Chapter 55 - Derrick
DERRICK
“Aaaahhhh.” I scream as we zip line through the rainforest. I thought I was good with heights.
It seems like no one told that to my brain or body because I’m freaking out, zipping through Jurassic Park.
I force my eyes open to enjoy the breathtaking view of the bright blue sky and the endless blue horizon of the ocean.
At least I’m getting a suntan while out here, so I’ll look glowy for the wedding.
Got to count your blessings. We were up at the crack of dawn for fishing, of which I am not a fan.
There was also some scuba diving, which was fun, especially when I got to see some turtles, and then we went ATVing in the mud, and bloody hell, those boys are competitive.
My mind wanders back to everything that happened yesterday.
“Hey, you’re Everly, aren’t you?” I ask, running into her at the buffet.
“Yeah, hi.” She smiles.
She is gorgeous, with blonde hair, blue eyes, and rosy cheeks. “I’m Derrick.”
“I know who you are,” she says before clamping her mouth shut as if she exposed a secret. “I mean, Jackson explained who you are.”
This makes me laugh. “It’s okay, I ran into Charlie this morning. We’re friends again.”
“You did?” This time her reaction is surprised.
“Did he not mention it?” I ask her. She shakes her head. Oh.
“I’m glad you’ve sorted things out. My brother is a good guy, he’s just … um …”
“Broken?”
Her brows knit together. “My brother hates pity, so please don’t think of him as broken. Charlie’s assimilating.”
That’s an interesting way to look at things, but it’s her brother, so I’m going to assume she knows what’s best for him, so I’ll follow her lead.
“How come he’s not here?” I ask, stacking my plate with salad.
“He’s not great in big groups. Last night was a lot for him, so he thought he would give it a miss tonight, recharge his social battery, so to speak. I’m making him a plate and was going to bring it to him.”
“Did you want me to do that?” The words were out before I realize what I’m saying.
“You want to take him his dinner?” she asks, seemingly surprised.
I shrug. “My social battery is draining, too, plus we have to be up at the crack of dawn for Finn’s bachelor day, and this way I can have an early night without looking like a flake.”
She’s hesitant, and I can see her mulling it over, but something flicks and she smiles. “Sure, let me finish filling it up.” She happily hums away filling up Charlie’s plate. I quickly shove the bit of salad I have on my plate into my mouth before taking the plate from her. “We’re in cabin 37.”
I know, but she doesn’t need to know I know.
Walking through the darkness, I soak in the gorgeous atmosphere, the Tiki torches, the shimmery moon in the night sky, and the subtle noise of the waves crashing.
I make it to his villa, and I hesitate. What if I walk in on him jerking off?
Not that I would mind that. He wouldn’t be doing that knowing his sister was coming back with dinner.
True. Wishful thinking on my part. I reach for the doorknob and let myself in.
“Derrick!” Charlie screams, and he looks mad. Really mad and shocked to see me there.
And I’m just as shocked seeing him … without a leg. The prosthetic limb is standing beside him as he rubs lotion into his knub.
“Get the fuck out!” he roars at me.
“I … um … here’s your dinner,” I say, placing it on the counter and scrambling out of the villa because I think he is going to murder me. Slamming the door behind me, I walk in a daze back to my villa.
He doesn’t have a leg.
Fuck. He doesn’t have a leg.
I had no idea.
Why didn’t he tell me?
All these questions swirl through my mind as I contemplate what I’ve seen. What happened to him? I can’t imagine what he’s gone through. Fuck. Why did Jackson not tell me?
“You don’t look so well, D.” Evan chuckles as I unharness myself from the zipline.
“Looks like you broke, D, Finn,” Christian teases as I’m unable to form words.
“That would be a first.” Finn laughs.
Ignoring all of them, I walk over to the bar, grab a bottle of water, and throw it back.
“Are you okay?” Jackson asks me. I give him a side-eyed glare. “I mean, about Charlie, not the zipline. He told me, well, Everly did because he chewed her out for letting you bring him dinner instead of her.”
“It wasn’t her fault, I didn’t knock. Is she okay?”
Jackson nods. “She’s used to his moods. The accident changed him, locked him in the perpetual state of what ifs and thoughts of what he has lost, not that he has a future and life to live, that it all didn’t disappear that day in Afghanistan.
” Jackson looks out to the ocean, lost in his thoughts for a moment.
“Seeing who he really is hasn’t changed the way you see him, has it? ”
“What! No.”
He nods. “I want him to come to LA. Being stuck in the mountains, locked in the past, isn’t healthy for him. I’d hoped your friendship would motivate him to come, but I can see he still has work to do.”
“I like him. Don’t know why because his mood swings give me whiplash, but I do. He gives me butterflies. But he’s not ready for anything more than friendship, I see that now.”
Jackson is surprised by my confession. “And … um … seeing him like that, you’re still … um attracted to him?”
“Not going to lie, it was a surprise, but it also made everything else make sense. I ran into him yesterday when I went for a run. He was in sweats, it’s fucking hot, and I thought that was strange. Now I know why.”
“Charlie’s still uncomfortable about his prosthetic, as are the others. I feel guilty because I got out of it all lucky except for some shrapnel scars on my legs.” He points to the jagged bits of skin.
