Chapter 17
T he door swings open and immediately I barge in, storming past a bemused Carter as I search around, seeking the main reason I’m here.
“Nice to see you too. What the hell are you doing here?”
“Looking for Gracie Lou Freebush.”
“She’s in the bath. What do you need?”
I don’t answer as I barrel down the hall in the direction of the master bathroom.
“Hey, dickwad. I said she’s in the bath. What do you think you’re doing?” Carter runs after me, but I’m faster. A man on a mission who will not be deterred.
“Grace, cover up, honey. I’m coming in.”
“What?” I hear her sputter, followed by the sound of water splashing about just as I enter the room. Carter hip checks me out of the way, rushing over to the tub Grace is relaxing in and readjusting her bubbles or some shit.
I fall onto a stool in the corner of the bathroom, as far away from the tub as I can, staring down at the floor. “I’m not here to look at your woman’s tits,” I growl at my brother before softening my voice. “No offense, Grace. I’m sure they’re lovely, but I’m truly not interested.”
Grace sits up a little more, a smirk on her lips. “I appreciate that, but why are you here?”
My elbows drop to my parted thighs, my head in my hands. “I need girl talk.”
“Ah. Um. Okaaay. Well, I can get out of the tub.”
“I don’t want to ruin your bath. You can stay in there and I promise I won’t look.”
“Damn fucking straight, you won’t look.”
“Slow your alpha, little brother. I just said I’m not interested and I’m not going to look.”
“Carter?” Rina’s voice rings out through the apartment.
“In the master bathroom,” I yell back, and Carter’s brown eyes go comically wide. As do Grace’s.
“Why is Rina here?” Carter grunts.
“I told you. Girl talk. Go grab us some candy or popcorn or whatever girls eat when they’re doing this. Oh, ice cream, right? You ladies eat ice cream?”
Rina comes to a skidding halt when she enters the bathroom. “Ummm… yeah, you told me this was an emergency.”
“It is. Clearly.” I wave my hand around the room.
“This isn’t really my kink.”
I roll my eyes, glancing up at my baby sister. “I’d sure as hell hope not since you’re related to nearly everyone in here.”
“Grace?! What’s the emergency?” Oliver also comes storming in here, only to freeze midstep when he discovers Grace in the bath.
He spins around, covering his eyes. “What the fuck, Luca? You called Amelia and told her there was an emergency and she had to get to Grace’s immediately. So we fucking came.”
“Can everyone get out!” Carter snaps, his voice pure agitation. “My pregnant woman is in the bath.”
“We can see that, Carter, but what’s with the fucking emergency?”
“Okay. Everyone out,” Grace demands. “I’m getting out of the tub and unless you want to see me naked, I suggest you all go wait for me in the great room.
Oliver, go make yourself useful and get my food arsenal.
We’re talking everything. Popcorn, ice cream—that’s for Luca—Oreos with crunchy peanut butter, fluff, and gummy worms. I’ve hidden those in the cabinet above the stove where I keep my prenatal vitamins so Carter wouldn’t find them and throw them out. ”
“So wait.” Oliver is still facing away from the bathroom, looking impossibly confused. “You’re okay? You’re fine?”
“Clearly,” Amelia deadpans. “And I think I know what this is all about. Come on.” She gives his arm a tug. “Let’s go get supplies. I think we’re going to need them.”
“I’ll help,” I offer.
“I’m getting wine,” Rina announces. “Sorry, Grace, but that’s how I roll with girl talk. It’s either that or shots and I have a shift tomorrow.”
Grace waves her away and then makes a motion to shoo everyone else out. I follow after Rina as Carter helps Grace out of the tub and by the time we reach the living room, Landon and his girlfriend, Elle, are standing there, as perplexed as everyone else.
“I didn’t invite you, boogers. Just your women. I’ve already whined and complained to you assholes enough and look at where I am now.”
“Who pissed in your Cheerios?” Landon shoots back.
“I did, brother.” I slap my twin’s shoulder, my forehead falling onto it. “I pissed in my own damn Cheerios. At night, which isn’t even breakfast time. And now I need all the female help I can garner. It’s why I sent for the best. I didn’t want to put you out with this again.”
“Aww, I’m flattered you included me.” Elle comes up and pats my cheek, her hazel eyes sparkling.
“This will be fun. I’ve never done girl talk with a guy before.
We should start a club. Help teach men to become better men and learn to speak and understand women.
They’ll award us The Nobel Peace Prize.”
Elle’s a firecracker. A woman who managed to make my grumpy, miserable twin fall head over heels.
