“Go home, Lia. This isn’t your concern anymore.” Collin curled his lip, his arm pressing harder against my throat. Even though he still spoke to his sister, the death threat in his eyes was directed at me.
I also knew he was right. Lia was stupid for wanting to be with me. But that didn’t mean I wasn’t gonna fight like hell to keep her.
“How is this not my concern, you big conceited asshole.” She shoved his shoulder, but he didn’t drop his hold on me.
“You even realize how stupid you’re being right now?” he asked, shaking his head.
“Don’t talk to her like that,” I growled.
His face paled even more as he glared my way. “What right do you have… No. Fuck this.” He moved his forearm to my neck, pinning me in place. It wasn’t hard enough to choke me, but it was enough to prove a point. I arched an eyebrow at him, waiting for whatever bullshit he had to say next. I’d do anything to keep Lia from getting her heart broken over this. If her brother ended up not approving, I couldn’t let her lose him. Yeah, but at the same time, I wouldn’t lose Lia either.
When all Collin could do was snarl at me, I shoved him away and said, “I pay rent, and all my shit’s here. This is as much my house as it is yours.”
“You broke the guy code,” he hissed, running a hand through his hair.
“Never said I didn’t, but maybe instead of being such a dumb-ass, you’ll let me expla—”
His fist flew at my face before I could finish. Then I was down, head throbbing as I palmed my eye—the same eye that’d I’d been decked in a few weeks back.
“The fuck, guys?” Gavin ran into the room, eyes wild with fear, until he glanced at Lia and her lack of clothes. He yanked Collin off me, tossing him toward the bed. Then he pointed a finger my way and whispered, “Told you guys not to fuck in plain sight.”
Thank God Collin didn’t hear him.
Footsteps sounded as Lia raced out of the room. Before my best friend could pummel my ass again, I was up, grabbing my shorts before I took off after her.
I’d known Collin was gonna be pissed at me. I just didn’t know he was gonna go postal.
Lia was in the kitchen, already dressed when I walked in. “I-I’ve got to go home. My brother—”
“No, baby.” I came up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist. She melted against me, shaking. “You stay here tonight. Beaner’s gonna need you here when she gets home, especially if Addie won’t be here.” I tried to smile, though it hurt like a bitch, both physically and mentally. “I’m gonna crash on Gav’s couch and give Colly some time to cool off.”
“How stupid could we be?” She swung around to face me, crashing against my chest. “We should’ve waited, done it at my house or something. Not here. We knew he was coming home today.”
She wasn’t gonna find me complaining about location, because what had happened between us the night before was fucking magic. Yeah, we could’ve been more careful, but I knew she didn’t want to hear it. So instead, I massaged the back of her neck and lowered my forehead to her shoulder. “He’ll get over it. I’ve seen him lose his shit like this before.”
“But what if he doesn’t?” She pulled back and searched my face, her eyes wet. “What if he never accepts us?”
“Then that’s tough shit, because I love you and I am not gonna lose you.”
Her big eyes welled up with more tears. I’d seen the girl cry more in the past month than I had in all the years of knowing her. I wiped the tears away with my thumbs, vowing to do everything I could to make them stay away from here on out.
She lifted her hand and rubbed a finger just over my eyebrow. “You’re bleeding.”
I grabbed her wrist and kissed her palm. “Wouldn’t be the first time.” Then I leaned closer, pressing my forehead to hers, my heart beating the hell out of my chest.
Footsteps sounded behind us just as the front door slammed shut. I cringed, knowing Collin was gone, but turned around anyway. Gavin stood in the entryway to the kitchen, dark circles under his eyes that matched the irritation all over his face. He walked to the freezer, pulling out a bag of frozen peas. He tossed it to me. “What’d I tell you two?”
Lia leaned back against the counter. “It just happened, Gav.”
“Ain’t gonna take it back though.” I winked at her and put the veggies over my eye.
