by R. Linda
Kenzie touched my shoulder softly and hurried over to Cole, scooping him into her arms, and sat in the booth with him.
“He what?” Indie yelled. “Let me out. I’ll—” She snapped her mouth shut after Kenzie said something to her, her eyes focusing on Cole, and she apologised with a wince.
“Harper, honey, everything all right?” My aunt came out to see what the commotion was.
I shook my head. “Can you make Cole a chocolate milkshake? Extra everything. I need to go make sure Kenzie is okay.”
“Sure.” Her smile dropped and her eyes narrowed, focusing on something over my shoulder. I looked behind me and gasped as she called out, “Johnny, you better get out there. Kid’s gonna get himself in more trouble.”
Nate was there. So were Linc and Brody. But it was Ryder who had my full attention. He had some guy by the scruff of his shirt and was punching him in the face repeatedly. Uncle Johnny came hurtling out of the kitchen and through the front, cursing as he went. Bailey, noticing Johnny’s rush and me and Julie staring out the window, got up and ran out after him.
I wasn’t sure what I could do, but I thought I should go out there and see what was going on.
“Harper?” Kenzie called.
“Stay there. I’ll check it out,” I urged her and followed Bailey outside.
Johnny shoved his way through the guys and was trying to pull Ryder off Chace. I knew it had to be him because she’d described him to me before and shown me old yearbook photos, and no one else could cause such a reaction in Kenzie or Ryder. Johnny was struggling to hold Ryder back as he swung his arms and kicked his legs in Chace’s direction. He eventually broke free and lunged for Chace again.
Bailey ran around the guys and tried to insert herself into the middle of the fight, but Linc was quick enough to grab her around the waist and pull her back. Ryder was furious, and if she got in the middle, she’d likely get hit.
“What the hell is wrong with you guys, letting him do this? Let me go,” she shouted and fought Linc’s hold to get to her boyfriend.
I went and stood beside Johnny, who was still trying to call out to Ryder and get him to stop. Nate and Brody both tried, but each time they stepped close, Ryder shoved them out of the way. There was no stopping him. Good thing Linc held Bailey back. Ryder would never forgive himself if he accidentally hurt her. Chace danced on the balls of his feet, wiping the blood from his mouth as he tried to block Ryder’s punches and get in a few of his own.
“Jones!” Bailey called out to Ryder, breaking his concentration for a moment and allowing Chace to get in one punch. And all that did was anger the already ferocious bull that was Ryder. He charged for Chace and knocked him to the ground.
“I swear to god, Lincoln, if you don’t let me go, I’ll hurt you,” she hissed, but he just barked out a laugh.
“It’ll be over soon. Just stay here or you’ll get hurt.” He tried to placate her, but it didn’t work.
“One,” Bailey said in warning.
“Bailey.”
“Two.”
“Don’t be stupid,” Linc argued.
“Three.”
“Ow. Shit.” Linc whooshed out a breath, let Bailey go, and pressed a hand to his side right where she elbowed him.
She crouched on the ground beside Ryder, who was preparing to hit Chace again, and touched his arm softly. “Jones, baby.”
Ryder looked at her, the anger in his eyes dimming.
“Enough.”
Ryder dropped his gaze to Chace—who was almost unconscious.
“One more?”
Bailey watched him carefully for a moment and raised her hands in defeat. Ryder grinned and punched Chace one more time.
“It’s like déjà vu,” Bailey mumbled as she helped Ryder up.
“Great, kid. Thanks. What do I do with him now?” Johnny asked, curling his lip in disgust at Chace.
“Hell if I care. Leave him,” Ryder said, throwing an arm over Bailey’s shoulder. “I need to check on my sister.”
“You might want to get Linc some ice for his ribs, though.” Bailey smiled at Linc, who scowled back.
“What is with you girls knowing how to throw a punch better than us?” Nate chuckled, touching his cheek and following Bailey and Ryder back inside, with Linc muttering to himself.
“Bloody kid. He’s back for one night.” Johnny shook his head and leaned down to pull Chace up to a sitting position.
