Chapter 17
Easton
While Bennett meets up with Roland, I texted Taylor to see if she was free.
I’m a nervous wreck. I know it needs to be done, and we’re not actually together, so I know I’m not breaking her heart.
But Taylor and I have been through so much together. We’ve been each other's safe place and shoulder to lean on for over six years.
Us breaking up... it’s going to get attention. That much I know.
Not just by our friends and peers, but by her family.
I’m not too worried about my parents. I hardly talk to my mom. As much as it kills me to avoid her, it’s better that I do. Any time I see her, it makes me want to kill my father, because she’s always sporting a new bruise.
She stopped reaching out, stopped trying. I still check in, just to make sure she’s still alive.
The thought is fucking depressing. But you can’t help someone who doesn’t want to be helped.
I’ve begged her so many times to leave, that we’d be okay just the two of us, that I’d take care of her, I’d protect her. But it wasn't enough. I wasn’t enough to make her leave.
So, I left. I was strong enough to get myself out of the situation, and I wish my mother could have been as well.
As for my dad, he hasn’t reached out. Good. I’d have told him to get fucked otherwise.
The last time I talked to him was when he was drunk off his ass, and I refused to give him two hundred dollars that I didn’t have, so he could smoke or drink it away. He told me to get the fuck out of his house.
It was a good thing I was already packing up and leaving to move into my dorm room. I took every single thing I owned and left.
Only to lose it all in a fire a few years later.
Knowing the good memories I had from the past are now gone fucking kills me.
But now, I can make new ones. With Bennett.
I can’t help but smile like a dumbass as I remember the way he looked at me when we woke up this morning, the way he kissed me, told me he loved me, and then gave me the best morning blow job ever.
“Someone looks happy.” Taylor surprises me. I look up to see her walking towards me.
“Hey.” I get up from where I was sitting on the front step of the hockey house. I wrap my arms around her, pulling her in for a hug.
“Wanna go for a walk?” she asks.
I nod. “Yeah.”
“So...” she says, sounding awkward.
I look down at her with worry. Is she okay? Things are never, and I mean never, awkward with us.
“You okay?” I ask.
“I’m breaking up with you!” she blurts, shocking the hell out of me and causing me to stumble to a halt.
“Wait, what?” I gape at her.
“I’m sorry!” She looks up at me with wide eyes, hands over her mouth. “Please don’t hate me.”
“No.” I shake my head. “No. You’re not breaking up with me.”
“Easton.”
“Because I’m breaking up with you first.” I narrow my eyes.
She gapes at me.
“No, you’re not. I already did it.” She puts her hands on her hips.
“But I was just about to. You can’t beat me to it.”
“But I already did,” she points out. “You can’t break up with me, because I already broke up with you.”
“That’s not fair. Who just blurts out shit like that? You couldn’t have eased me into it or something?” I throw my hands in the air.
“And what? Give you the chance to do it first?”
I blink at her, taking in this whole damn conversation before bursting out laughing. “You do realize we’re arguing about who gets to break up with who?”
Her lips curve into a smile. “We are so fucking weird.”
I pull her into a hug, kissing the top of her head. “Let me guess. Don’t want the world thinking you’re dating me when you’re really crazy mad about a bubbly blonde girl?” I whisper loud enough for only the two of us to hear.
“She deserves more than being my dirty little secret. But until I can find a way to come out to my parents, this is the best I have right now. She says it’s enough, and I’m hoping she means it.”
I sigh heavily. “Yeah, the same goes for me.”
“Wait...” She pulls back, eyes wide as she gapes at me. “Please tell me that means—”
I look around and make sure no one is near before speaking. “Bennett and I have pulled our heads out of our asses and actually acknowledged our feelings? Yeah. Pretty much.”
She squeals and starts jumping for joy, yet again surprising the fuck out of me.
“I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!” She giggles. “Ahh, I’m so happy for you.”
“Stop it.” I laugh, feeling my cheeks heat.
“Look at you.” She gives me that little lip, like you do when you look at something adorable. “You look so happy.” She starts to wave her hands at her face. “I’m gonna cry.”
“Don’t cry. It’s not that big of a deal.”
“Stop it. Don’t downplay this. It really is. Okay, so tell me everything! I want to know all the details.” She grins.
“Trust me, you don’t. I know we’re close, but...”
She gives me a menacing grin. “Oh my god, did you two fuck? I might be into women, but god, even I find that hot.”
“You’re crazy, you know that?” I shake my head.