Gavin jerked his chin at me. “You okay?”
“Yup.” Even though Collin punched like he had steel in his knuckles. “Where’d he go?”
“Hospital. I drove him from the airport straight there this morning. His flight got in early. That would explain why he’d shown when he did. Once Chloe fell back asleep, he had me bring him home to get his car. He’s a mess right now.”
“This is all my fault.” Lia lowered her chin. I walked over and squeezed her hand.
Gavin frowned. “It’s not just you guys or Chloe he’s worried about. It’s Addie too. Her mother passed this morning, and he’s going crazy over the fact that he can’t be there for her.”
Lia sighed, the sound filled with the same regret eating away at my gut.
I pressed my hands to her cheeks. “This isn’t your fault. Get that out of your head.”
She didn’t speak, just kept looking at the floor.
Gav cleared his throat. “Anyway, Chloe’s ready to be released, so I suggest you two clean your fucking mess up.”
I laughed because I couldn’t help it. “Our fucking mess, huh?”
Lia shoved me, then yelled at Gavin to go home. With his hands in the air and a smug-ass smile on his face, he did, but not before saying, “I hope you two know what you’re getting yourselves into, ’cause if this goes bad for either of you, it’ll ruin what we have here.”
My spine went rigid. Lia stiffened too. We knew we’d have to defend our feelings for each other to everyone eventually, but we’d just decided to make this thing between us happen. So maybe the best idea was what I’d been avoiding talking about since the night before. The question that’d been on the tip of my tongue ever since we left the hospital.
“We have thought about it. Matter of fact, I’m moving to Springfield with Lee-Lee as soon as things with Addie and Collin are settled.” Sure, I’d planned to ask Lia first, but it seemed like the right response for the moment.
“You’re what?” Lia’s face paled.
“No shit?” Gavin shook his head in disbelief.
My jaw locked as I stared back and forth between the two of them.
“Not a good idea, Max,” Gavin grumbled, leaving the kitchen before I could respond. It wasn’t his opinion I wanted though.
“You can’t be serious about this, right?” Lia glared at me. “It’s too fast, Max. What happened to ‘day by day’? And your business. You can’t—”
“We’re still taking this day by day, yeah. But my business isn’t huge here.” I moved forward, pressing myself against her front, backing her against the fridge this time. “I’ve been in love with you for years, and I’m tired of waiting. I want you, Lia. I want you all the time though, not just on weekends and holidays and vacations. I want you every night in my arms, every morning when I roll over in bed, when I come home from work, when I’m at work, when I—”
“You know I won’t let this happen.”
“Why the hell not?” I jerked my head back.
My throat burned as she stepped back to start cleaning the mess we’d made on the floor, but I couldn’t help. Could barely breathe as I watched her jerky hands sweep the floor, clean up the ingredients, wash the dishes. “I love you. You love me. We’re fucking meant to be to—”
“The answer is no, Max.” She swirled around, eyes flaring.
“Why?” I growled the word, my hands balling at my sides.
When she didn’t answer right away, my blood ran cold. I knifed my fingers through my hair to try
to warm them, but they tingled, asleep on my hand.
She’s moving.
I’m not.
She’s leaving me.
She doesn’t want me to come with her.
“Answer me, Lee-Lee. Tell me why I can’t be there with you.”
She blew out a breath. “I love you; I do. And these past few weeks have meant everything to me. But I’m not ready for more than day by day, remember? Not yet. You said you were patient, so prove it to me.”
I flinched, my head throbbing from something other than Colly’s punch. “What’s so wrong with wanting more when I’ve known all along that you’re my forever?”
A tear slipped out of her eye as she shook her head, wiping it away. “Because I need time to figure out who I am before I make a forever with someone else. I’m just learning how to be me again without the help of family and friends. I want to show the world, myself, and my family that I can be the girl I’ve always wanted to be.”
