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CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

❝I WANT TO GIVE YOU ALL OF ME, BUT YOU HAVE TO TRUST ME.❞

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Winnie fiddled with her fingers as she waited patiently for Justin to come back — that was when she heard the chaos coming from ICU.

Creasing her eyebrows, she rose up quickly from her seat and sped walked over to the ICU door and looked inside to see Justin fighting with the doctors.

"Justin!"

Winnie had sped over to Justin seeing his body hit the floor as the doctor still held him off as Winnie approached and pulled his face into her hands.

"Justin, look at me, listen to my voice. . .calm down. . .calm down."

Justin's breaths were ragged as his hazel eyes finally found Winnie's soft brown ones, he soon found himself calming down making the doctors loosen their grip and let his arms drop slowly to the floor.

Winnie let out a breath of relief and wrapped her arms around his head slowly and felt Justin wrap his arms around her body and pull her close to his.

Winnie sighed softly and shook her head as she realized that Jeremy was dead, even though no one broke the news to her.

Justin on the other hand felt like the world was against him and there was nothing he could do, the company was gone and he lost his father in the process, did he really have anything to live for anymore?

Justin didn't know what to think, all he could do was feel his world crumble under him like a piece of paper as Winnie's nurturing arms remained wrapped around him for comfort.

He was broken.

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Jade looked out of Peter's window and saw the droplets of the rain hit the windows vigorously and then drizzle down onto the ground.

"Are you hungry?"

"A little. . ."

Peter rose an eyebrow and looked at Jade seeing her mind focused more on the rain than the actual plate of tacos he'd made for them, he let out a breath and sat them down onto the edge of his bed and walked over to Jade.

Once he was in front of Jade, he squatted down and looked up to her seeing her eyes still on the rain making him lick his lips and reach out to touch her hands and rub the back of her hand with his thumb.

"Jade?"

"Hm?"

"Look at me. . .," Peter whispered softly as he squinted his eyes and saw Jade bite her bottom lip softly and turn her head slowly to look at Peter. "What is bothering you about this?"

"I. . ."

"You didn't tell Winnie, did you?"

Jade huffed. "I'm sorry. . .I just don't want to lose a good friend over a guy."

"But you won't, and it's like you said yesterday, you might be feeling something for me. . .I might be too."

"So. . .?"

Peter chuckled. "So, I wanna see how this goes."

"Peter—"

"Look, I'll respect your wishes of us not doing anything. . .I just want you to be comfortable with any decisions you make, Jade. How about we hold off on anything until you talk to Winnie?"

Jade sighed softly and let her right hand gently touch Peter's cheek. "You're too sweet, Peter."

"So I've been told."

"What do you mean by holding off on anything we do?"

"Well. . .," Peter murmured softly as he rose up from the ground and cleared his throat and sat down next to Jade and still held her hand. "I wanna take you on a date."

"A date?"

"Yeah, you know where two people—"

"Don't. . .okay, I'm going to give Winnie a call."

Jade gave a closed mouth smile to Peter and got up from her spot and walked out of his bedroom and stood out in the hallway and took her phone out of her hoodie pocket and unlocked it to go to her call log.

Seeing Winnie's name, she paused as she stared down at the contact name and let her thumb hover over the screen, but she couldn't help but feel a pang in her chest.

Was she betraying Winnie? Would she forgive her? Did she really have feelings for Peter?

Jade shook her head and let out a shaky breath as she pressed her contact name and pressed the phone to her ear and waited for her to speak and after a few rings, Winnie finally answered.

"Hello?"

"Winnie? Hey. . .you doing okay?"

"Not really. . .something came up with Justin, family stuff."

Jade sighed. "Yeah. . .I get it, when do you think we could hang out and talk?"

"Well. . .maybe tomorrow afternoon? I'm not sure. . .listen, can I call you back? Justin and I are about to leave."

"S-Sure. . .bye."

"Jade?"

"Yes?"

"Are you okay?"

Jade paused momentarily and sharply inhaled a breath. "Yeah, I'm okay, bye."

With that, Jade ended the call and puffed out a breath as she leaned against Peter's door for a few seconds as she briefly shut her eyes, she then leaned off the door and opened it to step back into Peter's bedroom.

"So?"

