by Piper Malone
“I can handle a chick who doesn’t want me around, Sky.” Anger courses through my body like jet fuel on fire. “I handle you on a regular basis.”
Her eyes flare, wild with rage. “You son of a bitch! Never say words like that again!”
“Does the truth hurt?”
“Trying to protect you? Never before right now, jackass!” She glares at me. “After Amanda’s surgery, her marriage fell apart. Her ex said nasty things to her about her body and her struggles during treatment. She has major resentment issues toward men.” Skyler shakes her head, her faded-scarlet hair flowing around her face. “She knows about you,” she whispers. “She would have made your time there hell on earth.”
“My time was hell on earth, Skyler. Why didn’t you stay?”
She scans the ceiling. “I thought it would be best. I didn’t how things were going to work out.”
“I would have helped you.”
Skyler’s forehead crinkles, her eyes narrowing. “How was I to know that, Nick? We”—she gestures between the two of us—“don’t have a relationship.”
“We could have talked about it, Skyler.”
“About what? Would Caleb draw up a contract and set the finite details of our relationship? You’d hold my hair back while I puked on Sundays and scene with me on a Wednesday? You’d bark at me all the days in between? That”—she points to my face—“is exactly why I didn’t talk to you.”
Her assumption pushes me to the edge. “Do you really think I would have treated you like that?”
“You did, Nick!” she screams before standing and pacing the room. “We circled each other like unfamiliar dogs. But when you wanted access to my body”—her hands sweep over her frame—“oh, then Skyler was worth more than a passing growl.”
“I always treated you with respect!” I bellow, knowing I always took care of her in the moments when she needed attention.
“True, but never with compassion!” Her voice cracks, tears mingling with her fire. “You never left me wanting until those brief moments of your affection were over.” Her tears flow unrestrained. “I knew the time would come when you couldn’t stand to look at me anymore. When I knew that this”—she gestures to her chest—“was going to change, I didn’t know what to do.”
“Angel . . .”
She sniffs, mouth screwed up tight. “Don’t,” she says. “Don’t do that to me, Nick.”
“Do what?”
“Don’t lie to me.”
Her words have me off the couch, lunging toward her with pained muscles. I grab her arm, yanking her toward me. “I never deceived you, Skyler. We had our limits, and I stayed within them.”
Somehow she remains beautiful and unflinchingly brave, even when I’m moments away from destroying the world. “See.” A mask of invincibility covers her face. “I knew this was my fault.” Skyler wrenches her arm free from my grip. She moves too quickly, and I can’t get my hand on her.
“I’ll bite,” I say, flopping onto the couch. “What’s your fault?”
She takes two long strides toward me, cheeks burning red. “I felt you, Nick. In those moments that were just us, I felt your intimacy. I felt our connection. I foolishly believed that you felt it too. It’s my fault for hoping we could be something other than a demo team.”
“If that’s something you wanted, I should have been told what was happening with you.”
“If you wanted me to trust you, you should have shown me that I was more than a convenient fuck.”
Her words are a sucker punch. “A convenient fuck?”
Skyler’s disregard for our history is unacceptable. I can’t stand that she is trying to shove this aside.
She pulls out her phone, the sound of it vibrating in her hand. “Caleb is calling me.”
The reality of the past year clicks into place. Caleb knew everything. She trusted him and not me. Anger, evil and insidious, creeps into the places where I was worried and hurt. “Did he know what was going on with you?”
She won’t look at me as she nods.
Her admission bleeds a bitter taste into my mouth. Caleb knew and didn’t say a word.
“Well, you should take that call, and then a nap. I’m sure I’ll need a convenient fuck later.”
Skyler turns on her heel and stalks toward the bedroom. Moments before my heavy bedroom door slams, she screams, “Then call Ronnie!”
Chapter 23
Skyler
My fingers skitter across the screen, struggling to redial Caleb.
“Hey,” he says, picking up on the first ring. “Let me put you on speaker.”