A lump built in my throat, and I could barely swallow around it. Because I loved her and respected her wishes, I drew her close and said, “I get it, baby. I get it.” Even though I didn’t want to get it. Even though I was selfish enough to want to lock her up and keep her with me forever. I loved her enough to let her go. To be the Lee-Lee she needed to be before she could be the Lee-Lee for me too.
Chapter 30
Lia
Two nights in a row with little to no sleep made a woman extra weepy and a whole lot on edge. Everything about my brother was grating on my nerves this morning, from the way he dripped water on the bathroom floor and didn’t bother to clean it up to the way he’d left all the breakfast dishes piled in the sink without bothering to even fill it with soapy water. It had to be the bachelor coming out of him, since Addie wasn’t here. But I wasn’t having it.
“Seriously, Collin? This place is a damn pigsty.”
He frowned from over his cup of coffee—drinking the coffee I’d preprogrammed for him the night before so it’d be ready this morning. Not once did I get a thank-you. Mom would’ve been pissed at his rudeness.
“What?”
“The kitchen looks like hell. The least you could’ve done was maybe put the rest of the dirty stuff in the sink and wipe down the counters after spilling cereal milk all over. I spent over two hours cleaning this apartment, and now it looks like it did pre-Addie. It’s disgusting.”
“This is my damn house. I’ll do what I want.”
“And this is Max’s house too. And since he and I are together now, I’ll be here a lot more. And I don’t want to deal with a messy kitchen.” Not that Addie wouldn’t fix matters when she came home, but still. I was trying to make a point.
He groaned and tossed his head back. “Jesus, you and Max don’t belong together. Get that through your head.”
“You know what? Screw you. Max and I have been together for almost a month. I love him. He loves me. End of story, get over it, and worry about your own life, not mine.”
“The hell, Lia?” He pushed away from the table, causing his coffee cup to rattle against the wood. “A month?”
“Stop.” I held up my hand and looked down the hall toward Chloe’s room. “I have every right to pick who I love. You don’t get to control that.”
He stood, taking his coffee with him into living room. “You can’t love him. He’ll only hurt you.”
“He’s different with me.” I followed him, my bare feet stomping against the floor with every step.
“We’re done talking about this.”
I snorted. “You’re the one who brought it up.”
He glared at me. “Chloe’s finally asleep for the first time all night, and I need this time to clear my head, all right?”
I rolled my eyes. “She’s only asleep because of me.” Immature comeback, I know, but everything about this situation and my brother was pissing me off.
“Well, she wouldn’t be in this position if it weren’t for you and Max.”
I froze, my eyes immediately growing wet. I’d known this was coming, but the timing couldn’t have been worse. His words smacked against me harder than a hand or a fist ever could.
A loud cry sounded, and I moved to Chloe’s door, hollering over my shoulder, “Tell me something I don’t know already, asshole.”
Before I could get to her crib, my brother zoomed past me, only to freeze before grabbing her. I shoved him aside, eyes widening when I found her sprawled on her back in her crib. Eyes rimmed red and filled with tears, she lay like a statue, seemingly afraid to move.
“Aw, sweet thing.” Not thinking twice, I carefully scooped her into my arms and laid her against my chest. Her blond curls stuck to her wet, pink cheeks. “You okay?”
She calmed in my hold, settling right in. I laid her on her changing table as gently as I could, yet the second I set her down, she wailed and cried harder.
“Hey, baby girl. Shhh, don’t cry.” Collin stood by her head, rubbing his fingers over her temples as I changed her diaper. Sure, kids broke bones all the time, but being personally attached to the kid made this feel like a tragedy.
Calm and collected, Collin touched my shoulder and said, “Grab me her bear from the crib, would ya, Sis?”
I nodded, forgetting that my brother was a grade-A jackass as I did what he asked. If Collin was good at anything, it was being a dad.
Just when he’d soothed her with a singing teddy and the hum of his own broken voice, someone knocked on her doorframe. I jerked my head back, finding my brother’s eyes narrowed into slits as he focused on the doorway.