“Tell me something I don’t know.” She waves me off. “Was it good? How big is his dick?”
My hand shoots forward to cover her mouth. “I need you to shut up now,” I growl. “We did not have sex.”
“This time.” She wiggles her brows.
My shoulders slump. “I don’t want to think about that time.”
“Why not?”
“Because I was a fucking asshole. I was rough and kind of mean.”
“Did he say it bothered him? That you hurt him?”
“Well, no, but...”
“Maybe he’s into that. Bennett seems like the type of guy who would have said something if it had a negative effect on him. My take is he liked it, but because of the situation, he hates that he likes it. Because that's how you feel, right?”
I hate how she knows me so well. “Yeah,” I mutter.
“Talk to him if it bothers you so much. But don’t let it eat at you unless he gives you a reason, okay? This is new, exciting, and I know it’s scary, trust me, I fucking know. Every time I’m with Aria, I’m both bouncing with excitement and trying not to shit my pants.”
“Ew, that is an image I didn't need in my head.” I wrinkle my nose.
“You know what I mean. We both have been hiding who we are for so long that finding the people, our people, who see the real us and let us be true to ourselves, it’s overwhelming, but fuck, it’s amazing.” She’s grinning from ear to ear.
I can’t help but smile back. “It kind of is.”
We hang out and talk for a bit before she heads off to meet with Aria.
Bennett is helping his mom at her bookstore, so I decided to get in a good workout, grab something to eat, and then shower before heading to work.
I’m starting to worry myself with how needy I’m feeling. All I want to do is see Bennett, text him, talk to him. I miss him, and I just saw him this morning.
How did I go from hating him to being crazy about him?
Because you never actually hated him. Just hated that you loved him.
Now I see how stupid that was.
I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my past, ones I can’t change. But I won’t be repeating them.
I’m not going to let fear fuck this up between us, not again. I won’t be the reason, and I won’t let my asshole of a father win.
He’s taken enough from me. Not this, not Bennett.
Work is pretty chill tonight. More people here to drink versus to eat, so the back is pretty dead.
When I have nothing to do, I head out front to see if I can help Cooper.
“Hey.” I nod. “Need any help?”
“Actually, yeah. Could you bring this tray of shots over to table ten?” he asks, placing two more shots down on the tray.
“Yeah, sure.” I nod.
With the tray in hand, I head over to the table, only to realize most of the guys at it are on my team. Fuck.
It’s not that this job is a secret. I’m just not close enough with most of my team for them to know my personal life.
“Easton.” Liam grins. “What brings you here?”
I hate this guy. I really fucking do.
“Work here,” I mutter, placing the tray down on the table. “Mostly in the back. Just helping out.”
“Huh. Nice.” He nods. “You like the cook or something like that?”
“Something like that.”
“Sorry to hear about you and Taylor.” He gives me a fake sympathetic look. “It must be hard to lose a bombshell of a girlfriend. Don’t worry, some other guy will make her happy.”
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Paul, one of my teammates, says. “Not cool, man.”
“What?” Liam laughs. “I’m just joking. So, what happened between the two of you?”
Is it unprofessional to punch him in the face at my place of work?
Probably, still doesn’t mean I don’t want to.
“Nothing. With me going to the NFL and us graduating, it made more sense to end things now. We’re still best friends. We’ve just grown in different directions.” Like the fact that we don’t have the parts the other wants.
“Don’t mind him. He’s just salty and pissed that he really doesn’t have a chance at getting back together with Bennett.”
At the mention of his name, my stomach drops. “What do you mean?”
“Saw him and Roland being all cozy. I guess they really are together.” Liam grumbles, taking a shot.
“Where?” My heart sinks. I thought he was going to let the guy down. Did Roland somehow get him to change his mind?
“At the coffee shop. They were smiling and laughing together. And when Bennett left, he gave him a hug. Looked too close for my liking.”
“Dude, you cheated on him. He moved on. Get over it. Find someone else, it’s getting old.” Paul sighs.
“You’re my friend!” Liam growls. “You’re supposed to be on my side.”
“I’m your friend, yes, but that doesn't mean you get a free pass on being an asshole. You don’t deserve him. And I think you need to do some growing up before you get in a real relationship again.”
“What the fuck, man?” Liam gets to his feet. “You’re a fucking asshole.”
“And your pity party is getting old. You’ve had yourself convinced that you were going to get another shot. Why? He gave you no indication that he would. He made it perfectly clear. Now he’s moved on with Roland, who happens to be a good guy. Just get the fuck over it.”
