Reject You to Break You (To Reach You Book 2)

Chapter Fifty-Seven: Naked Santa

North-

It was raining. And for some reason that's all I seemed to hear. The affect the rain have on my clothes. The solitary drip, drip, drip, on the linoleum. The way the light makes my leather jacket seem glossy. The feeling of my wet, dark tendrils, against my cheeks.

That's it.

I don't think about Ridge.

Or Naomi.

Or Henry or Caste, or his brothers, or my roommates or mom or dad or prison or publishing companies or Eaton or any of the shit that caused this.

That caused him to be such apart of my life. That caused Aspen and Priestleys and money washers, and Davies.

All of this shit.

I want it gone. But I'm not even thinking about that. My brain is empty. Replaying my last moments of peace before my world decided to treat me wrong.

Again.

I miss him. Badly. I miss his touch. I miss his eyes. I miss how it felt with him, around him. How I would wake up with him looking so cute, Bronze hair mussed, lips in a confused frown as he lived in his own world of dreams. But I can't go back.

I'm done with him. I have to be.

I ring the doorbell, flinching at how loud it is. Or at least how loud it appears to me.

I expect a maid or something, but it's her who answers.

Blond perfection, light green eyes, the body of an actress and model, both of which she was--or had been.

Before she "died".

I know she recognizes me. The way her arms stiffen around the two year old in her arms. The two year old that is resting on her protruding belly.

I'm an aunt. Huh.

"Can I talk to you...I mean, I don't know if that's--"

"YES!" she bursts. "I mean...if you want to, but yes...please, come in," she stutters, biting her lower lip.

The earth had gone square. Naomi Jacobs was never kind, nor was she ever nervous. Naomi Jacobs--at least the one I knew--gave a damn about absolutely no one but herself.

I shuffle inside, feeling out of place. I mean it's not like it's a castle like the Monroe place. It's a neat brick house, medium sized, but Naomi seems happy.

"I came here because..."

Why had I come here?

I don't get to say anything because her arms wrap around me, her head resting on my shoulder, i feel my shirt get wet.

She's crying.

"I've wanted to do this for so long! I'm such a bitch...god, North, I'm so sorry,"

Okay...what's going on.

"Oh," is my smart response.

Naomi pulls back, swallowing. "I'm sorry, please...sit down, can I get you something to drink?"

"Um..."

Naomi smiles a little. "Freaking you out aren't I? Sorry about that, Listen...I looked for you, I couldn't find shit, they said someone took you and left, and I tried finding you, because I wanted to apologize, I wanted to fix us. The guilt was eating at me...and they said you'd left with someone, and I...I'm so fucking sorry about that...the way I treated you....I was a stupid sixteen year old. You were my family and I just," she takes a deep breath. "I left you! I abandoned you,"

"You're...you're apologizing,"

"God, I was a bitch! Fuck, I'm so sorry, I really need to stop cursing because when Celine hears me she'll be spouting this shit--I mean this stuff, and Henry will give me the evil eye, and oh god, I'm sorry,"

"You've already said that," I mumble, trying to hide my smile.

"I did, didn't I, um...you're here, I thought..."

"That I'd think you were dead...I did, for a while, then I um...found out you were not dead and I got drunk,"

She winces. "How bad?"

"The moon was green,"

She winces.

"And there may have been a Santa dancing, naked," I grumble, grimacing at the memory, before I start chuckling. "I gave my boyfriend--I mean my ex-- a lap dance, also naked,"

"Well, at least you weren't the naked Santa,"  Naomi says. For a second I imagine a naked fat man with a white beard dancing on Ridge's lap as he tries to look for a way out of this situation. I can't help it...I burst out laughing.

"So...um...Henry, huh?" I say, awkwardly.

Naomi's entire form brightens, the way I did around Ridge. "He's...I'm in love with him, I'm so tangled in him I can't ever find my way out, North, and I don't want to either, I love him...I just...I love him, so much,"

"I'm glad," I say, then I look up. "Look, I'm not good at this easy talking thing, I'm not good at consoling people and I'm not good at being a good person, but I just...I can't hate you anymore, I think that's what I came here to tell you. My ma--ex--I think it was him, because I can't feel anymore hatred towards you, I'm not sure why. But...I don't get it exactly, but I don't think I hate you anymore,"

Naomi's eyebrows raise. "Are you sure you can't un-ex him? Because I like this guy already,"

I shrug, not faking a smile. She knows it would be a fake one. "I broke it off, he was my mate, I rejected him, after he rejected me...twice,"

"Wow...um...I can't even comprehend that,"

"That seems to be a common reaction,"

So I had my sister back. It was easier than I thought it would be. Leaving her place was where the trouble had started.

"It wouldn't change anything,"the doctor insists, and I look up, eyes dead just like the rest of me. Cayne is murmuring quietly to the doctor, his large body towering over the doctor's, his voice ringing with authority. 

"Then why not? What could you possibly lose? HE'S ALREADY IN A COMA!" Cayne roars the last part, everything about him menacing. Something--not only Ridge's situation--had him on edge. I flinch as Mrs. Monroe begins crying softly, Mr. Monroe taking her into his arms beside me, silently consoling her.

"Fine, she wants to see him, she can go in and see him, his parents already have anyway," the doctor resigns, clenching his jaw. He was right; Ezra and Lila had already seen their son, that's what made Lila so hysterical and Ezra so silent.

I needed to be in there.

Cayne plops down beside me, sighing he nods to me. "You can go in now, stay in as long you want,"

I raise my eyes to his rigid form. "What about--"

"Don't worry about hospital hours, stay there as long as it takes to fix you," he says curtly, pain shadowing his features. I get up.

"North?" he says, after hesitating.

I turn around.

"Don't expect him to wake up,"