“I’ve got some gear in the car. I’ll check him out and get him home,” Brody offered dutifully and ran across the lot to his car.
“You wanna give him a hand?” Uncle Johnny asked me.
“Me?” My eyes widened in shock. That would be incredibly uncomfortable. After everything Chace had done to Kenzie and Cole, and Bailey and Ryder, the last thing I wanted to do was help him out. I was quite happy to leave him there in the rain like Ryder suggested.
“You are the nurse.”
“…sing. Nursing student,” I reiterated.
“I don’t want some little shit bleeding out in my parking lot. And don’t you have to swear an oath to serve and protect or something?” Johnny raised his eyebrow at me.
“That’s police officers.” I folded my arms, just now feeling the sting of the icy cold rain on my skin.
“Just do it, or you’re cleaning the grill for a month.” Johnny sighed and walked away.
With his back to me, I stuck out my tongue and turned to face Chace, who was leaning against the wooden barrier of the parking lot with blood gushing out of his nose.
“I think he broke my nose again.” His voice was thick and pained, but he earned no sympathy from me.
“You deserved it.” I crouched in front of him and inspected his face. “How many times has he broken it now?”
“This would be the fourth.” He winced when I pressed my fingers into his cheeks.
“You don’t think maybe that says something about you?”
“No, I think Ryder has an anger problem.”
I laughed humourlessly and intentionally put too much pressure on his swelling nose. “Does this hurt?”
“Ow, fuck. Yes,” he hissed and swatted my hands away. Good.
“Ryder doesn’t have a problem. You do. You hurt everyone around you and don’t care. All he’s doing is protecting the ones he loves.” I tilted his head to the side and inspected his face for any more cuts or possible broken bones.
“I do,” he said softly, so softly I barely heard him through the wind.
“What?” I pressed my hands into his ribs to see if Ryder had broken anything there too, but Chace didn’t even flinch.
“Care.” He sighed and closed his eyes. “I do care.”
“Yeah, right,” I scoffed and stood back because Brody had returned with a small medical kit and began cleaning Chace’s face.
“Why do you think I’m here?” Chace mumbled behind the cloth Brody was using to wipe away his blood.
“I don’t know. To be a pain in everyone’s ass? To cause more trouble and pain?” I tapped my foot impatiently, waiting for Brody to finish.
“I want to make things right.”
I barked out a laugh. “A bit late for that, don’t you think?”
“I can try.”
Brody remained silent. I wasn’t sure whether it was because he wanted to avoid any further disagreement or just didn’t know the full story of how Chace got Kenzie pregnant at fifteen and told her to terminate the baby, and then went on to date Bailey and break her heart by cheating on her with her ex-best friend.
“Good luck,” I muttered. There was no way Kenzie would forgive him, and Ryder wouldn’t let him anywhere near his family again.
“He needs to go to the hospital and get his nose reset,” Brody said as he packed away his things.
Great.
“You can drive him.” I wasn’t sitting in the car with him. “I’ll follow and bring you back.”
Brody nodded. “Let’s go,” he said to Chace and held his hand out.
“Your keys. I’m not getting your blood in my car.”
Chace huffed and handed Brody his keys. “Watch the paint.”
I shook my head and walked over to my car. He was such a douche.
Chapter Five
Nate
Kenzie was a wreck when I walked back inside. “Oh, my god. You said you wouldn’t let him do anything stupid.” She jumped out of the seat, a hard edge to her voice, leaving Cole sitting beside Indie.
“We didn’t.” Linc hissed in a breath and held his side as he slid into the seat next to Indie, who was frowning at him.
“What happened?” Kenzie asked and began inspecting Ryder’s face.
“It’s fine. I stopped him before he could kill Chace,” Bailey answered because Ryder stood there with a smug look on his face, like it was no big deal, and he was probably right to give the guy a beating. I didn’t know what started it, but I knew Chace deserved everything he got.
“And that’s not stupid?” Indie nudged Linc in the side, causing him to jerk to the side in pain. “How is that not stupid? You know what he’s like with Chace. And what happened to you?”
