Chapter 21
Jason
Thud.
Thud.
Thud.
Thud.
Mark groaned in the darkness of their shared room. “What on earth?”
“Jason, you in there?” a muffled voice called through the door.
Jason threw an arm over his eyes. “Unless it’s an emergency, no, I’m not,” he called back.
There was a pause, and Jason rolled over on his side.
“You’re dating the boss’s sister, right?” the voice said.
Jason bolted up in bed and yanked on some pants, not bothering with a shirt before he prowled toward the door.
He swung it open and blinked to let his eyes adjust to the blinding hall light.
Merrick was one of the guys who specialized in cattle.
He stood in the doorway and dropped his hands from the frame when Jason came into view.
He didn’t look any worse for wear, but he fidgeted like he’d been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
“What about Isabelle?”
He glanced over his shoulder down the hallway, and Jason followed his gaze. There was another cowboy Jason didn’t recognize holding Isabelle in his arms.
Jason shoved past Merrick and lunged for the guy, but Merrick’s hand tightened on Jason’s shoulder, and he yanked him back.
“She’s fine. She’s just… really drunk.”
“Drunk?” Jason hissed, whirling around to face Merrick. So many bad memories of that night five years ago accosted him. “What did you give her?” He looked at Isabelle. “Do you have any idea what Mateo and his brothers will do if they find out—”
Merrick released Jason and held up both hands. “We didn’t give her anything. The girl can’t hold her liquor. I think she had a whiskey and a shot of something, and that was it.”
Liquor?
Isabelle didn’t drink. Not in all the time he’d been working here had he seen her partake in anything alcoholic. He eyed the guy holding Isabelle. She moaned and her head flopped back.
“That’s Finn Baker. We were hanging out at the restaurant tonight when Isabelle showed up.
Thought you might be meeting her, but when it became clear…
” Merrick’s voice trailed off and he stared at his boots.
“Nothing happened to her. I kept an eye on her, and the second I realized she wasn’t in a good place…
” He swallowed thickly. “Thought it best not to involve the boss on this one.”
Jason cut another look in Isabelle’s direction. Her eyes fluttered open, and she turned her glazed expression to Finn. There wasn’t an ounce of recognition in her eyes, but she lifted a hand and tapped his nose with a weak giggle.
Finn looked about as uncomfortable as Merrick.
“You’d be right,” Jason said, stepping closer to Finn to retrieve Isabelle. “She wouldn’t want her brother to see her like this.”
Enabling.
The thought entered his mind, unbidden.
That was what he was doing. If he let her continue down this path, he wouldn’t be helping.
Her head turned and she met his gaze as he pulled her into his arms. “Jason,” she slurred, “there you are. I’ve been waiting for you.”
His brows creased, but he didn’t respond. Instead, he watched as Merrick and Finn headed down the hall for the main part of the cabin.
“Merrick,” he called before they were out of sight. They stopped, and Jason sighed. “I trust that I can expect your discretion?” He cut a pointed look in Finn’s direction as well.
Finn brushed past Merrick and approached. “If I might point something out…”
Jason glanced at Merrick, who nodded.
“Sure,” Jason said.
“She doesn’t seem to be in a good place.”
No kidding. Jason bit back the scathing comment and waited for Finn to continue.
“Take it from a guy who spiraled after being kicked when he was down. Anytime someone turns to drinking in order to cope, it’s a sign they need to find help. Sometimes that help has to be forced because rock bottom looks different to everyone. Sometimes people don’t survive it.”
Jason flinched. He couldn’t stomach the idea of anything happening to Isabelle. He glared at Finn. “Seems to me you speak from personal experience.”
Finn nodded.
“Then why were you out drinking?”
“I wasn’t. I don’t drink. Not anymore anyways.” There seemed to be a lot to unpack with that statement, but Jason didn’t push it. None of his business.
One look in Merrick’s direction confirmed the truth, however.
“What would you have me do? It’s not like I can commit her. I can’t watch her every second of every day.”
