Chapter 6
Devyn had grand plans for making sure Lucky knew she was truly ready for a relationship. More than just one of friendship. But after she got home from lunch with Aspen, Spencer called.
“Spencer, you need to stop calling me,” she said in lieu of a greeting.
“Hey, sis. Long time no talk.”
“Seriously, I’m done.”
“Are you ever going to forgive me for shoving you?” Spencer asked.
Devyn winced. “It’s not about that.”
But he ignored her and kept talking. “Because I’ve already apologized. I was upset that day, and I didn’t mean to push you so hard. It wasn’t my fault you’re clumsy and hit that table and fell.”
“That’s bullshit and you know it,” she said, angry that he would spin the situation to make himself feel better about what he’d done.
“Whatever. Siblings fight, Dev. We’ve always been that way. Remember when you were eleven and you didn’t like something I’d said to one of my friends about you, and you almost pushed me out of our treehouse?”
Devyn winced. She had done that. “We were kids, Spencer. It was different.”
“But we’re the same people. Family. And family helps each other.”
And there it was. The guilt he was so good at inflicting. Especially on her. “I did help you, Spence. And you promised it would be the last time. And yet you came back wanting more. You need help, and until you admit that and actually go through with it, I’m done bailing you out.”
“Devyn, you’re the only one I can go to. Fred won’t help, he’ll tell me to man up or some other bullshit, and Mila and Angela don’t have any money. I already owe Mom and Dad.”
“You owe me, Spence. But you don’t care about that, do you?”
“Come on, sis. You’re single. You can afford to help me out.”
“Actually, I can’t. I’m only working part time and I’ve got my own bills to pay.”
“But I’m in trouble this time, Dev. Big trouble.”
Devyn closed her eyes and did her best to harden her heart.
She and Fred had always been close, but that didn’t mean she didn’t want to have the same kind of relationship with her other brother.
They were all so close in age, they should’ve been like three peas in a pod.
But Spencer hadn’t dealt well with her getting so much attention when she’d been sick, and he had pulled away from both her and Fred.
“Please, sis.”
“How much?” Devyn asked, hating herself. This was why she’d moved again. Why she refused to take his calls. Because she gave in to his begging. Every time. She knew she shouldn’t…but he was her brother. She loved him, even when he walked all over her.
“Fifty.”
“Only fifty bucks? Come on, how much?”
“No. Fifty thousand,” Spencer said.
“Fifty thousand?” she practically screamed.
“I know, I know! But this time it’s different.”
“You know I don’t have that kind of money,” she said, shocked.
“He’s going to hurt me, bad, if I don’t pay him back,” Spencer said.
Devyn sat on the edge of her couch and rested her forehead in one of her hands. “I don’t have anywhere close to that much,” she repeated.
“If I can get five, I can make that work. Turn it into the fifty I need. I know it!”
Devyn felt a tear roll down her cheek. “You’ve said that before, and it never happens.
You have a serious problem, Spence. You need help!
There are programs that you can go through.
Gambling addiction services. They can help you beat this.
Please, for me, for the rest of your family, see what you’re doing to yourself. To all of us.”
“That’s rich,” Spencer said nastily. “You single-handedly ruined our family, and you’re telling me to lock myself away so some doctor can tell me I’m fucked up in the head? Not happening.”
“I was a kid,” Devyn said quietly. “I had cancer. It’s not the same thing.”
“Whatever. Are you going to help me or not?”
“I can’t,” she whispered, feeling sick. “I don’t have that much.”
“They’re going to hurt me, Dev! Maybe even kill me,” Spencer told her. “And you’re going to sit there and let it happen?”
“I’m not letting anything happen! Your actions have consequences, Spence. They always have, but you’ve just been too selfish to see it! You rely on other people to bail you out, then you go and do the exact same thing you’ve always done.”
“When you read about my dead body showing up in a cornfield somewhere, don’t be surprised. Maybe you won’t be all high and mighty then.”
“Spencer—”
But it was too late. He’d hung up on her.
Bowing her head and letting her tears fall, Devyn felt sick.
She wanted to help her brother; she did.
But she’d already given him thousands of dollars to bail him out in the past. That was why she’d left Missouri.
Because she couldn’t say no to him. Because he knew she was a pushover and would eventually give in and hand over the money he needed to pay off someone else he owed.