“Standing right here, In,” Ryder growled while Linc shot a glare at Bailey.
She returned his look with a sweet smile and said, “I may have hit Linc. Just a little.”
“You what?”
“Someone had to stop Ryder, and he,” she pointed at Linc, “wouldn’t let me go.” She rolled her eyes and shook her head in disbelief.
Indie snorted. “Well, that was stupid.”
“I didn’t want her to get hurt,” Linc defended himself.
“She won’t. She’s the only one who can calm him down and get him to stop.”
“Yeah, kinda noticed that,” Linc muttered and rubbed his ribs.
“Poor baby.” Indie patted his cheek.
“Here, fix ya face.” Johnny approached with a cloth for Ryder’s bloody lip. It was amazing the guy still had any facial piercings left with the number of times he’d gotten into fights.
“Cheers.”
“And ice your ribs,” Johnny said to Linc, handing him some ice in a towel. “So, what the hell happened out there?”
Kenzie watched Cole thoughtfully, her eyes narrowing and a small frown on her face. “Nothing.”
“Julie,” Johnny called for his wife, “come give the little guy a tour.”
Julie grabbed Cole and took him to have a look at the kitchen. “Let’s go make something special for your mumma,” Julie said to Cole, making him jump up and down in excitement as they left, talking about chocolate, strawberries, and pancakes. It gave Kenzie the chance to explain.
“Now, spill it.” Johnny pointed at Kenzie and pulled out a seat. “Your punk brother is home for one day, and he’s already getting into fights. I thought we were past this.”
“I’m sorry, Johnny. Really. I didn’t want this to happen.” Kenzie dropped her head in her hands and slid into the booth beside Bailey and Ryder. “And I didn’t want you to fight him.” She looked up at Ryder.
“He deserved it,” Ryder said, wincing. The cut on his lip looked pretty bad.
“He, who?” Johnny asked.
“Chace.”
“The kid’s dad?”
Kenzie sighed in response. “He wants to get to know Cole. Bailed us up in the parking lot when we tried to come inside. Scared Cole and freaked me out. I told him no and to leave because I don’t even want Cole to know who he is. But we all know what Chace is like. He doesn’t take no for answer.”
“What’s he doing here? I thought he was still at uni. His parents have gone. There’s nothing in town for him anymore,” Indie said.
“There’s Cole,” Kenzie answered.
“And why did you think it was good idea to beat the daylights out of him?” Johnny asked Ryder, who just smirked.
“Because he’s a dick,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone and shrugged.
“No arguments there,” Bailey muttered.
“And you guys didn’t think to stop him?” Johnny looked at me and then Linc.
“Don’t look at me.” Linc held his hands up defensively. “I was holding him back. Nate told me to let him go. So I did.”
Ryder reached his fist out for me to bump in a show of solidarity.
“You’re all the bloody same. No more!” Johnny huffed, rubbing a hand over his tired face. “You gotta stop laying your fists into everyone who pisses you off,” he said to Ryder then turned to me and Linc. “You gotta stop encouraging him.” And finally to Kenzie, “You need to sort it out. Talk to him without Cole. Find out what he really wants, and if you still don’t want him near the kid, get legal advice or your brother’s going to end up charged with assault or worse.”
We were all silent, letting the weight of his words crash down on us. Reality was a bitch, but he was right. It was time we all grew up and acted like the adults we were supposed to be.
“You’re right,” Ryder sighed. “But I can’t make any promises when it comes to Chace and my family. Next time, I’ll try not to hit him so much.”
“Nex-next time?” Johnny leaped from his chair, knocking it over in the process. “There won’t be a next time. I’m not bailing you out again, kid. This is my final warning.”
Indie’s eyes widened in shock and she bit her lip, looking at Bailey, who was just as alarmed as she touched Ryder’s arm. His jaw clenched, his hands balled into fists, and he shot Johnny a warning glare that had Johnny backing up and cursing in apology.
“Okay. Okay. I get the last time. I do. But you nearly…you know what? Never mind. Just no more. Please,” he begged before turning and walking away. The last time? It had happened before?