"She couldn't talk. . .listen, Peter, maybe this is a sign."

Peter laughed softly. "Either you're being paranoid or you're just trying to push me away."

"I. . .I am not!"

"Really?"

Jade crossed her arms over her chest and watched Peter get up from hi spot and slowly walk over to Jade and tower over her making her clear her throat.

"Really."

Peter grinned softly and looked down at Jade's lips and dipped his head down to let his lips brush across Jade's making her body shudder and her breathing get shaky.

Peter then swiftly moved his lips to her cheek and gave her cheek a peck and then whispering in his ear. "I'll believe that when I see it."

Jade let out a small gasp as Peter stepped back and kept the same grin on his lips as he sat the edge of the bed and took the plate of tacos and started to eat one.

Jade watched him start eating making her scoff and shake her head as she sat down next to him and ate one of the tacos on the plate with Peter in silence.

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Winnie felt Justin put the Bentley in park as the got to the beach house, looking out the window, she looked to see the rain still not letting up and was still coming down hard.

"Winnie?"

"Yes?"

"I want to apologize. . .you shouldn't have to see me like that."

Winnie creased her eyebrows. "Are you apologizing for being sad that your father died?"

"Winnie. . .I don't usually crack like that, not since. . .not since my mom passed."

"Jay. . .," Winnie whispered softly as she looked down at Justin's arm that was at his side making her reach over and take his hand her hers. "It's okay."

"You know my mother's funeral was the last time I ever recall myself crying. . .she was my best friend, she'd take me to all the places my father wouldn't let me."

Winnie smiled softly. "Did you have a favorite place she took you?"

Justin looked out into the distance as he recalled the memories with his mother — something he hadn't done in a long time, he let out a small laugh as he remembered them.

"The beach near our house. . .she'd take me there the most because she said her father took her growing up, she even called me ocean eyes because of how long I'd stay out there and stare at the ocean waves."

Winnie let out a small laugh and rubbed Justin's knuckles softly and leaned her head against the headrest of her seat as she watched Justin smile and remember his mother.

"Winnie. . .I. . .I have to tell you something."

"Okay?"

"It's. . .it's about my father and your father."

Winnie creased her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"Remember. . .remember when my father and your mother were talking about how they go back to your father working for mine?"

"Yes. . ."

"Winnie. . .my father is the reason your father is dead."

Winnie felt her breathing become uneven. "J-Justin that's not funny. . ."

"Winnie. . .I wish I was joking, my father told me it happened when he first got his new job and he needed the extra money and wanted to do overtime and my father had a worksite for him to work. . .so your father took it and the worksite. . .so much radioactivity. . .your father didn't die from a heart attack, he died from lead poisoning from the worksite and my father knew. . .so he covered it up and said your father died from a heart attack, Winnie."

Winnie felt her chest start to feel as if someone had slammed a thousand bricks on top of it to break her breathing, her hands touching Justin's had slipped out as she moved her body making Justin's throat feel like it was going to close up.

"Winnie, I'm so sorry you had to find out like this."

"Your father is the reason mine is dead?" Winnie asked in a whisper as a single tear rolled down her cheek and she saw Justin nod slowly. "Then maybe he did deserve to die."

"What?"

"Karma's a real bitch, Justin."

And with that, Justin watched Winnie open the car door and slam it shut as she sped walked out of it and into the rain making Justin curse under his breath and get out as well and follow Winnie.

Justin squinted his eyes as he looked through the rain for Winnie and seeing her speed walking down the dirt path they just drove down making him run to catch up with her.

"Winnie! Stop!"

"No!"

"Winnie, don't do this! I-I can't fix the past. . .but I can do my best to fix the future for you. . .for us!"

Winnie stopped walking for a moment and let out a breath as her once curly black hair was now drenched with water and the droplets of water fell down her back and down the valley of her breasts from the cleavage of her shirt.

Winnie turned around to face Justin. "How can you be so sure?"

"Winnie. . .I want to give you all of me. . .but you need to trust me."

Winnie's chest rose up and down as she tried to steady her breathing, as she did, she watched Justin take the opportunity to speed walk to meet her halfway.

Justin towered over her and cupped her cheeks. "I'm sorry."

Winnie had closed her eyes as she held onto Justin's hands momentarily, she then slowly opened her eyelids and met those hazel eyes she was never going to get tired of seeing.

