Chapter 59
“ W hat happened between you and Harmony at the lake?” I ask Carson as I come out of the bathroom and step into the main part of the hotel room we’re sharing.
“I charmed her clothes off like I do all the ladies.” Carson grins and adjusts the pillow behind his head.
“I don’t know if I believe you.” I narrow my eyes. “She didn’t seem to be into you sober.”
“She came around.” He glances away. The view of the harbor out the window isn’t bad. There weren’t any vacancies around the airport, so Black Cat put us in a swanky place on the waterfront. But I know the view isn’t why he’s avoiding eye contact with me.
I scrub my wet hair dry with a towel and throw it at him.
“Ow.” He scowls at me.
“The truth, man.” I ditch my other towel and put on a new pair of boxer briefs. The concierge just brought up a bunch of basic clothing and shit courtesy of Black Cat. Don’t know who did the shopping, but I’m grateful. Melinda is a hard-ass boss, especially when we cause her trouble, but she takes good care of us. “She was only into you when she was wasted. What changed her mind?”
“We kinda talked and clicked, I guess. I told her some shit about me. She shared too. Her father is a real piece of work.”
“Yeah.” I nod. “I’m aware.”
“I remember you mentioning him way back when. But I mainly remember you talking about Peace.” His eyes narrow. “You two looked pretty cozy in her backyard. Thanks for what you did for me that night, by the way. You saved Harm’s life. Mine too, taking the fall for me.”
I shrug, uncomfortable with his gratitude. “You would’ve done the same for me.”
“Not sure I would. I’m an asshole, worse when I’m high. I should have listened to you about the drugs.” He scrubs a hand over his face. When he looks at me again, I see genuine remorse. “I was so hammered; I couldn’t even think straight. When Harmony went under, I fucking panicked. Luckily, I found her and pulled her out of the water. She could have died because of me. I fucked up badly.”
I don’t disagree. “Harmony’s okay now, thank fuck. We all just need to learn from our mistakes and move forward. Make better choices.” I flop down on the other bed. “Man, I’m tired.”
“I bet you are.” He’s quiet for a long moment before asking, “What was jail like?”
“Sucky.”
“Yeah, that’s the way I remember it.”
“Gonna make it my mission to never go back.” I give him a stern look. “I suggest you clean up your act and not just talk about it.”
“I will.” A steely determination glints in his eyes.
“So you and Harmony at the hospital?” Curious, I cock my head. “What happened? I heard you made her so mad she kicked you out.”
“I got in her face about the drugs. Told her she’s too pretty and too damn talented to fuck up her life.”
“Minus the pretty part,” I point out. “I could say the same about your ugly ass.”
“I hear you.” He scowls. “No need to keep hammering that same nail.”
“All right,” I agree. Maybe he’s really going to try to clean up his shit. Problem is I know how difficult that can be.
“The chief of police was really gunning for you.” He finds and stuffs yet another pillow behind his head. “So how come the charges got dropped?”
“Peace.” My chest warms just thinking about her and what she did. “She told the douchebag’s dad she’d file assault charges against his son if he didn’t drop everything.”
“She blackmailed an officer of the law?” His incredulous tone matches his expression.
“Yes,” I confirm.
His eyes widen. “She must be really into you, brother.”
“She’s just a friend.”
“A friend you want to fuck.”
“Yes.” No sense lying about it when I’m over here sporting a boner just thinking about her. “But I’m not gonna go there. Not with her. She deserves better.”
“If you say so.” He doesn’t appear to believe me and yawns. “Man, I’m wiped. I guess we better get some rest.”
“Do you think we should call Stevie and Levi to check in?”
“Already texted them.” He yawns again. “Too damn tired to talk.”
That reminds me. I plug my dead phone into the charger. Phone chargers were yet another necessity Melinda had the foresight to send over.
“Night, asshole.” I yawn. That shit is weirdly contagious.
“Night, loser.” He kills the light. But I stay awake in the dark for a long time thinking about Peace.
Peace
In the chair beside Harmony’s hospital bed, my eyes drift closed. That kiss keeps replaying on the other side of my lids.
“Did you say something?” Harmony murmurs sleepily.
“No,” I deny, but I might have moaned. The heat and the longing Bo stirred aren’t going to go away anytime soon. “Did you have sex with Carson?” I open my eyes.
“Not shy about asking that, are you?”
“I guess not.” It just seems telling how much effort she’s putting into not talking about Carson. “So did you?” I sit up. I don’t want to give her an opportunity to hide her response. The overhead lights are off, but the room is glowing because of all the medical equipment. “You sure were into him at the after-party.”
“He’s hot. He has charisma. At the lake, we talked. I thought there was more to him and that we had a moment.” Her eyes shimmer from the memory. “But it was just chemistry.” She rolls a shoulder. “Then too much coke.”
“I want to have sex with Bo.” My eyes burn as I boldly share that admission. I’ve done a number of things today that I wouldn’t normally. “He’s all I can think about.”
“You should go for it,” she says without hesitation.
“I might lose him as a friend.” I voice my greatest desire and my greatest fear one after another.
“I don’t think so.” She shakes her head.
“That’s not a hundred percent endorsement,” I mutter.
“I don’t think life gives us guarantees, but the way he looks at you.” She sighs. “Even when we were kids, it was intense. The guy’s obsessed with you like Dad is with Mom. That kind of intensity doesn’t leave room for anyone else. That’s why I was jealous when we were kids. I felt like an outsider. I was afraid to lose my only safe place in that house.”
“Harm.” I get up and hug her. “You’ll never lose me.” The burn inside my eyes liquifies to hot tears. “I’ll always make myself available for you.”
“Me too.” She sniffs.
“Love you,” I whisper, a tear rolling down my cheek.
“But,” she begins.
“There was no but in what I said.” My brow furrows.
“I heard the reservation in your voice. You have something else you want to add.”
“You’re right.” I sigh and give it to her straight. “You need to stop drinking and the only sure way to do that is to go to rehab.”
“I’ll try,” she says softly.
“Good.” I squeeze her in a tight hug one more time. Planning to return to my chair, I ease back, but she grabs my hand.
“I’ll do the sober thing if you agree to take a chance with Bo.”
“Harm.” I shake my head. “No.”
“Yes.” She nods. “Go see him tonight before you lose your nerve. I know where he’s staying. Carson texted me earlier.”
“He’ll just send me away.”
“Maybe he won’t.” She plucks at her blanket, then looks up at me through her lashes. “Sometimes we only get one chance in life. Like Mom and Dad on that bridge. Take this chance. However it works out, at least you’ll finally know.”
“That’s a precarious limb to walk out on, and if he turns me down, which he likely will, there won’t be anyone around to catch me when I fall.”
“I’ll be here,” she says firmly.
“Promise?”
“Absolutely,” she confirms.
“Okay.” I swallow hard but stand and grab my purse. I quickly march for the door before I lose my nerve like she said.
“But, Peace,” she calls.
“Yeah?” I glance at her over my shoulder.
“What if you don’t fall?” She gives me a soft and encouraging smile. “You should consider that possibility. And when you fly, like I believe you will, no one will be prouder or happier for you than me.”