“Someone care to explain what that was about?” Kenzie voiced the question that was swirling around in my head.
“Nothing. Forget it.” Ryder looked at Bailey and leaned in, pressing his head to hers. It was an intimate gesture, and I shuffled my feet and looked anywhere but at them.
“No, I want answers. What was he talking about?”
“Dammit, Kenzie!” He slammed a hand down on the table, rattling dishes and toppling the salt shaker. I’ll admit, I jumped a little at his outburst, but Bailey and Indie didn’t appear fazed, like they’d seen this reaction before. That was kind of unsettling that they were so used to it.
“Don’t ‘dammit, Kenzie’ me.” She had to poke the bear, didn’t she? She shoved her finger in his chest. “What was he talking about? You don’t keep shit from me.”
“One time. It was one time,” Ryder said through clenched teeth, gradually calming down as Bailey wrapped her hands around his fists. Indie was right. She was the only one who could calm him down. I didn’t know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.
“Ryder?” Kenzie urged, tapping her fingernails impatiently on the table.
Ryder groaned, tilted his head back, and squeezed his eyes shut, “One time. A couple of years ago, I just lost control. Ended up arrested and locked up until Johnny bailed me out.”
“What?” Kenzie yelled. “How could you be so stupid? How could you not tell me?”
“It had nothing to do with you, Kenzie. And I’d do it again. He. Deserved. Everything. And more.”
“What the hell were you thinking?”
“That I could make him suffer just as much as—” He shook his head, cutting himself short. “I’m not talking about it anymore. Chace got what he deserved. I got arrested, charged, and completed my community service and anger management classes. It’s fine.”
“Anger management?” Kenzie reared back, her voice a high-pitched screech. “What the hell, Ryder?”
I knew the guy was protective of his sister and Cole and Bailey, but I dreaded to think what Chace could have done that provoked him so much he ended up charged with assault and forced to take anger management classes. One look at Linc and I knew he was as clueless as I was. Indie knew, though. I could see
it in her eyes, the fear and the sadness. Whatever happened, it was bad.
“Kenz, leave it, please,” Bailey pleaded, her voice catching at the end. I was willing to bet it had everything to do with Bailey, judging by the look on her face. She was pale, her eyes wide with fright.
Taking a moment to think about it, Kenzie nodded and sighed in agreement. “I will find out one day.”
“Kenz,” Ryder growled, and she shut up, knowing not to push him further. I tilted my head and looked at Indie for an answer, but all I received was a blank stare. She wasn’t going to say anything, at least not in front of Bailey and Ryder.
“Let’s go,” Ryder said to Bailey. “I need to get out of here.”
“Okay,” she replied softly, giving him a small smile.
“Sorry for ruining your first weekend home,” Kenzie said as she stood to allow them out of the booth.
“You don’t have to apologise for anything. Okay?” Ryder pulled her into a hug. “This is on me. And I’m working on it. But I better not see him around town again. I’m going to say bye to Cole.”
He tugged on Bailey’s hand and pulled her away with a wave to everyone.
“What—”
Indie held up her hand to stop me from asking the question we all wanted to know the answer to. “It’s not my story to tell. Just know I would have been right there getting arrested with him if I wasn’t with Bailey.”
Kenzie frowned and lowered her head to the table. “This is so messed up. I thought things were going to get better, not worse.”
“It will be okay. I promise,” Indie reassured her. “We spent the last three years dealing with his narcissistic ass. He’ll give up eventually and back off.”
“At what cost? Ryder getting arrested again and locked up for longer? No, I need to sort it out now.”
“Well, just remember you don’t have to do it alone.”
“Thanks, In.”
Brody and Harper walked through the front door, his hand on her back, gently guiding her over to the booth. My eyes narrowed, and my left one might have twitched too. They looked cosy. I wasn’t jealous. I had no reason to be. It wasn’t as if we were anything serious, and she ended things because it was the right thing to do. I’d be a pretty sucky cousin if I tried to move in on Brody’s ex-girlfriend.