Eyes widening in shock, I found the man I was desperately in love with looking at his best friend with more sadness than I’ve ever seen before. Dressed in a pair of low-slung sweats and no shirt, Max looked exactly like he did every morning: casual, sexy, and absolutely delicious. But the swollen lip and black-and-blue cheek reminded me he was stepping into dangerous territory.
“How’s our girl?” He cleared his throat and cracked his knuckles, clearly nervous.
For a good long and hard moment, my brother glared at him, unmoving and silent.
Deciding to break the ice first, I said, “As good as a fifteen-month-old toddler with a broken arm can be.”
Max cringed as he moved to stand at my side. Not once did he reach for my hand, or even graze my skin. But somehow, I felt his love through his presence alone.
“Hey, Beaner. How’s my girl?” he cooed, sending the sweetest shivers up and down my body. Collin glared at me, then at Max once more, before softening a bit when he looked at his daughter again.
Her little blue eyes nearly twinkled when she took one look at Max. Then for the first time since last night, she smiled and said, “Mas.”
Unable to contain my grin, I took a step back, letting Max move in next to my brother. Collin still hadn’t moved, his hands hanging onto the edge of her table. There was no way he’d push the issue in front of his daughter, which Max knew.
“How’s Addie?” Max looked toward Collin, the weariness in his gaze mirroring my own.
At her name, Collin’s shoulders fell, but he talked—and for now, that’s all we could ask for. “She’s doing all right, I guess. There’s a small service on Thursday, but I’m not gonna leave Beaner to go. And Addie doesn’t want me to.”
That same horrendous guilt made my stomach go tight.
“I’m sorry, Colly. I-I know Addie must be hurting.” Max put his hand on Collin’s shoulder. My brother stiffened but didn’t move to shove him off. Instead, he just shrugged.
My gaze darted back and forth between the pair, fear making me ready to grab Chloe and run, anger making me want to punch Collin in the face like he’d done to Max. Instead, I took a few more steps back, folding my arms as I waited for a storm to explode between them.
No matter what, this was my life, and if I wanted to be with
Max, then I would be, no matter what my brother said or thought or did.
“I’m also sorry you had to find out about me and Lia the way you did. But I’m not sorry for wanting to be with her.”
Collin scoffed. “No, I figured you wouldn’t be.”
I opened my mouth to speak but stopped short as I stared at their profiles. I wasn’t sure if it was the unspoken look they shared or the small grin forming on Max’s face, but something clicked in that moment between them, something that lifted the ten-pound weight off my shoulders.
My brother reached for Chloe, pulling her against his chest. Her breath came out in little shudders as she settled against him.
Max leaned forward, rubbing the back of his forefinger down her cheek. One side of his mouth curled into a grin. “If it makes you feel any better, I got your parents’ permission.”
Collin’s jaw locked. “Not surprised. They don’t know you like I do.”
Max shrugged. “No. But tell me something…” Max turned his head toward me, his eyes meeting mine. “When you fell in love with Addie, when you knew she was the one, you didn’t give two shits who stood in your way, did you?”
Collin looked at me, then back at Max. But Lord Jesus in heaven, I could see his resolve and feel his resistance slipping away at the same time.
“But she’s my sister.”
“So?” Max moved to stand next to me. “We can’t help who we love, man. It just happens.” He smiled at me but kept his hands to himself, obviously knowing my brother’s limits.
“What’s gonna happen if you two—”
“It won’t get to that point. Lia’s my forever girl.”
Tiny, dancing butterflies fluttered against the inside of my stomach at his words. Romance wasn’t my thing, not because I didn’t like it, but because I’d never felt the desire to experience it like I did with Max. Yet his eyes were on me, and his words running through the air sounded like poetry. It made everything I didn’t think I wanted come to life.
The Right Kind of Reckless Page 21
