Chapter Twenty-Three
Blue
If there was ever a time we all needed a distraction, it’s now. And an impromptu get-together with Grandpa Boone has proven to be perfect.
Dusty closed the diner an hour early just for the occasion, and now it’s just the crew here.
“I can’t believe I’m just now finding out Grandpa Boone’s in town. You should’ve told me.”
West smiles from across the booth. “Well, if you’d texted back or, you know, returned a phone call, maybe we could’ve gotten to that.”
He’s being a smartass, but he’s also right. Avoiding him felt like the easy thing to do when having a conversation felt too hard. But… we’re working on it.
Across the room, Grandpa Boone leans down to whisper a joke to Lexi, and as she burst into laughter, my husband steals my attention.
He reaches across the table and grips my chin, forcing me to stare into his vivid, green eyes.
We’ve been holed up alone in this corner of the diner for the past half hour, talking.
I shared everything April told me last night, and he’s already asked me twenty times if I’m okay, but I feel number twenty-one coming on.
“And you’re sure you’re—”
I cut him off with a laugh. “Yes, West, I’m fine. It rattled me a little last night, but I’m good. Mostly, I was just in shock.”
The details race through my head—how April’s jealousy got the best of her, how she claims she manipulated Tiffany into sharing our secrets, and how April still had the gall to beg me for help.
“You know you should’ve called me, right?”
The question catches me off guard, and so does West’s heated stare. It shoots through me, igniting so many thoughts and emotions.
“I didn’t go alone. I had security, remember?” The playful smirk and eye roll I tack onto the question don’t get me out of trouble.
“You think I’m overreacting, but anything could’ve happened to you last night, Blue. Anything.”
He isn’t joking, so I don’t fight him on it. Besides, he’s right. I should’ve taken that call more seriously.
“I hear you, and if anything like that happens again, I’ll come to you,” I promise him. “But, I’m fine.”
He nods and softens up a little. “I know but… this shit’s so hard to believe. And to top it all off, I get to be the one to tell Sterling about Tiffany, which is fucking perfect.”
I glance around when he mentions Tiffany, only now realizing she’s not on Sterling’s arm tonight.
“Why isn’t she here?”
West leans back, and that look on his face makes it clear the answer to that question is complicated.
“She’s visiting her parents in Sarasota.”
I nod slowly. “And is this visit just because she misses them? Or…”
“Not quite,” he sighs. “Ricky got a tip about her being seen with April at the coffee shop. So, Sterling confronted her, asked if she’s been talking shit about the family. She denied everything, but the conversation went bad anyway.”
I glance toward Sterling, and there’s no missing that he’s hurting right now. Even if he’s trying to hide it behind a thinly veiled smile as he chats with Dusty.
“But now, your talk with April means Tiff lied,” West adds. “She’s a big reason shit’s been getting back to Pandora, and we both know how Sterling is when it comes to loyalty.”
He’s right. I do know. Sterling loves hard and therefore expects those he trusts with his heart to be all in, too. And from what April shared, Tiffany crossed a line, and I’m not sure that’s a betrayal Sterling can move past.
West’s words sink in. I’m not a huge fan of Tiffany, but I love Sterling like a brother. Now, he’s likely got a hard road ahead of him.
“But as long as you’re okay, we’ll get through the rest of it,” West promises, then takes both my hands in his.
There’s this moment that sneaks up on me. It makes me forget that things haven’t been so great lately, and it’s like I’ve gone back in time, feeling the butterflies like I’m a teenager again.
There’s hope in West’s eyes, and it’s contagious.
I want this to work, and I believe he does, too, but we have to focus.
All the physical stuff has to stop. We have to get to the root of what’s eating away at our relationship.
Because if we don’t, sex will just put a Band-Aid on the gaping wound that’s already festered too long.
Clearing my throat to make things a little less awkward, I pull my hands free, pretending to be interested in the notification that just vibrated my phone. But truthfully, I just need a second to breathe, to not get too lost in him.
“I should um… I should get back to my seat.”