A small smile came to her lips as Justin leaned his face closer to hers and press his lips against hers, infatuating her as they always did.

Justin ran his tongue across Winnie's bottom lip as her mouth parted, letting his tongue dance in her mouth, Winnie heard Justin groan into the kiss, pulling his body closer to hers and bending his body down a bit to pick her up and wrap her legs around his waist.

Turning around, Justin headed back toward the house, never breaking his kiss with Winnie as they reached the porch.

Once they got inside the house, Justin shut the door with his foot and took Winnie with him upstairs to his bedroom as Winnie deepened the kiss and ran her hands through his hair.

Placing Winnie down onto the mattress, Justin let his kisses trail from Winnie's plump lips to her exposed neck making her let out a soft moan as the two proceeded to taking their clothes off each other.

Pulling down his boxers, Justin's hard erection sprung out making Winnie bite her bottom lip as she stared down at Justin's erection.

Before Winnie knew it, Justin slid into her wet clit with ease making her let out a long breathy moan and let her hands find Justin's back and dig her nails into it.

Winnie couldn't even focus on Justin whispering to her in her ear, she was too focused on the pleasure her eyes fluttered close as her head sank further into the pillow as Justin pushed himself further into her.

A grunt was heard from Justin as his lips began nibble onto Winnie's earlobe making her moans louder than the last.

And in that moment, Winnie and Justin let all their problems flood away from their heads as her and Justin's naked bodies tangled together to make sweet love to each other that was so dearly needed.

The pure ecstasy giving them both the high they needed to show make love to each other in the moonlight and the contast sound of rain hitting the window.

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Justin stirred in his sleep and rolled his body over and felt that the bed was empty making him slowly open his eyes and creased his eyebrows as he saw the empty side of the bed.

Letting out a small laugh, he shook his head and slowly rose up from the bed and grabbed his boxers from off the ground and checked the time seeing it was 2 in the morning as he walked out of his bedroom.

Walking over to Winnie's bedroom door, he knocked and waited for Winnie to open the door making him lean against the doorframe.

After a few seconds, Justin creased his eyebrows and knocked again. "Winnie?"

Justin looked down at Winnie's doorknob and opened it and walked inside of Winnie's bedroom and saw her bed was made up and her closet was halfway empty.

"What the hell. . ."

Justin walked out of Winnie's bedroom and sped walked back into his bedroom and went to the nightstand for his phone.

Unlocking his phone he went into his contacts to call Winnie and glimpsed at the empty side of the bed and then back to his phone — but back to his bed again when he noticed something.

A letter.

Justin creased his eyebrows and locked his phone back and picked up the folded piece of paper and opened it to see it was a letter from Winnie.

Dear, Justin

I'm sorry I left you randomly. . .I just couldn't stay with you knowing what I know now about my Papa. You did nothing wrong, it was your father but it hurts my heart to be around you right now. I'm sorry about your father's passing and I didn't mean what I said. I truly am sorry. But we both are hurting and being around each other won't make anything better. . .I will be in touch, we both need time to heal. Please forgive me, Jay.

– W.

Justin let out a soft scoff and let the letter fall out of his hold and onto the mattress again as he walked back and forth in his room, and before he knew it, he threw his phone against the wall and let out heavy breaths.

"Fuck!"

Justin let his body fall down to the ground slowly as he ran his fingers through his hair and shook his head as his mind went crazy thinking of why Winnie would leave.

He was alone.

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Jade creased her eyebrows and got out of bed at the sound of her doorbell ringing, she threw on her robe and sped walked to the front door and opened it to see Winnie drenched with a suitcase by her side.

"Winnie? What are you doing?"

"I'm sorry. . .I know it's late. . ."

"Don't say anything, come inside, you're going to get sick." Jade murmured softly as she pulled Winnie by her wrist into the house as she took her suitcase inside with her.

Jade shut the door behind her and told Winnie to wait, she walked down the hallway and opened up a closet and took out a green towel and walked back over to Winnie and gave it to her as she thanked her.

"Why are you here? With a suitcase?"

"I. . .I can't be with Justin right now."

Jade creased her eyebrows. "Did he do something to you?"

"No. . .we both did something."

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