Chapter 19 #2
Bobby is a liar and a manipulator. He took advantage of my loneliness and gave me everything I was craving—a connection, a sounding board for talking about Carlos so that I wouldn’t forget him—because Bobby was a hero in disguise, a wolf in sheep’s clothing, trying to save the damsel in distress from herself. I’m a fool for falling hard for him.
I toss my phone on the table and cross my arms.
The guys look from the phone to me. Gage raises a brow. I give him the peace sign. It’s better than bawling my eyes out and hurling the dish of my half-eaten omelet at the wall.
“Shit.” Ty runs his fingers through his short-cut hair. “Shit, shit, shit.” He drops into his chair, snatches his cell, and scrolls through it with his finger.
We wait for him to share what’s on his mind. When he doesn’t, I utter an exasperated, “What, Ty?”
“He and I played football. Our high schools were rivals.”
I replay Bobby’s and my conversation in my head, the shock of it all rolling over me like a wave, and I am drowning in the truth before my eyes.
Tyler Moretti. The girls were wild for him in school.
What about you? Do you have siblings?
Just my younger sister. I’d like to see her more, but work takes up my time.
“Is he related to Braxton?” I ask. Please, please, please, tell me Bobby is a distant cousin.
“Half-brother. Same father. Different mothers.” Ty shoves his chair back, rises, and paces back and forth.
Does Gwen know her father cheated on her mother? She has to. Bobby said he visits her. Does he see her on campus? She’s never mentioned having a half-brother. Is she ashamed of him? My heart aches at the thought.
Were I to have half-siblings, I wouldn’t keep their existence a dirty secret or pretend they didn’t exist. I can’t imagine Gwen, one of the sweetest girls I know, would think of Bobby in that way.
“I need a picture. Show me a recent picture.” I’m not a gambler. I need to see for myself that we’re talking about the same Bobby.
Joey picks up his cell, taps on the screen, and slides the phone across the table to me. I pick it up and stare at the screen. Tall. Ripped. Dimpled smile. Bright green eyes. Chiseled jawline. And his arms are around a beautiful and leggy brunette.
“Keep swiping left, mi princesa.”’
I do.
“What do you see?” Joey asks.
“He leaves with a different woman in a different car.”
“Bingo. Guess what?”
“What?” I look up from the condemning evidence that Bobby lied to me. I wasn’t the only woman he propositioned inside Crimson.
“I overheard him and Dom talking. Bobby sold all his cars except for his Ducati and the lifted black pickup truck. He’s crazy for offloading those beauties.” Joey shakes his head.
Bobby sold the cars that other women were in, but kept the motorcycle from when we watched the sunset, living out his fantasy, and the truck where we kissed and made out, living out my fantasy?
Any hope that I’m the only woman in Bobby’s life is squashed by the photos on Joey’s phone. “Sorry, I didn’t see him.” I push the phone away and dig into my meat omelet.
Ty and the guys can never know what happened between Bobby and me.
They’ll hurt him. My father can never know of our agreement.
He’ll order his men to kill Bobby. I can’t break Gwen’s heart.
I refuse to put her through what I went through.
I lost myself with Carlos’s death. Two years later, I’m incomplete, still missing the pieces of my heart that I gave to Carlos.
He took those pieces with him when he died.
Except he didn’t die.
Carlos was murdered.
There’s a rumor that Bobby led Carlos to the kill shot point. I’m not sure who started it or when, but what began as a spark is growing into a fire. The crew is angry. I overheard them demanding justice from Ty.
Is there truth to the rumor?
The Bobby who kissed me with tenderness, who took me to a scenic point to watch the sunset because it was his fantasy, couldn’t have done something so evil.
But Bobby knew who I was that night. He withheld his identity from me and didn’t tell me that he and Ty were rivals in high school when I brought up Ty’s name. Most importantly, he didn’t tell me he was the owner of Crimson.
If the rumor is true and Bobby was there with Carlos, then Carlos trusted Bobby with his life. Carlos’s body was found in a dangerous area, according to Ty. I trusted Bobby with my heart and my memory of Carlos. I also spent his money in exchange for one day and one night with him.
Crap, I’m in deep shit, but I refuse to give Bobby the upper hand. I’ll play to win. I’ll give Bobby one day and one night, then I’ll walk away with my heart intact.
I can’t fall for my best friend’s brother. I can’t be seen with the guy rumored to have been involved with Carlos’s murder. My father can never know of my bargain with Bobby. He’d rather take out Bobby than have me keep my end of the bargain.
Bobby is a jerk for misleading me, but I would never wish him harm. Unfortunately, life isn’t one or the other. Life is a messy intersection of paths.
My life and Bobby’s will soon collide.