I hear the crackle of the open phone line. “Hi, Skyler!” Reagan calls. “How’s it going?”
“Well.” I jump at the sound of something crashing on the far side of house. “World War Three is on a time-out, so I can’t complain.”
“Oh no.” Reagan gasps. “What happened?”
I rehash the fight, or what I think happened. “He wanted to know what happened, and I told him.”
“How did he take it?” Caleb asks.
“He’s angry with me.” I wince midway through the statement. “I don’t know. This entire situation is confusing.”
“What’s confusing, Sky? Did you tell him or not?” Caleb’s voice is clipped.
“Sort of—wait, yes. I told him about the diagnosis and the treatment. That my cousin was not someone he would have done well with.”
“Did you tell him how you feel, Skyler?” Reagan asks, calm and patient.
“Not really,” I hedge. Now that I think about it, the conversation was strange. “He wanted to know, and I thought I told him, but I got emotional.”
“How could you not get emotional, Sky?” Caleb’s voice is firm, clear. “I’m sure it was difficult.”
“I found out his ex was visiting him when he was recouping at Adam’s. All my insecurities came to the surface, and I got snappy with him. Then he tried to keep us boxed in, and I started to cry, which made me feel stupid.”
“Tears are necessary, Skyler,” Reagan says. “You’ve had a very rough couple of days.”
Another thud comes from the living room, distracting me from the conversation.
“Sky, are you okay?” Caleb’s concern bleeds through the phone.
“Yeah, hold on,” I say, creeping toward the door.
I pull the door open and peer down the hall. I can’t see him, but I know he’s in the kitchen when I hear the crash of appliances.
“What is that?” Reagan whispers.
“Hold on,” I say into the speaker.
Seconds later, the large blown-glass bowl that decorated the rustic wood countertop explodes on the floor in a shower of blue shards.
“Okay,” Caleb cuts in. “That’s enough.”
I slip back into the bedroom. “He’ll calm down, Caleb.” I don’t have the energy to defend Nick’s behavior. I understand his anger.
“We’re coming up there. How are the roads?”
Great. Just what we need. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Caleb. The roads are functional, but he knows that you knew everything. He’s mad at me, but he’s pissed you knew.”
“Well, he’ll deal. I’ve gone to blows with him before.”
“Let’s not go there,” I say. “He’s still pretty banged up.”
“We’ll just come up for a short visit,” Reagan says. “No fuss. No big deal. You won’t even know we are there.”
Chapter 24
Nick
Three heavy knocks hit the front door, jarring me from sleep. The jolt sends shooting pain up my back and down my arms. The cut from the broken glass bowl I smashed throbs in time with my pulse.
Once I’m upright, the pounding starts again. I’m not sure which brother feels the need to break down my door. We have a clear open-door policy. None of us needs an invite. We just walk in.
“Hey, Flash. Are you going to get that?”
Skyler, in a flannel shirt and jeans, stands in the hallway. Her arms ar
e crossed, chin set in a mulish pout.
“Clearly. I’m on my way there now,” I bite out, limping toward the door.
She says nothing before walking back down the hall.
One more knock lands before I whip the door open, ready to destroy whoever wrecked my nap.
Ax looks out of place standing on my front porch. The man who is accustomed to late-night stakeouts and who has a firm understanding of the criminal undertow in our city is dressed in jeans and his heavy motorcycle boots and leather jacket.
“Hi, honey.” He gives me a slick grin. “I feel like we left each other on tough terms. I wanted to check in on you.”
I blink. Dumbfounded for a moment. “Fuck off, Ax,” I spit, turning my back and retreating into the house.
Of course, he follows.
“Nice place you have here, man.” Ax looks around. “You do all this work yourself?”
“Yes,” I grunt, flopping back on the couch. “How did you find me?”
Ax holds his hands out, his jacket creaking as he shrugs. “What, no ‘How’ve you been? Want a beer? How was your trip?’ Really? Just ‘how did you find me?’”
I open my mouth to respond, but his raised hand stalls me.
