22. Brooke
22
***Brooke***
M om and Aunt Karlene’s parting words to me before I left that morning were still playing in my head. They’d pointed out that a man who didn’t care wouldn’t have been so scared that I’d been gone. They’d seemed calm, almost subdued, which was enough to freak me out. But they’d both been serious when they told me to be open to whatever happened. I would’ve been terrified that they’d been body snatched if I hadn’t heard them arguing about whose ass I had, Mom’s or Aunt Karlene’s, when I was pulling the door shut.
The wall loomed over me as I stood next to the hardware store, wondering what was wrong with me. When Sinclair had been working on the wall with me, I’d been able to do enough to make it seem like I wasn’t just goofing off. Without the little girl, though, I felt all of my fear creeping back in. I’d never finished a painting on a larger scale. I wasn’t even sure I’d finished a small painting. I just didn’t like endings. Any kind, apparently.
I’d started to sketch in flowers in one corner of the mural with Sinclair so I decided to focus on them. I worked on their outlines for a while, making sure they were perfect before I stepped back and studied the rest of the wall. Almost without my brain’s permission, my hand moved to add a figure in the flowers. Sinclair. With her sandy blonde hair and her dad’s blue eyes, she would be right standing amongst the flowers. I’d keep the face generic enough so Kelly and Noah didn’t feel weird about it.
I was so lost in my head that I didn’t hear footsteps approaching me from behind. I didn’t notice a figure looming over me until a hand gripped my shoulder and spun me around, nearly knocking me over. I screamed as adrenaline flooded my system but the sound was cut short when I saw who was standing in front of me, hand still gripping my shoulder.
Finn Love. His face was twisted in anger for a second longer but then it crumpled into something close to grief before he dragged me into his chest and held me too tight. “Brookie! I thought something had happened to you.”
My arms were pinned between us but I tried fruitlessly to push him away. “Something did happen to me, Finn!”
He reared back. “What, baby? What could’ve happened to make you leave me like you did?”
My face went blank. He knew. I’d sent exactly one text in a group chat to him, Meredith, and his monster of a mother. I’d made it clear that I’d seen their disgusting act and was no longer interested in continuing my relationship with any of them.
“What? What is it, Brookie?” He stroked my cheeks and cupped my jaw. “You don’t know how heartbroken I’ve been. You’re my entire world, Brookie. You got cold feet and ran. I can forgive that. I just need you to come home.”
I ripped my face out of his hands and held my paintbrush up between us like a weapon. “Stop touching me.”
“Honey?”
“I saw you fucking Meredith, Finn. You’re a cheating pig.” I shook my head. “You know I know. What are you doing? Why are you pretending like you don’t know?”
He came at me and I swiped the paint brush at him. It got the tips of his fingers and he reacted like I’d drawn blood. “Brooke! Jesus. This is a brand new suit.”
I sent him a nasty smile. “Then you’d better get away because this paint doesn’t come out.”
He took a few protective steps back and regrouped. “What you think you saw isn’t real, Brookie. I wasn’t sleeping with Meredith. She’s your boss, for god’s sake. She asked me for a meeting to talk about your work… You weren’t doing enough.”
That stung. I’d worked hard for Meredith. I’d done things way above my job description to make sure she looked good in front of her bosses, even in the short time I’d been there. “Bullshit.”
“Baby, just stop this. You belong at home with me.” He sighed and ran his hand through his perfectly styled hair, somehow not budging a single piece. “I miss you. You want me to get on my knees and beg you? I will.”
I nearly threw myself backwards to get away from the very image. “No! God, Finn, no! Just go home. I’m not leaving Beaumont.”
He chanced ruining his suit and came at me again. Before he could grab me, though, a deep bark of anger came from the street.
“Hey! Get the fuck away from her!” Colt. He was a giant ball of rage as he came towards me.
I’d never felt so relieved to see him look so angry. When he moved to stand in front of me, blocking me from Finn, I stayed behind him and inhaled the complex scent of him. He’d been working so his usual delicious scent was teased with salt water and sweat.
“Who are you? Go away. This is a private matter between my wife and I.” Finn was really losing it.
“We’re not married, Finn. We’re never going to be married. I’d rather cut off my right tit than marry you. Go back to Meredith or whoever else you’ve been screwing behind my back.”
Colt grunted. “Not the right one. That’s the bigger twin.”
Finn’s face went deep red. “Have you been sleeping with this…this man?”
I was still reeling from hearing Colt talk about my tits. “Wait. What did you just say? My boobs are the same size.”
“Nope. The right one is slightly bigger.”
“He’s right.” Finn pouted.
Colt growled. “Go away. Now. Before I take you out on my boat and throw you overboard with a few bricks tied to your shiny, new shoes.”
“This isn’t over, Brookie. I love you.” Finn backed away. “We belong together.”
“Go!” Colt waited until Finn was gone to turn to me. Whatever he saw in my face made him step back like he was the one being threatened with brick shoes. “What?”
He’d saved me. Not that I thought Finn would hurt me, but still. He’d come to my rescue. Maybe he didn’t completely hate me.
I threw my arms around his neck and hugged him. “Thank you, Colt.”
He stood there for a moment before he brought his arms up to rest around my waist for the briefest of seconds before he pulled away. “Painting looks like shit so far.”
I sighed. There he was, the man who wore the face of a boy I’d once loved, the man who hated me as much as he’d ever maybe loved me. I watched him stomp away and wrapped my arms around myself, suddenly chilled in the hot summer sun.