerful tone has changed to one of hate.

  I stop and hold up my hands, palms facing outward. “I’m not here to start trouble. We just wanted to sit down with the both of you and clear the air.”

  “Lisa, what’s the meaning of this? Did you know she was bringing him?”

  “No, I didn’t. I didn’t even know they were together. We’ve talked for over a month now, and he was never mentioned.”

  Hope stands at my side, half shielding me with her body. “Daddy,” she starts, but he cuts her off.

  “Have you two been together all this time?”

  “No, Dad. We just got back together recently. But there’s something we need to talk about.”

  “Oh, good Lord,” Lisa says, walking into the kitchen, probably for a glass of wine.

  Hope takes my hand and leads me over to the couch where we sit down.

  Lisa walks back into the room, holding a glass of wine like I predicted. She sits on the arm of Gary’s chair, both of them staring daggers at us.

  “Please, please tell me you’re not pregnant,” Lisa pleads.

  “No, Mom. I’m not pregnant.”

  A part of me wants to rub her belly and whisper, “Not yet anyway,” just to cause trouble, but I don’t. It pisses me off that they judge us the way they do. It’s bad enough we get it from every person we pass on the street, but family? Shouldn’t they understand? We’re happy. We’re both consenting adults. Why is this so wrong?

  Hope clutches onto my hand for dear life. “You see… The thing is…”

  I interrupt her. “The thing is, I ran into Hope in the city a few months ago. We got together and talked and found out that we’re both still in love with each other, even after all this time. And, I asked her to marry me.”

  “You what?” Gary says, standing so quickly it almost throws Lisa to the floor.

  I stand in front of him. “Gary, I know you don’t approve of us…”

  “Damn straight, I don’t. This is wrong. It’s perverse. You were here the day we brought her home from the hospital. How can you look at my sweet baby and do the things you do?”

  I take a deep breath. “I don’t look at Hope and see a baby, or even a young girl. When I look at Hope, I see a beautiful woman who’s kind, giving, and loving. I love the woman you raised her to be.”

  He breathes deeply and shakes his head. “I didn’t have a daughter for her to end up with the likes of you.”

  “And what’s wrong with me? I work hard and provide for her. I love her and wouldn’t ever dream of hurting her in any way. Isn’t that all you can ask of the man your daughter ends up with? What’s more important, Hope marrying a man her age, or finding someone who loves her deeply and who’d do anything to make her happy?”

  “Dad,” Hope stands and moves between us. “I love Holden. He’s good to me. You won’t ever have to worry about me when I’m with him. Isn’t that what’s important?”

  Gary turns and sits back down. He looks up at Lisa. “What do you think?”

  Her brows raise. “You want to know what I think?”

  He nods.

  She turns her eyes to us. “Honestly, I’m tired of all of this. I miss my daughter. I don’t care who she loves anymore. I mean, look what happened when we tried stopping them.” She looks at Gary. “I just want my daughter back.” Tears fill her eyes.

  “Mom,” Hope cries as she moves in for a hug. “I’ve missed you two so much.”

  I look at Gary. “Are you really going to tell me you’d rather give up the relationship with your daughter than to just accept this?”

  He looks up at me. “Let’s go into the den.” He pushes himself out of his chair and walks into the other room.

  “I’ll be right back,” I tell Hope.

  She grabs onto my hand and gives a look that says, are you sure?

  I nod and press a kiss to her forehead before following after Gary.

  I find him in the den, standing behind the bar. He pours two glasses of whiskey.

  With quick steps, I walk over to him and sit down on the barstool. I pick up the glass and peer inside. “You’re not trying to poison me, are you?”

  He lets out a laugh, the first one I’ve heard from him in years. “No, poison is the easy way. If I was going to kill you, I’d do it with my own two hands.” He holds them up in front of him.

  I let out a silent chuckle before taking a sip of the drink.

  “Can I ask you something?”

  I nod and put the glass back on the bar.

  “Why her? Why my Hope? There’s thousands of younger women out there.” Pain and confusion shine in his eyes, and it hurts me. He thinks I did this to him on purpose?

  I shake my head. “It’s wasn’t about finding a younger woman, Gary. Hell, when it all started, I wasn’t looking for any woman. I was just trying to deal.” Leaning back, I shake my head. It’s been so long since I thought about any of this. “I’d lost my son and basically my wife too. I lived in hell. When I was at work, I could pretend everything was fine. But when I came home, I saw nothing but a lifeless woman who wouldn’t let go. She wouldn’t even try. I did everything to try and get her to come back to me. I gave her time and space. I tried to get her to go to therapy. Everything.” I raise my glass and finish the liquid. Gary immediately pours me another.