Finn rubbed the back of his neck. “That’s the hardest part, I suspect. Sometimes the people in our lives are the only ones who know our weaknesses enough to use them for our own good.”
What did that even mean?
“Goodnight, Jason. It was nice to meet you.” Finn nodded to Isabelle. “Good luck. I’ll keep her in my thoughts.”
Jason stared down at Isabelle, who had closed her eyes again. She was completely out of it. Seeing her like this dredged up the worst of his memories of that night, and suddenly he was sick to his stomach.
“What’s going on?”
Jason turned around, finding Mark in the doorway, scrubbing a hand down his face. When he caught sight of Isabelle, his eyes bugged out and he looked more alert than ever.
“What happened?”
“Her demons came out to play,” Jason said, exhaustion lacing his words as he brought Isabelle to his bed. “Help me get her comfortable.”
“She’s not sleeping in here, is she? Mateo will skin you alive if he—”
“He’s not going to find out,” Jason snapped with a heated whisper. “Is he?”
They stared each other down. Mark was clearly uncomfortable with the current arrangement based on the way he shifted from one foot to the other. His eyes darted to where Isabelle currently rested on Jason’s bed.
“What about one of her sisters—”
“Not going to happen.”
“Why not?” Mark turned on him. “This isn’t your problem. She needs help, and you’re not doing her any good by pretending she’s fine.”
“I’m not pretending anything! I’m well aware that she needs to get help. But you can’t force someone to do something just because it’s right. They have to decide on their own that they need it.”
“And how exactly will that happen?” Mark’s exasperation dangled between them.
He shoved his fingers into his hair and paced their small room.
“All she needs is one person she can run to. One person, Jason. And she’ll cling to what’s comfortable.
If you can’t let her go, then there is truly no hope for her. You understand that, don’t you?”
Jason glanced over to Isabelle. Yes, he understood. And it gutted him, because he knew what he’d have to do in order to force her hand.
“I’m not sure I can,” he whispered more to himself than anyone else.
“You’re not sure you can what?”
Jason sighed and moved across the room to grab the chair at the desk. He dragged it toward the bed and settled into it with a groan. “I’m not sure I’m strong enough to cut off ties to her. How can anyone expect me to walk away? She needs me.”
Mark’s hand landed on his shoulder. “No one expects you to cut ties, man. But if you really want to help her, you have to lay out new parameters. Boundaries are necessary.”
He knew that. Deep down, it was so logical.
Isabelle was retreating inside herself. Ever since they’d bumped into Dillan, she’d begun to spiral. He’d seen the evidence of her slipping away from him. The bags under her eyes. And now this?
She’d turned to drinking. If that wasn’t rock bottom, he didn’t know that he wanted to witness it.
“Just think about what you’re doing,” Mark said. “Think about what’s best for her, even if it hurts you both.”
Jason nodded, his eyes never leaving Isabelle’s face. He’d sit by her side tonight, watching her, making sure she didn’t get sick. Maybe by the time the light shone through the windows, he’d be capable of doing the hardest thing in his life.
Words would be difficult to come by. He already knew that. At this point, he didn’t think ten lifetimes would be enough to figure out the right thing to say. And maybe that was the point.
Across the room, Mark climbed into bed. He rolled over, giving them his back. He knew more than he should, but he’d keep his mouth shut when it came to Nikki and Mateo. Jason could trust him. Hopefully, Finn and Merrick would be trustworthy as well.
Jason leaned over, bracing his forearms on his knees. He could still see Isabelle’s silhouette by the pale moonlight shining through the window. In a few short hours, he’d be expected to start on breakfast.
Based on her current state, Isabelle wouldn’t be getting up at her usual time. Hopefully he’d be back here before she woke so they could have a chat.
There was only one bright spot in all of this, as far as he was concerned.
Isabelle was sleeping—a deep and apparently dreamless sleep.
Nightmares wouldn’t find her tonight, which could be a blessing or a curse. The last thing he wanted was for Isabelle to grow dependent on a substance that knocked her out rather than dealing with the demons head-on.
He rested his head in his hands and took a calming breath. It was going to be a long night.