I have no idea what the fuck is going on. But clearly, Bennett didn’t end things with Roland if this is what people are thinking.
“They’re not together,” Danny, one of Bennett’s friends, says. I didn’t even realize that he was here.
“And how would you know?” Liam asks.
“I’m friends with Roland. He told me that Bennett told him he only wanted to be friends. So, I think you need to chill out. And you.” He looks to Paul. “Before you have everyone thinking they’re dating, when they’re not.”
“Oh,” Paul says. “Well, still,” he says to Liam. “You don’t have a chance, so get over it.”
“Fuck you,” Liam mutters. “All of you. Some friends you are.” He storms away from the table.
“Well, he’s a drama queen,” Tyson, another one of my teammates, says.
“Tell me about it.” Paul lets out a breath, downing a shot.
So, Bennett did let Roland down? Thank fuck. I was seconds away from losing my shit.
Relax, Easton. Breathe. Trust Bennett. He hasn’t lied to you yet, so don’t expect him to now.
“You and Roland are friends?” I ask Danny. “Did Bennett know?”
Danny shifts, looking uncomfortable. “I don’t know. Yeah?”
“But you and Bennett are close, like best friends. Wouldn’t he know you’ve gotten close to the guy he was kind of dating?”
“What’s it to you? You hate the guy.” Danny narrows his eyes.
“I don’t hate him,” I mutter. “He’s my roommate. He’s not so bad.” That's an understatement. I’m fucking obsessed with him. But he doesn't need to know that. No one does but the man himself.
I head back to the bar, helping Cooper with a few more tables before heading into the back to finish my shift.
Once everything is cleaned up and put away for the night, I head to the office to clock out and run into Bennett on my way out.
He gives me one of those grins that has my heart skipping a beat. Fucking hell, he’s hot.
“What are you doing here?”
“Geez.” He chuckles. “Don’t look so surprised to see me.”
“Sorry,” I mumble. “Wasn’t expecting you.”
He’s sitting at the bar having a drink. I move over to sit next to him. “We’re closed, you know,” I tell him.
“I know,” he laughs. “But perks of the owner being your uncle.”
“He’s not really your uncle, right?”
“Well, not by blood. But he’s my mom’s best friend, like her brother. We’ve always known him as Uncle Cooper. He’s family. Blood doesn’t always matter.”
I nod. He’s right. Taylor is my family. Always will be. The same as Aria is his.
“Anyways. I was coming back from helping mom, and the bar was on my way, so I thought I’d see if you needed a ride.”
“Bullshit.” I grin. “The bookstore is the opposite way.”
“Whatever,” he grumbles, and his cheeks heat.
“You wanted to see me,” I tease, getting closer. The bar is empty. Cooper had already left for the night. It’s just him and me.
“Yeah. So what if I did?” he asks, spinning around and angling his body toward me.
Like a moth to a flame, I can’t help but be pulled closer to him.
“I missed you,” I admit, feeling like some sappy, lovesick fool. Maybe I am. I spent so long denying myself and my feelings. Now that I’ve accepted them, there's no going back.
“I missed you, too.” His voice is thick and husky. My dick really loves that sound.
I’m about to lean in and kiss him, because fuck me, I need my lips on his, his hands on me, when his phone rings.
He frowns and grabs it out of the pocket. “Isaiah?” he murmurs. “He never calls me. Give me a second,” he tells me.
“Yeah, sure.” I nod.
He answers the phone. “Hey, what’s up?”
I can’t hear what his brother is saying on the other line, but by the way Bennett is out of his chair with worried panic on his face, it’s not good.
“Are you hurt?” He waits for his brother to speak.
“Do you need me to call an ambulance?” I can hear a frantic voice on the other line.
“Okay, okay. I’m on my way. Where are you?
” He nods his head to whatever his brother is saying.
“Okay, stay put.” He looks up at me with a furrowed brow.
“I gotta go. Something's going on with Isaiah. He’s crying, I think he’s hurt.
He won’t tell me. He just said he needs me to go get him. ”
Worry sinks in my stomach. “I’m coming with you.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.” I nod. “I’m not leaving you to deal with whatever this is on your own. Your brother needs you, and I’m gonna help.”
“Thank you.” He blows out a breath, nodding. “Thank you.”
“Let’s go.” I press a kiss to his lips. “It’s gonna be okay.”
“I hope so.” He growls. “I really fucking hope so. If someone hurt my brother, I’m going to fucking kill them.”
And I’m gonna be right there beside him, helping.