  “When I ran into Hope, I didn’t look at her with any kind
of intentions. All I saw was a younger version of my wife. She was depressed and hurting. I had to help her. She deserved to move on from Dean.”

  He nods. “I understand what you’re saying, but how in the hell did it switch from completely fucking innocent to what it is now? That’s what I don’t get. Weren’t you eaten up with guilt?”

  I nod. “When Hope saw me at that meeting, she ran out after hearing me talk about their trip. I could tell she was in a panic, so I chased after her. I ended up tracking her down. She was in a bar… with I don’t even know how many empty shot glasses in front of her. We talked, and I took her home. I knew you’d kill me if I left her in that part of town alone. If something had happened to her…” I shake the images from my head.

  “She was beyond drunk, and she fell asleep on the ride. I couldn’t wake her, so I carried her up to her apartment. She woke in my arms. Her eyes locked on mine, and I heard her say Dean’s name. She thought she was dreaming. She thought I was him, and she kissed me.” Gary’s chest puffs up.

  “I stopped it immediately. But it had been so long for me. I hadn’t kissed another woman in over twenty years. Hell, it had been years since I’d kissed my own wife. Anyway, I put a stop to it because I knew she was hurt and confused. When I ran into her the next day at the same meeting, I approached her and told her it was an honest mistake. But one thing led to another. Things escalated so quickly. Our friendship turned into something else.” And honestly, I couldn’t stop myself from taking her when I knew she wanted me. But I don’t say that.

  “When Jane tried to take her own life that night, I had this pull inside of me. I went to the bar and had a few drinks, but that wasn’t what was drawing me in. It was her — Hope. I never meant to hurt you, Gary. I tried to stop it so many times. But I couldn’t. She’s it for me.”

  He takes a sip. “You love my daughter?”

  I nod, completely sure of myself. “With everything I am.”

  He stands upright. “I’m not going to lie. I don’t like it. I don’t like it one bit,” he says, shaking his head. “But, I miss my daughter, and despite what the two of you might think, I do want to see her happy. I was worried that after Dean, she wouldn’t ever be happy again.”

  A smile starts to form. “So, you’ll accept us?”

  He lets out a heavy breath. “I’ll put up with it, but I don’t like it.”

  I stand and pull him in for a hug. “Thank you. This means the world to Hope.”

  “You’d better not call me Dad, though.”

  I laugh. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”

  We spend a few hours with Hope’s parents. They promise to come visit soon, and Lisa is excited about planning a wedding.

  Jack happens to be out of town this weekend, so we head over to his place, my old place, instead of getting a hotel for the night. I walk in and flip on the lights while Hope walks around looking over the apartment.

  “God, it feels like so long ago,” she says, standing in front of the fireplace — the place I left her before I ran away from us.

  I pour us both a drink and walk over to her. “I know it does.” I hand her a glass. “I’m just glad we’re where we are now.”

  She nods before taking a sip. “You know, that morning when I woke up alone, I went looking through the house for you. When I didn’t find you, I thought you went out for breakfast or coffee or something. When I came back in here to get dressed, that’s when I saw the note.”

  I place my hand on her cheek. “I’m so sorry for leaving you like that. I didn’t want to.”

  “I thought I was going crazy at my graduation. I saw you, but you were so far away. Then, in the blink of an eye, you were gone. I didn’t know if I’d actually seen you or not. That was the night I met Brad. I went to a party in an attempt to numb my feelings for you.”

  I put my glass down on the end table and do the same with hers. “I promised you I’d be there. I had to keep my word.” I pull her against me and look into her dark eyes. “I was going to approach you that night. But at the last second, I changed my mind. I knew if I did, I wouldn’t be able to leave you again. It almost killed me to walk out of here and leave you behind.”

  Her hands reach around my neck, toying with my hair. “I know I shouldn’t love you, but I do. I think a part of me has always has… even when I was younger.”

  I smirk. “When?”

  Her cheeks blush. “At my family’s pool parties. One time, I remember you getting out of the pool and water rolled down every muscle. I had to squeeze my thighs together under the water just to numb the tingles that washed over me.”

  I nod. “I remember that pool party well. I was imagining peeling that little bikini off your body. And I was worried the whole time I was going to be caught checking you out.”

  She steps back and pulls her shirt from her body. “I used to watch you get undressed in your garage when you’d come in from work.”