“Wow. That’s the first time I’ve noticed them.”
“Really?”
I nod. “You are always in jeans, I realize, but maybe I’m too busy checking out your abs to worry about your legs,” I tease.
Jackson smiles. “You’re a good guy, D, and I would love nothing more than to see you and Charlie together because I honestly believe you would be good for him, and when he gets out of his head, he’d be good for you.
He wasn’t always this moody, brooding guy.
He was the life and soul of the party, like you.
He would be the first one on a dance floor, and he was always cracking jokes.
I hate what this accident has done to him, but it’s affected us all in different ways.
Mine is guilt. I couldn’t save my men that day.
Every night, I see their faces haunting me. Why did I survive, and they didn’t?”
“There’s no rhyme or reason why some live and some die, it’s just life.”
Jackson reaches out and squeezes my shoulder. “I can tell myself it was luck of the draw that day, but it still doesn’t make it any easier.”
“You are honoring those men in your business by helping the ones you can help. That is admirable.”
“Thanks, D. Wasn’t expecting to have a deep and meaningful at ziplining, but here we are.” He chuckles. “Just be patient with Charlie, please.”
“I will,” I reassure Jackson as he walks back to the guys.
“What are we doing here?” Christian groans.
“This wasn’t on my itinerary,” I grumble, wanting to head back to the resort to talk to Charlie.
“I know. I know, but today has been kind of awesome, and I’ve been inspired,” Finn says excitedly.
“Did you forget to buy her a wedding gift?” Evan asks.
“No, I have that. I’ve seen you fuckers go through this all. I’ve got it all covered. No, I had an epiphany while we were scuba diving this morning,” Finn explains.
“No. That’s called shitting your pants,” Oscar teases, which earns the bird from Finn.
“I love it here,” Finn states.
“Can’t deny this island is awesome. Best holiday I’ve had in a long time,” Finn’s dad mentions.
“Good. Because I want to buy this house,” Finn says.
We all fall silent.
“Excuse me, son?” Finn’s dad questions him.
“I want us to make more memories as a family. I also want to get Easton away from the whole Hollywood scene. My son will grow up wanting for nothing, and this Hollywood bubble he’s going to grow up in isn’t the real world. I want to show him there’s more outside of all the riches of where we live.”
I had no idea the guys felt like this. They all seemed so happy in LA.
Evan’s been grumbling more about maybe moving back to Australia, which is devastating for me.
I can’t be that far away from Sienna and my babies.
Even Vanessa agrees. I know having a family changes things, but I didn’t realize it would be this significant.
“And you think buying a multi-million-dollar home in Hawaii is going to make him realize there’s more to life?” Hudson asks his brother.
“It’s safe here. He can run around and not worry about anything. He’ll be able to immerse himself in nature. Plus, there are no paparazzi and no people trying to get photos of him or the threat of kidnapping because of who I am.”
Hudson’s eyes widen. “You think someone would do that?”
My heart sinks at the thought of someone wanting to hurt any of the Dirty Texas babies.
“The guys live in the public eye, so there are always threats,” Jackson explains to Hudson.
“I had no idea,” Hudson says, shaking his head.
“It’s not something we like to dwell on, but eventually, it would be nice not to have to be in LA,” Finn adds.
“That’s why we love being down in Australia. If I could live at our home in Byron Bay all year ‘round, I would. The lifestyle down there for the kids is great. The only things I have to worry about are the sharks in the water and stupid killer octopuses in the rock pools,” he jokes.
Axel pipes up, “That’s the same with England. We can kind of go anywhere without worrying, especially when we’re at Olivia’s family estate. You notice the difference, the clean air, the green rolling hills, no traffic, the friendly faces.”
“And the rain,” Axel’s dad adds, making us laugh.
“Yeah, the rain. But it kind of adds to the charm of it all. Now that Olivia is pregnant, the lifestyle I was chasing isn’t what I think I want anymore.
Maybe I’m getting old, or maybe I just want to slow down and stop working for a while.
I mean, we haven’t stopped since we were teens,” Axel confesses.
“You boys have started expanding. If you all want to live somewhere else, why don’t you set up offices in those locations and work from there? You don’t have to be in LA,” Evan’s dad advises them. Good point, Papa Wyld.
“We have already started London and New York,” Axel muses.
“I guess we could expand into Australia,” Evan suggests.
“I know Stacey would love to live closer to her family in Australia,” Oscar points out.
“Your mom would miss you, son,” Oscar’s dad tells him.
“You could always come with us,” Oscar tells him.
“I’m not sure about those killer sharks and octopuses Evan was talking about earlier.” His dad laughs.
“You didn’t die when you were there a couple of years ago,” Oscar reminds him.
“True. But I don’t want to tempt fate,” his dad argues back with a grin.
“Sounds like big changes are happening for Dirty Texas again. We’d all miss ya,” Zander, the tattoo artist from The California Bros., adds.
“Kids change everything. You’re a family man now, Finn. You have to do what’s best for your family,” Finn’s dad says, clapping him on the shoulder.
“Well, how about I start by buying this house? And then we can work out the rest.” Finn smirks.
These rockstars and their real estate kink.