Twinsequences (Twisted Twin #1)(52)
Author: Jennifer Foor

Be successful.

Marry the girl of my dreams.

Start a family.

I traced over his words. That statement had been about me.

A love like that doesn’t just go away. I was going to wait for him, like he’d waited for me.

His life with my sister no longer mattered. I couldn’t let his past stand in the way of our future. Stosh was mine and I wasn’t letting him go without a fight.

Chapter 28

Starting a new life.

My attempts at getting Stosh back fell flat. As unfortunate as it was, I had to keep trying.

For the first couple weeks, my family had so much going on. Between my sister being arraigned and deciding what they were going to do about getting her a lawyer, they were completely on edge. My father wanted her to just magically get better, while my mother thought more rationally. She knew that Ivy needed professional help. Whether it have been in jail or in a mental facility, she wouldn’t pose a threat. They argued every single night about posting her million-‐dollar bail.

I think what finally settled the quarrel was the fact that I threatened to leave if she were to come home, even for a temporary stay until her actual trial.

It was hard for them to have to pick which daughter to help. I got that. I just couldn’t forgive like they wanted to.

My days of being friends with my sister were very over.

Ever since finding out the whole story, Stosh’s mother and I had grown very close. She called every couple of days and kept me optimistic about having a future with her son. I knew part of it was so that they could have a life with their first grandchild, but it didn’t matter, because I wanted that, too.

Stosh was having a difficult time. He’d been released from the hospital and had started physical therapy. Unfortunately, since the shooting, he’d not been able to feel anything below the waist.

His mother said that he wasn’t even back to work yet. They’d paid his rent, so that he wouldn’t lose his place. He was staying there all alone and giving up on everything that ever meant something to him.

It saddened me so much. We could be happy together, but he insisted on being so damn stubborn. I tried calling him. His parents even tried to talk some sense into him.

Nothing was helping.

Finally, sometime during the fourth week, I couldn’t take it any longer. Going against everyone’s advice, I found myself standing outside of Stosh’s place. I could hear the television on, so I knew he was home.

I knocked twice, before I heard him yell, “it’s open.”

I assume that he figured I was his mom, when he just invited me in. The look on his face confirmed my inclinations. He creased his brow and shook his head. “You shouldn’t be here.”

I looked around and noticed all of the furniture had been moved to allow a wheelchair to get around. Stosh was sitting on the couch with the chair right next to him. I sat down on the opposite end of the couch. “It was my decision, not yours.”

“Why did you come? Did you want to see how awful it is? Are you satisfied, or do you need to see me struggle to get a glass of water, or watch me trying to climb on the toilet to be able to take a shit?”

I wasn’t prepared to feel sorry for him, but that was exactly what was happening. Since he had no feeling below the waist, I knew that maneuvering around was extremely difficult. “I can see it’s been hard for you.”

The room got quiet. I didn’t know what to say to him. He was miserable and I couldn’t take that pain away. I thought about our baby and instinctively rubbed my stomach. Since I was jobless, all I’d been doing was eating. A little bump was starting to form and in just a few more weeks I would be having a sonogram to see what the sex of our baby was.

Stosh saw me rubbing my bump. “How are you feeling?”

I shrugged. “I’m not getting sick, but it hasn’t been easy. I’m not supposed to be stressed and it’s all I’ve been my whole pregnancy. My parents have been helping me. They offered to let me live with them until I can get back on my feet. They think I should just wait until after the baby is born to go back to work.”

“Sounds like you have things figured out.” He flipped through the channels, refusing to look at me.

“I miss you.” Maybe I shouldn’t have just come out with it like that. I couldn’t sit there any longer without expressing my feelings.

He shook his head and turned off the television. After running his hands over his face, he finally turned to face me. “Will, I’m not going to lie to you. I miss you, too. It’s just…I can’t see us ever being happy with me in that damn chair.”

“Well, I can’t see us ever being happy without being together. I want you. I want every part of you. Don’t you get that?”

I knew he wanted to stand up and walk away, except he couldn’t and it was driving him crazy. “Don’t you think I’ve thought of every possible way for us to be together? Willow, I can’t feel anything anymore. Do you get what that means? I may never be able to give you what you need.”

My jaw dropped. “Do you seriously think that all I care about is having sex? There are other things that people can do to be intimate with each other. Besides, I want you, not your dick!”

Perhaps he was a bit shocked at what came out of my mouth. He waited a few seconds before answering. “It will get old. I can’t take the rejection. Do you understand that I’d rather not be together now, then spend five to ten years together and have you leave me. I don’t want to taste happiness, when I know it isn’t going to last.”

I got down on the floor and positioned myself between his legs. “There are no guarantees in life, Stosh. I could walk out that door and get into an accident. I could be hit by lightning and die. You can sit there and say you don’t want to try. You can sit there and act like a little bitch, but I know what I want. I know what we’re up against and all of it is worth it, if it lets us be together.”

“Did you just call me a bitch?”

I put my hands on his knees and sat up, face to face with him. “Yes, I did. What are you going to do about it?”

He looked hurt as he reached out and touched my face. I closed my eyes, accepting his affectionate gesture. “You’re killing me.”

I reached up and kept his hand on me. Slowly, while staring into his eyes, I brought his hand down my neck and left it sitting on my breast. “I’m not leaving.”

I leaned forward, pushing him back against the couch. It turned me on to be completely in control. I was careful as I climbed up onto his lap. “Willow…”