Spencer was an addict. He couldn’t stop gambling.
She couldn’t count the number of things he’d pawned for money.
He was always sure he could make back thousands more if he just kept playing.
One more pull of the slot machine. One more card game.
But he never did. He just got deeper and deeper into debt.
The last time she’d seen Spencer had been when he’d gone to her apartment while she wasn’t home.
He had a key, because he was her brother.
She’d walked in on him stuffing a cardboard box with anything valuable he could find.
They’d gotten into a huge fight, and he’d shoved her.
She could’ve hit her head, but her table broke her fall.
She couldn’t tell her parents. They’d have tried to convince her that she was overreacting, that her brother loved her and hadn’t meant to hurt her.
She couldn’t tell Grover because she didn’t want to hurt his relationship with Spencer.
And she couldn’t tell Lucky the truth about how she got the nasty bruise on her torso, because he’d probably want to kill her brother.
She was in the middle of a no-win situation.
After Spencer tried to rob her and had hurt her, Devyn knew she had to leave. Get out of her hometown, away from her brother. She loved him, but he was slowly sucking the life out of himself, and he’d bring her down with him if she let him. So she’d quit her job and fled to Texas.
Intellectually, she knew this was all on Spencer’s shoulders, but emotionally, she couldn’t help but believe she should’ve been able to talk him into therapy.
She felt like a failure. And now she was scared to death for Spencer.
She was irritated with him, but that didn’t mean she wanted someone to hurt him.
“Fuck,” she whispered.
Drained, Devyn turned off her phone and went into her bedroom. She undressed and climbed under her covers. It was too early to go to bed, and Lucky would probably expect her to call or come over, but she couldn’t deal with anyone or anything else today.
This was why she hadn’t wanted to take Spencer’s calls. Because she knew he would ask for more money. Because she knew he’d make her feel guilty. Because if anything happened to him, it would feel as if it was her fault.
Feeling the pressure of the last year weighing down on her, Devyn cried. For her brother. For being too scared to tell anyone what was going on. For the decision she knew she was going to have to make—soon.
She’d either have to be an adult and tell someone what was going on, or she’d have to move. To run like a coward. Neither option was appealing, but she couldn’t go on this way.
Two days later, Lucky was done being patient.
Devyn was giving him the cold shoulder and he wasn’t going to take it anymore.
Something was really wrong. He felt it in his gut.
And it was time she talked to him. If he had to swear not to tell Grover what they discussed, he would…
even if it was something dire. He didn’t like the thought of keeping anything from one of his best friends, but he would if it made Devyn open up to him.
He’d called Aspen to see how their lunch went, because he couldn’t get ahold of Devyn that evening, and she’d said that it had gone really well. So he had no idea why she hadn’t called him since. Why she’d been avoiding not only him, but Grover too.
Well, he was done with that.
He’d sent several texts and left a few messages that she’d ignored. If Devyn thought she could blow him off now, after they’d started something…she was wrong.
Lucky knocked on her door and waited for her to respond. He knew she was home because her Mini Cooper was in the parking lot. Before going over, he’d called the vet clinic and was informed that she’d called in sick that day.
He actually hoped she was sick, and that was why she’d gone radio silent, but he had a bad feeling that wasn’t it.
“Go away, Lucky,” she said from the other side of the door.
Frowning, Lucky crossed his arms over his chest. “No. Open the door, Dev.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t do this.”
“Do what?” he asked.
“Be in a relationship with you.”
“You are not breaking up with me from behind a door. You want to break up, open the door and tell me to my face,” Lucky growled.
He didn’t believe for a second that she didn’t want to be with him.
Nothing had happened between the last time they saw each other until now.
She was scared of something, and he couldn’t help her if he didn’t know what it was.
He’d been able to gain Angel and Whiskers’ trust; he could do the same with Devyn. She was skittish, and he’d do everything he could to make sure she knew she was safe with him.
He heard the chain come off and then the dead bolt clicked. Devyn opened the door and said a little belligerently, “Fine. We’re done. Now you can go.”
The sight of Devyn scared the shit out of Lucky. She looked awful. Her hair hadn’t been brushed or washed and she had deep circles under her eyes. She wore an oversized T-shirt and a pair of sweatpants.
Gently pushing on the door, Lucky stepped inside.