“Personally, I don’t give a shit about you. I’m here for Sky.” He looks around the house. “Sky,” he calls into the openness of my home. “Where are you, babe?”
“Ax!” she squeals from the back of the house. I hear the quick patter of her feet as she runs down the hall. Her arms wrap around his thick body, hugging him tight. “I didn’t know you were coming.”
“I didn’t either. Caleb needed a little help finding where you were staying. I helped him out and thought I’d come do a little recon before they got here.”
“Wait,” I say, shaking the crazy from my brain, “Caleb is coming? Why and when? And what recon did you do?”
“Well, Caleb and Reagan heard you go psycho destroyer on something and decided to”—Ax air-quotes the word—“help, as they call it. Based on when I left, they should be here in about an hour.”
“How did you get here, Ax? How did you find my home? Our private residences are not listed.”
“I asked Sky to put a tracking app on her phone a few years ago so I can find her location.”
Jealousy sparks a wild rage in my uncomfortable gut. “Why do you need to know where she is?”
Ax cocks his head to the side, eyebrow raised. “Because she’s a single woman living in a large city. Bad shit happens to good people, Nick. If she went missing, would you be able to find her?”
Skyler’s sharp inhale takes my attention away before I focus again on Ax. “Did you know her location when she was gone?”
I watch Ax slide the pieces into place. “No, man. I never checked in on her. Caleb told me she wanted privacy. I never look into things unless I think it’s absolutely necessary. Caleb felt confident in where she was. I respected that.”
“But you could have told me?”
Ax looks at Skyler, who says nothing as she shakes her head.
“I don’t think I could have, Nick. She made a choice.”
Looking at Skyler, I realize how true his words are. “You’re right, Ax. She did.” Pushing up from the sofa, I head toward the kitchen.
“Is that it?” Ax says. “I thought for sure you’d want to punch something, or someone.”
“I’ll save that for Caleb. For now, I have to prepare for the unwanted company coming over. Beer is in the fridge.”
I move past Skyler, unable to look at her for fear that all the raw, dangerous emotions will erupt. I’m tired. I feel beaten and betrayed. Somewhere along the way, I feel like parts of me have been decimated by the information I’ve been given over the past few days.
I turn into the kitchen, preparing to clean up the shattered glass from my earlier rage. I couldn’t help it. The base anger that gripped me as a teenager took over. I wanted to kill, wanted to control. I wanted her to tell me the truth.
I wanted to hold her and grieve the life she lost.
I needed to assure her we could make it all work. But she pushed and she pushed, and I couldn’t take it anymore.
Without thinking, I open the pantry door to retrieve the dustpan and brush. Readying myself to clean up the remnants of the glass bowl Ronnie made for me years ago, I find the kitchen floor clean, immaculate despite the destruction I left behind.
Chapter 25
Skyler
“On a scale of one to ten?”
“How much does he hate me?” I contemplate the question. “Nine million.”
Ax nods as he lifts a bottle of beer to his mouth. “Give or take a couple?” he asks before taking a long drink.
“Yup.”
We sit in silence for a brief moment, staring out over Nick’s frozen backyard. I needed some fresh air. I think Ax just wanted to keep an eye on me. He lifts his foot, pushing against the roof’s support beam and sending the platform swing into slow motion.
“What if you just take your pants off and make him like you?”
“I did that.” I hear the pace of the swing in my own voice, calm and unremarkable. “I think he liked me in those moments.”
“I know he did, Sky.” Ax snorts a laugh. “That man is crazy about you. You didn’t see him when he figured out it was you with Blake. I thought we were minutes away from a nuclear meltdown.”
“That wasn’t nuclear?” Ax and I were in the same play space. “It was pretty intense. I heard bones crunching.”
“Blake’s nose was messed up for a few weeks.” He shivers with the thought. “There was blood everywhere.”
“I’m glad I missed that cleanup.” I look out over the still, white landscape. “What am I going to do, Ax?”