“Or you could stay here. With me,” he adds, and my heart does a somersault inside my chest. “I want as much time with you as I can get.”
His transparency, his willingness to let me see his soul, has me in a chokehold.
But we have to tread lightly. I don’t just want us to work for now, I need us to work forever, and there’s a very fine line between the two.
“I know, but…”
“Don’t make me beg,” he says quietly, smiling in this way that has my chest rising too quickly to control.
“I want to, I just—”
“Stay,” he pleads, and the rawness of his voice makes my throat tighten.
“West, I… I can’t.”
“Blue…”
I don’t meet his gaze again as I slip out of the booth, forcing a shaky smile to hide my emotions.
And while there’s nothing I want more than to melt into West and let the rest of the world fall away, I cross the diner in a daze.
Because everything in me wants to let what little progress we’ve made be enough, but knowing it would be short-lived stops me.
I saw it with my own eyes, over and over again. My parents repeatedly played the breakup to make up game, never getting to the root of their problems. It eventually broke them for good, and I can’t let that be us, so…
Focus on the big picture.
Focus on forever, not for now.
Be strong.
Another deep breath, another fake smile, and I walk toward the girls—Dez, Lexi, Joss, and Jules. I slip into the booth just as Scar walks through the door. She stops to hug Grandpa Boone where he’s hovering nearby, and then she drops down into the seat beside me.
Grandpa Boone insists on giving her a hard time whenever they’re in the same room, and I love every second of it.
“Well, if it isn’t the heartbreaker,” he says, and Scar’s face instantly turns red.
“Why, whatever do you mean?” That coy smile my sister flashes next does nothing to fend Grandpa off.
“Ohhh, you know what you did,” he laughs. “I don’t think my grandson has ever not had a girl fall at his feet when he snaps his fingers. You dinged his pride a bit.”
Scar belts a full-blown laugh this time. “Something tells me your grandson recovered just fine. That was years ago.”
“Yeah, but he still talks about you,” Grandpa says, and Scar’s still smiling, but she’s thoughtful this time.
My sister made quite an impression on Linden, West’s cousin who was nothing more than a playboy music hopeful back in the day. But today, he’s got a few million followers and gigs booked across the country. Still, even with so much having changed, it’s no secret that he still thinks about Scar.
“Can I at least tell him you send your love?”
“How about you just tell Linden that I say hello. Deal?”
“Deal.” Grandpa grins at her, then plants a kiss on her forehead. “You know, he’ll want to know what you’ve been up to these days, too. So, you may as well just tell me.”
Scar’s laughing again. “Well, you can tell him I’m working with Joss now. She agreed to let me intern with her PR firm, and I basically love it,” she says. “So much that I think I’ll stick with it.”
This is news to me, but I love everything about it. Shadowing Joss will make Scar a powerhouse in the industry, so she’s in the best hands ever.
“Public relations,” Grandpa says thoughtfully. “It suits you.”
The light in Scar’s eyes brightens with the compliment. “Thank you.”
“You’re quite welcome. Now, if you ladies will excuse me, I think I’ll go eavesdrop on the menfolk.”
“Bye, Grandpa,” we all say in unison as we wave.
“He’s so freakin’ sweet,” Jules gushes. “My grandpa maybe says five words to me when I see him.”
“You’re lucky. Mine passed a decade ago, but before that, he married a woman half his age and hauled ass to Mexico,” Dez says.
Lexi laughs as she sips her water. “Yikes.”
“Yikes indeed,” Dez nods.
“So, where’s my little lady-killer?” Joss asks, and we all know she’s talking about Jaxon.
“Amelia’s babysitting him at Mom and Benny’s. That’s the only way I trust her watching him,” Lexi laughs. “With someone watching her.”
“She settling in okay?” Jules asks.
“Surprisingly, yes. She’s working a couple jobs and still manages to make her AA meetings. Never thought I’d say this, but… I kind of like having her around.”
“Love hearing it,” Dez says, stirring her milkshake. “Also… I’m Glad you came tonight.”
