Chapter Twenty-seven
“ A re we sure this is a good idea?” Aidan leans over and asks, his eyes still locked on the door to the sports bar Wyatt asked us to meet him at.
I shake my head. “I have no idea, but it’s worth a shot.”
My eyes find Ty on the other side of the booth, between Oliver and the wall. He’s still completely shut down. It had been a struggle to get him showered and dressed, but there was no way we were leaving him home alone.
We got him in to see Dr. Gregory, and he’s been back every day since. The first day, she couldn’t get him to speak at all—not even with us in the room—but she told me she’d figure out what she needed to do in order to help him. At their last appointment on Friday, she told me afterward that he finally spoke .
Obviously, she couldn’t tell me what he said, but she said it was a good sign. Which is why he has a scheduled appointment with her every day this week. We had our first group appointment with her today, and Ty still didn’t say anything, but I’m trying not to let it get to me.
As much as I hate to admit it, I think he’s hit his breaking point. If we can’t figure out how to fix this with Lila, we’re going to lose him. Either he’s going to take his own life or we’re going to have to have him hospitalized. Either way, the man we love will be just as lost to us as Lila.
Unless Dr. Gregory can get through to him, which is what I’m hoping for.
Gods, I don’t want to lose him.
But that’s exactly why we’re here meeting Wyatt. We have no idea where to go from here, and if anyone will have some ideas, it’ll be the incubus.
If we can’t come up with a plan, we’ve already lost, and I’m not ready to admit defeat.
“There he is.” Aidan lifts his hand to get Wyatt’s attention, and the incubus heads for our booth.
Even though I hate to admit it, he’s hot as hell. All that thick blond hair, sharp cheekbones, the perfect body, and those navy blue eyes. He exudes sexual energy, which makes sense since he’s an incubus. But there’s a part of me that still wants to hate him because he’s been in Lila’s life while we couldn’t be. Not to mention, they’re apparently together now.
Bitter jealousy courses through me as I watch him saunter closer to us.
If he had no link to Lila, I’d definitely hit that. I might even like him. It’s just hard to look at him in that light since he’s so entwined with Lila.
He slides in beside Oliver, offering each of us a nod. “Gentlemen.”
Oliver scoffs. “Not sure anyone who knows us would ever call us gentlemen.”
“Then I guess we should get to know one another,” Wyatt huffs. “Because I get the feeling we’re going to be around one another for a long time to come.”
“At least one of us thinks so,” I mutter, taking a long drink of my beer. “We didn’t know what you like to drink, so we didn’t order for you.”
Wyatt nods. “No problem. I’ll order something when the server comes back.”
As if hearing herself being talked about, the pretty blonde appears at the table, a flirty grin on her face when she sees Wyatt .
“Hello, handsome—“
“I’m not interested in anything more than a drink,” he says, cutting her off. “We’ll take another round for the table, and I’ll have whatever beer they’re having.”
The poor girl’s face turns bright red, and I wonder if she’s going to lose her shit.
“Of course,” she hisses, writing something down on her pad before stalking away.
“That was a little harsh,” Aidan comments, but Wyatt just shrugs.
“I’m used to men and women throwing themselves at me because of the incubus thing. I’ve found it’s better to set them straight from the beginning so there’s no confusion. Especially since I’m no longer single in any way, shape, or form.”
I clench my jaw, not happy to have him throwing that in our faces. Maybe this was a bad idea.
Wyatt holds up his hand. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to rub that in your faces. That was rude of me, but if I have my way, the four of you will join me in this relationship soon.”
“And how do you expect that to happen?” Oliver asks, voice gruff as he considers the other man .
“It’s going to require work on your part. She’s not going to just fall into your laps.” Wyatt pauses as a different server pauses in front of our table.
She’s taller than the last girl but still blonde. Her smile is friendly and not flirty, already making me more comfortable with her than the other server. “Hi, my name is Holly. Alice asked me to take over your table—I hope the five of you don’t mind. I have your beers, and since you’re all drinking the same thing, I don’t have to worry about handing someone the wrong one.”
“We have no problem with you taking over our table. In fact, thank you,” Wyatt tells her with a smile. “I don’t think it would’ve been a pleasant night for any of us if the other server continued to help us.”
“Yeah, I’m sorry about that.” Holly’s smile grows apologetic as she hands each of us—except Ty, who we’re not allowing to drink—our beers. “She’s young and sometimes comes on a little strong. Hopefully, she didn’t make you too uncomfortable. If you need to speak with the manager about what happened, I can get her for you. ”
I’m already waving her off. “No, that’s not necessary.”
She nods. “Good. I’ll stop by and check on y’all a little later, but if you need anything before I make it back, you can grab my attention or one of the other servers, and we’ll make sure you’re taken care of.”
Then she’s gone, and I turn my attention back to Wyatt. “You were saying?”