“With the grouchy bear? I gave you my no-pants suggestion, and you passed. I can’t solve all the problems for you, babe.”
I like Ax. He’s a brute, rough-and-tumble, but he has a great sense of humor. Once you get to know him, he’s easy.
“Okay.” I laugh. “What’s going to happen when Caleb shows up? Nick is pissed.”
Ax shrugs. “Caleb has handled worse enemies than Nick. If Caleb isn’t prepared for a fight, I’ll be very surprised.” Ax looks across the tree line. “I have confidence in him.”
“Which one, Ax?”
He looks at me, his wisdom seeping into his deep-brown eyes. “Both.”
Part of me wilts, tears pushing forward. His beefy arm wraps around me, holding me tight. “Don’t worry, babe. This will be okay.”
I nod my head and gaze over the backyard, longing for a time when Nick and I were pristine and new, free from the bruises that damaged us.
*
I hear the crack of the snow and ice before I see their SUV. “Are they here?”
Nick and Ax look up from the computer program that tracks big game in the area. They didn’t want to hear my argument about the unfairness of googling the location of a defenseless animal. Nick shrugged and called Evan to set up a hunting trip for Ax. I’m grateful Ax will be staying for a while. I hope Caleb and Reagan can do the same. I’ve missed them so much.
“I’m surprised they didn’t have more trouble finding the place,” Nick remarks with limited enthusiasm. He lifts his gaze to me. “Do you want to greet them?”
“No,” I reply. “I talked to him this morning.” Watching the heat flare in Nick’s eyes is only slightly satisfying. Nick’s irritation means he cares. Or it means he’s going to punch Caleb. Unwilling to allow Nick to vent his frustrations on our boss, I quickly follow him toward the door.
When Nick pulls the heavy, wooden door open, I hear a muffled version of Reagan’s name, quick footsteps across the snow, and the unmistakable sound of someone being sick.
Dashing into the cold, I circle the SUV to find Reagan bent over and Caleb trying to pull back her hair.
“Here,” I say, helping him gather her long locks. Caleb nods and rubs his wife’s back as she wretches.
“She was do
ing well until we turned off the main road,” he says.
Nick and Ax quickly appear, offering water and a blanket to Reagan. She does her best to manage standing upright, but her nausea forces her to remain bent over. “I’m okay, guys,” she says with limited conviction. “I just need a minute. Okay?”
Despite a brief argument from Caleb, Reagan shoos everyone back into the house. Without her presence to temper the mood, I’m nervous about this reunion. Nick might be feeling the effects of his injuries, but his temper numbs all pain.
Caleb nods to Ax before turning to Nick. He extends his hand, and I hold my breath, waiting for Nick to reciprocate.
Nick inhales, looking at Caleb’s hand, then to his friend’s face. “You should have told me.”
Caleb pulls back his hand and squares his shoulders. “That is a conversation you need to have with Skyler. We respected her wishes. You should as well. If you can’t, we’ll wait until Reagan feels better, and we’ll take her home.”
“The fuck you will,” he growls.
“You can’t hold her against her will,” Caleb counters.
“I don’t think she’s here under duress, boss,” Ax offers from behind me. Somehow Ax moved closer to me. With one smooth move, Ax could be between Caleb and Nick. It’s as if he sensed my fear. “What do you think, Sky? Are your accommodations acceptable? Are you staying warm at night?”
“That’s not the point, asshole,” Nick snaps. “You.” He refocuses on Caleb. “You kept this from me. You knew what she was dealing with, and you didn’t tell me.”
“Nick, he did what I asked him to do.” I can see the anger starting to boil. His chest rises and falls, his hands clenched in tight fists.
“He lied to me on a daily basis.” He turns to me, taking two massive steps in my direction. Ax steps in to my side, trying to ease Nick. “He lied to me about you.”
“I didn’t lie, Nick,” Caleb offers, seeming to understand the issue. “She wanted privacy, and I gave it to her. I gave you the information you asked for. You asked if she was okay, and she was. She was cared for and supported.”