It’s a loaded statement, and I don’t think any of us miss Dez’s sly way of pointing out how many gatherings Lexi has recently avoided. And lucky for her, Tiffany’s hundreds of miles away in Florida.
Lexi shrugs, and I don’t think she means to, but her gaze flashes toward Sterling for a fraction of a second. It isn’t long, but it’s long enough for me to see there’s still sadness there.
“Well, ya know, can’t miss a chance to see Grandpa Boone.”
She leaves it at that, and I hate this. All the tiny fractures, the discourse.
It sucks.
Honestly, I feel kind of drained from it, which is why I glance down at my phone, trying to come up with an excuse to leave.
“I should probably take off,” I announce with a sigh.
“What?”
“It’s been so long since we did something like this.”
“How often do I have a sitter to hang out with you guys?”
I hear all their responses, but this is too hard. They know West and I are going through some things, but they have no idea how rough it’s been. And as I glance at him across the room, locking eyes with him because of course he’s watching me, I have to get some air.
“I’ll text you guys later. Maybe we can get together next weekend.
“You suck,” Scar grumbles, and I laugh as we stand and hug.
“I know. And I love you, too.”
“You’d better text,” Lexi warns, standing to hug me next, and as we embrace, I spot West again, looking super confused.
Which means I have to hurry before he stops me.
“Later,” is the last word I say before exiting through the diner doors.
I make it to my truck feeling winded and emotionally exhausted. Wanting to be apart of it all and away from it all at the same time. There was a brief window between periods of chaos when things felt easy, and if we’re lucky, we’ll have that again someday.
I start my engine, deciding I’ll hide out at the center to keep my mind off things. There’s some painting I can do, and I keep spare work clothes in the trunk for just such an occasion. So, that’s what I’ll do.
Paint, hide, and maybe cry a little.
I’ve barely backed out of my parking space when my phone chimes with Pandora’s notification, and on instinct, I glance toward the diner, knowing the rest of the crew just heard the same sound.
On cue, they pull out their phones. I only tear my eyes away from them when their shocked expressions have me too curious not to see what’s happened for myself.
Only, nothing could’ve prepared me for the words my eyes land on.
When Pandora warned April that she’d lay her shit bare… she meant it.
Ho-ly shit.
*
@QweenPandora:
Listen up, peeps. I’ve got some juicy information, and I’m nothing if I’m not your most reliable source of local gossip. So, allow me to live up to that title.
It seems the wife of our former QB1 has a little habit she was hoping no one would find out about.
That’s right, April Lawson has a pill addiction.
Here she is getting her fix from a local dealer on the south side, seeming to think she’s above the law.
One could argue that she’s been under a great deal of stress since her husband was savagely pushed out of position, but I have a different theory.
I think she’s always been a miserable bitch, and it wouldn’t have mattered if Reed held his spot or not. Momma’s gotta have her candy.
And speaking of guilty pleasures, check out this next image.
That’s right. Looks like someone failed to fully close those curtains, and that sliver was enough to get a clear pic of our next scandal…
Mrs. Lawson giving a little reverse cowgirl action to someone who definitely IS NOT her husband. And in a seedy, roadside motel at that.
Now, April, did you really think you could hide from us?
You of all people should know… I’ve got eyes everywhere.
But let’s not put all the blame on the missus. Reed’s no saint either.
Looks like the former Cypress Pointe Emperors’ star has a bad habit of his own. Gambling can land you in a whole lot of debt, and a whole lot of trouble.
And upon doing some digging, it appears Reed has a great deal of both.
Oof… looks like these two have a lot to talk about tonight, so I should leave them to it.
But before I go, a few words for my former partner in crime, the woman to whom I owe a huge THANK YOU for resurrecting me…
Oh, April. I played nice as long as I possibly could. Even gave you a few extra hours to make good on your promise. But at the end of the day, our alliance was never meant to last. Good luck out there, girl.
I hear it’s going to be especially cold tonight.
Later, peeps :)
—P