  I laugh. “You are a dirty girl.” I pull her back against me and press a kiss to her shoulder while my fingers unclasp her bra.

  “I’ve always been yours, Holden. Even before I knew it myself.”

  “And you always will be,” I say, pressing my mouth to hers.

  Chapter 12

  Hope

  We’re getting ready to board our plane home when Scott, my boss, calls. “Hey, Hope, I know you’re busy with family stuff right now, but is there any possible way you could join me this weekend. I have a very high-profile wedding to shoot in Aspen, and Greg has come down with something. I know it’s last minute, but I could really use your help with this.”

  I look at Holden before pulling my eyes away. “When are you needing to leave? I’m in Illinois about to board a plane back to New York.”

  “That’s perfect! You can just meet me there.”

  “I don’t have any of my equipment with me.”

  “That’s fine. I’ll bring mine. I’ll buy the ticket now, and you can pick it up in a few. Thanks so much, Hope.” He hangs up the phone.

  “What’s the matter?” Holden asks.

  I shake my head. “I can’t go home. I have to go to Aspen.”

  “Aspen?” he asks, confused.

  “Scott has a wedding to shoot there, and Greg can’t go. He asked if I could fill in.”

  Holden takes a deep breath and rolls his eyes. “I can’t go to Aspen. I have to get back to the shop and finish Barry’s bike, so I can be done with his ass.”

  I reach out and grab ahold of his shirt, pulling him closer to me. “I’ll see you there on Monday.”

  He breathes heavily. “You’ll be gone all weekend?”

  “I’m afraid so, but if you have so much work to do, it sounds like we wouldn’t really see one another anyway.”

  “Alright.” He presses a kiss to my lips. “When does your plane board?”

  “I don’t know. I’m waiting for the ticket. Go ahead and get on the plane. I’ll figure things out.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’ll be fine, Holden.” I pull him in for one more long kiss. “I love you.”

  He smiles. “I love you too, angel.” He starts walking away, but I don’t release his hand until our arms can no longer extend.

  I watch as he boards his plane, then turn to claim my ticket.

  When I land in Aspen, I turn on my phone and find a message from Scott. He’s already reserved us both hotel rooms. Armed with the address, I grab a taxi and head to the hotel.

  As I ride through the city, I can’t believe how beautiful it is. Everything is covered in snow and looks magical. This would be the perfect place for a wedding. I can’t help but picture Holden and I getting married here.

  The cab drops me off at the massive hotel. When I get up to my room, I pull out my phone and call Holden.

  “Hi, angel,” he says over the phone.

  “Where are you?” I ask, hearing loud music in the background.

  “In the shop,” he says, turning down the music.

  “How can you h
ear if customers come in with the music so loud if you’re in the back?”

  “Vanessa is on the floor, like usual.”

  I freeze. “Who’s Vanessa? And why haven’t I heard about her?” I drop my bag onto the bed and walk directly to the mini-fridge.

  “Vanessa is the woman I hired to hold down the salesfloor when I opened the shop. I haven’t talked about her because there’s nothing to say. Are you getting jealous?”

  I scoff. “No, I’m not jealous, but I hope Vanessa keeps her eyes on the bikes and not the builder.”

  He lets out a deep laugh. “You’re definitely jealous. And just so you know, I didn’t skip telling you about her on purpose. She’s just another employee. There’s never been anything inappropriate said or done between us.”

  I grab a mini bottle of vodka. “Will you send me a picture of her?”

  “What? Why?”

  I shrug like he can see me. “I want to see how pretty she is, that’s all.”

  “Hope…”

  “Never mind,” I say, opening the bottle and taking a swig. “Anyway, I just got into my hotel room. I’m waiting on Scott to get here to get the details about the wedding.”

  “Scott is going to be there with you?”

  “Yeah, didn’t I say that?”

  “No, you most certainly did not.”

  “Oh, I thought I had.” I smile. “Are you getting jealous?”

  “Yeah! My fiancée is in a beautiful city, in a romantic setting, with a guy that totally has the hots for her. Why wouldn’t I be jealous?”

  I plop down on the bed. “Maybe because I’m completely obsessed with you, and there’s no way any guy, let alone, Scott could ever change that.”

  “I know you won’t allow anything to happen, angel. I just wish I could’ve come with you to make sure that douchebag keeps his hands to himself.”

  I laugh. “We’ll be working. We probably won’t even be around each other half the time.”

  “I need to get back to work. Call me later.”

  “I will. I love you.”