37. Rex
THIRTY-SEVEN
REX
I’d hoped once I got the call about Winston being stuck in the tree, it would be my chance to finally get through to Abigail. It had been three days, and I still hadn’t heard a word from her. I couldn’t say how many times I’d picked up my phone to call or text her throughout the day then put it back down without contacting her. She’d rejected my declaration. What else could I have said? What else could I do?
While my heart was still heavy without her, I felt lighter in other ways. Donny had made amends, and now he was staying with our mom in her small apartment until he figured things out, which gave me some much-needed space. He would be okay. I’d spent more time at the station, and life felt steadier than it had since this whole charade had started.
Then my phone rang. My heart leaped when I saw the name Stone. Then it sank when I realized it was a different member of the clan. Gabe was calling.
Trepidation shivered through me. It was the first time we’d spoken since the jail cell, making this the longest we’d gone without talking since we were in middle school. With a deep breath, I swiped to answer.
“Hello?”
“Hey, man. How’s it going?”
“Good,” I replied, but realized that was a dead lie. Shoving a hand through my hair, I admitted, “That’s not true. I’m… I’m hanging in there.”
“I hear ya,” he said, and cleared his throat. “Hey—why don’t you stop by Sullivan’s today? I’ve got some hot wings with your name on them.”
It was like things had gone back to normal. Like the whole confession and me sleeping with his sister behind his back never happened. Was it real? “Hot wings, huh? I thought you were pissed at me.”
“I was. But I’m not anymore.”
“Really? Just like that?” I doubted Gabe would make allowances even if he was my best friend.
“Sort of. I’ll explain when you come down here. How’s lunchtime?”
A breath sighed out of me. I hadn’t realized how much Gabe’s silence was weighing on me. The loss of his friendship on top of the loss of Abigail felt like a little too much to reckon with. But now, hope bloomed. “Sure, I’ll be there.”
Just before noon, I walked through the door at Sullivan’s the same way I had for years. Gabe was standing behind the bar in his usual button-down with the collar open. He looked up and smiled, waving me over to my regular stool. I took my usual seat, and he circled the bar and sat next to me.
“I thought you said there were wings?” I joked, giving him a sideways glance.
“In a minute. I have some things I need to say.” There was a seriousness to his tone that made my chest tight. Maybe this wasn’t a friendly meeting after all.
“Okay…”
Gabe leaned one elbow against the bar and met my gaze. “I gotta be honest, I don’t like being kept in the dark. If there’s something going on with you and my sister, I need to know about it. We’re supposed to be friends.”
“That’s fair,” I said, convinced the verbal beating was coming. But I wasn’t going to take it, even if we were old friends. “But you didn’t exactly make it easy for me to tell you.”
“You’re right. I’m beginning to see that I’m kind of a dick when it comes to Abigail.”
“Yeah, you are. And Abigail is her own person. A smart, independent, successful woman. She doesn’t need your permission to go on a date.”
Gabe seemed taken aback, and I knew it was because he wasn’t used to me speaking so honestly. “I know. I need to back off. Abigail’s an adult, and I don’t give her enough credit.”
“No, you don’t.”
“Dude, I’m trying to apologize,” he protested.
“I don’t remember hearing I’m sorry,” I shot back with a little smirk. It was time we were all called on our bullshit.
“Okay, okay. I’m sorry. I’m sorry for being such a jerk about you being with Abigail, and I’m sorry I went after you and believed you kissed Blair. I should’ve known something more was going on. I just got caught up in all the drama.”
“So you believe me now?”
“Yeah, you’ve always been a great friend to me. That and Sophie found the video on YouTube. Some rando reposted it.”
“Really?” I asked, and he nodded. “Did Abigail see it too?”
He lowered his gaze. “I don’t know. She hasn’t been speaking to me.”
“Damn.”
Gabe chewed his lip. “She wasn’t even this bad after her divorce.”
I leaned against the bar and stared at the wood grain. “That’s because I fucked up.”
“We both did.”
We were silent for a beat. I let out a long breath and said, “I’m in love with her, Gabe.”
He met my gaze. “Yeah?”
“Yeah. I want to win her back.”
He let out a slow breath as he took it in. “How are you gonna do that?”
That was the question. I’d already rescued Winston from a tree. I’d told her how I felt. Put it all on the line. Was there anything I could do at this point? I didn’t know, but now I knew I had to try. I leaned back and knocked my knuckle on the bar. That’s when one of those (hopefully) brilliant ideas popped into my head. “How about you get me those wings and I’ll tell you what I’ve come up with?”
He smiled. “Comin’ right up!” Gabe hopped off his stool and headed to the kitchen. I sat at the bar and took in the whole conversation. Gabe and I were good. We were better than good because we were finally honest with one another.
Now, instead of keeping me away from Abigail, he was going to help me get her back.