“Right. Where was I? She won’t fall into your laps. Intellectually, she understands you didn’t have a choice in leaving her, but she’s still hurt. Knowing the reasons something happened doesn’t erase the hurt and loneliness she felt. I don’t think it’ll take too much to get her to forgive you. She can’t move past the hurt she felt and still feels. She needs to see you’re truly sorry—that you wouldn’t have left if you had a choice in the matter.”
“That makes sense, but how do we show her that?” Aidan asks, leaning forward on his elbows, his eyes never leaving Wyatt.
“That’s what I’ve been thinking about the last few days,” he admits. “I don’t have a full plan yet, but I’m hoping after I tell you what I’m thinking, we can flesh it out together. After all, this is for the four of you and not me. You should have a hand in planning it. Otherwise, I’m just doing all the work for you.”
I sigh, already hating that he’s helping us. “You’re right. We do need to put in the effort. Tell us what you’re thinking.”
Wyatt quickly breaks down the ideas he’s come up with, and I have to admit, they’re good—they’re just incomplete, which is where we come in. We talk for the next hour, throwing ideas around until we have a plan we all agree on.
Thank goodness we all work for my family business because it means we currently have an income. But more than that, it means we can take time off here and there as needed to make sure we can pull this off.
Ty stayed zoned out the entire time we were talking, and once we finish planning, Wyatt’s eyes find him. “Is he going to be okay?”
“We’re doing everything we can,” Oliver tells him quietly. None of us like to talk about Ty like he’s not there, but he kind of isn’t.
“Lila’s been especially worried about him. She doesn’t like to talk with me about the four of you, but most of what she’s mentioned has been worrying about him. She didn’t like the way he shut down. ”
I scoff. “None of us like the way he shut down, but there’s only so much we can do.”
Wyatt holds up his hands. “That wasn’t an attack against you. I don’t doubt that you’re doing what you can for him. I was more telling you, so you know she’s still thinking about you—still worrying about you.”
“She’s worried about me?” Ty’s voice startles us, our heads snapping to face him. His eyes are still hazy as he stares unblinking at Wyatt.
He nods. “She is. I can tell it’s eating at her.”
Ty continues to hold Wyatt’s gaze, the corner of his mouth ticking up for a moment before falling away. He doesn’t say anything else as he turns to stare blankly up at the TV on the wall.
“That’s the first time we’ve heard him speak since the day Lila sent us packing,” I tell Wyatt, but I keep my eyes on Ty. Hope rises in my chest.
Maybe this will all work out, and we’ll be able to convince Lila we’re truly sorry—that we want to spend the rest of our lives with her.
And the incubus, I guess.
“I’m glad you brought him. Maybe hearing the plan will help pull him out of wherever he’s hiding away.” Wyatt’s voice cracks, causing me to flick my gaze to him. He’s watching Ty as if his heart is breaking for a man he doesn’t know. He blinks and forces a smile as our eyes clash. “Take care of him. I’m sure you know he’s hurting, but I’m not sure you realize just how bad it is for him. He’s losing himself.”
“H-how,” I stutter, staring at the other man.
A self-deprecating smile spreads across his lips. “All everyone ever remembers about incubi is that we feed on sex. The thing everyone forgets is desire isn’t the only thing we can read. We can feed off every emotion anyone can feel. Sexual desire is just the easiest and most fulfilling. I try to block out other people’s emotions as much as I can, but there are some people who feel something so strongly, it’s impossible to ignore. Ty’s sorrow is almost overwhelming.”
Fuck.
My eyes flicker back to Ty, who shows no indication he’s heard what we’re talking about. I know he’s hurting, but the way Wyatt is making it sound, it’s so much worse than that.
“There was a flicker of hope when I mentioned her being worried about him, but his sorrow swallowed it whole before it had a chance to take hold. Keep doing what you’re doing. It’s clear he loves you and you love him. ”
With that, Wyatt pushes to his feet. He glances at Ty again, pain written on his face as tears fill his eyes. He shakes his head and by the time he meets my gaze again, all of those emotions are gone—almost as if they’d never been there before.
“Thank you, Wyatt.” I hold my hand out, smiling when the other man shakes it. “We knew we needed to do something, but we didn’t know what. Unfortunately, we don’t know Lila as well as we’d like to—something we’ll remedy as soon as she allows us to—so your help is just what we needed. You’re a good man. One I’ll be happy to call a co-mate when the time comes.”
“Same with the four of you,” he says, squeezing Oliver’s shoulder as he nods at Aidan. “You’ve got your work cut out for you, but she’s worth it.”
The three of us watch him leave before I glance between Aidan and Oliver. “We can do this.”
“We have to do this,” Aidan confirms. “Because he’s right. She’s totally worth it.”
“Yeah, she is,” Oliver adds, and I’ve never loved my pod more than I do right now .
We might be a little broken and more than a little fractured, but on this, we agreed. We’d do anything to win Lila’s forgiveness.