She’s perfect for the job. And Amelia, who didn’t trust a whole lot and had it rough, is now endlessly in love with Oliver.
The fake engagement ring—which is actually a family heirloom diamond—is still on her finger as a placeholder.
Rina, who lived through a nightmare no woman ever should, is now very happy and in love with Brecken.
And Grace’s fiancé cheated on her and now she’s happy and pregnant and living with Carter.
I need these women. They hold the key. The secret men know nothing about. We stumble and fumble and fuck shit up constantly. But with their help… maybe, just maybe I can win my woman back.
Raven’s words broke my heart tonight.
I knew I hurt her in Martha’s Vineyard. I knew I broke her heart. Hell, that was my intention. As much as it destroyed me to do that, I had no choice.
But I didn’t know what my sending the flowers and flying in to see her perform was doing to her.
Hell, I didn’t even know she knew I did that.
It wasn’t that often. And I never went backstage to see her.
I never spoke to her. I knew that would be too hard.
For both of us, because it fucking would have been.
Sitting in those seats and watching her from afar was torture enough, but I told myself I was doing it for her. That I was saving her from more heartache when in reality, I was doing the opposite. She knew I was there. I don’t know how, but she did.
“Okay,” Oliver says, handing me a glass of bourbon because my brothers are good people and they’re not leaving even though I’m snarly with them. “Sit. Tell us what’s going on because I’ll be honest, you gave me a heart attack. I thought something was up with Grace.”
I give his shoulder a squeeze before I find a chair and drop into it. “I’m sorry about that. It’s why I called Amelia and not you.”
“Well, I was there when you were talking to her, so now you’re stuck with me.”
“And me.” Landon takes the chair beside mine, grabbing Elle’s tiny hips and pulling her onto his lap.
“Popcorn’s ready.” Rina shoves a huge bowl at me that I reflexively accept, popping a piece into my mouth before setting it down on the coffee table in favor of my drink.
“Ice cream is a no-go because they only have fudge pops in their freezer.” She crinkles her nose in disdain as she drops the bag of Oreos on the table. “Who eats fudge pops who isn’t five?”
“I kinda ditto that sentiment,” Amelia asserts, adding to the growing pile of junk food that’s now sprawled out across the coffee table. “How do you not have at least a pint of Ben & Jerry’s in your freezer?”
“Because I’m trying not to eat junk food,” Grace declares, entering the room wearing her pajamas and heading straight for the buffet of sugar and carbs with a light in her eyes that resembles love and addiction.
I know it well. “Carter won’t let me buy half this stuff.
It’s why I have to hide it, but you can’t hide stuff well in the freezer. ”
“I can’t believe I didn’t know you were hiding all this crap here.”
Grace sits on the floor, scooting up until she’s face height with it. Then she goes straight for the bag of gummy worms, rips it open, shoves one in her mouth, and gives Carter an unrepentant shrug and a deal with it grin.
“All right, now that you’ve turned my place into a food orgy, tell us what’s going on.”
Carter accepts a glass from Oliver, who has taken a bottle to the table and everyone’s eyes fall on me, food and booze momentarily forgotten in their hands. Well, except for Grace, who seems to be multitasking.
I launch into an account of everything that happened this evening with my Little Bird and when I’m finished, no one says anything for the longest time.
Rina gulps down her wine, pouring herself another glass.
Elle holds out hers and Rina tops it off.
Amelia and Oliver stare into each other’s eyes, having some sort of silent conversation.
Grace is lathering up an Oreo with crunchy peanut butter and fluff.
Landon is staring at me the way Landon always does, trying to read more out of me than he thinks I’m sharing.
Carter is glaring down into his glass like the thing will have all the answers I need.
“This isn’t how I envisioned girl talk going,” I admit, finishing off my own glass and letting Oliver pour me another two fingers. Seems I’m going to need it.
“She thinks you abandoned her because she wasn’t enough?” Amelia picks up an Oreo, splitting it open and licking the cream. “Wow. That’s just… I know what that feels like. I kinda want to go find her and do girl talk with her instead of you.”
“Same,” Grace garbles around whatever is in her mouth. “I had no clue she felt that way. She never mentioned anything to me about that. Did she with you, Rina?”
Rina shakes her head, tilting her glass back and forth while watching the burgundy-colored liquid move about her glass.
“No. I knew she felt that way about her mom. She had mentioned to me once shortly after she died that she didn’t understand why she wasn’t enough to make her stay.
That if she had been, maybe her mom would have still been alive. ”