Chapter 4
Tex
I found Hollywood and the guys on the third floor of the hospital, exactly where Knight had directed me.
Holly’s face was tight, lips compressed, eyes glassy.
He held Ruby, who was just about the cutest little munchkin I’d ever seen, and faced down a haughty-looking woman I’d overheard him call Kelly.
She had long brown hair pulled into a messy bun, and even in sweats and a tank top, she was pretty hot stuff.
I didn’t like how she was talking to Hollywood, though. Didn’t like the sneer on her face. She must be related to Carrie. That would track, because Hollywood’s ex was pretty damn unforgiving. Not that he hadn’t fucked up. He sure had. But unlike some of us, he’d done it for a good reason.
He cared about people. Cared that his employer was screwing them over. It was a hell of a lot better than selling drugs to pad out my dad’s greenhouse profits.
The term victimless crime almost applied. Except Hollywood had been the victim of his own machinations. And Carrie, too, I supposed. In a way, his crime had served other victims, though. Not that his corporate bosses saw it that way. Or the law, for that matter.
Hell, maybe I was biased.
“I’m trusting you to take care of her. Don’t screw this up.”
“Don’t you worry, darlin’,” I drawled. “Ruby is exactly where she needs to be. Her daddy will take excellent care of her.”
Hollywood flicked a wide-eyed look my way. He hadn’t heard me walk up behind him. I rested a hand against his back, hoping he wouldn’t tell me to fuck off.
“I’m talking to Hendrix,” Kelly said, voice firm and unyielding. “You mess this up, and I’ll cut off your balls. You hear me?”
“Yeah,” Hollywood said, his voice dull and lifeless.
“How about we tone it down a notch?” I suggested.
“That’s a good idea,” Aiden said. “Everyone’s emotional right now.”
Kelly huffed and crossed her arms. “I’m just looking out for what my sister wants.”
“That’s understandable,” Knight said. “But Hol—er, Hendrix is here to take care of his daughter. That’s what he’ll do.”
She sniffed. “I don’t remember asking any of you for an opinion.”
“Well, we’re here for him, so we’re saying it anyway,” Ghost said.
The man hardly ever spoke, preferring to disappear into the background, so it meant a lot that he stepped up for Holly.
Ruby picked up on the tension and started fussing. I plucked her out of Hollywood’s arms. “Hey there, little girl. Are you tired of this place yet?”
Her eyes widened, as if she wasn’t sure what to think of my manhandling. But I had two nephews and a niece, and I knew what kids this age liked. I tossed her in the air and caught her. She gave a startled squeal, then let loose a peal of laughter. I tossed her again.
“Good lord,” Kelly muttered. “Will Ruby even be in one piece when we get her back?”
She was mostly talking to herself, and her words seemed to acknowledge Ruby was going home with Hollywood, so I ignored her. I shifted into a two-step with Ruby. “Wanna dance with me, darlin’?”
She giggled some more as I twirled us around.
Knight cleared his throat. Aiden shifted forward, as if reading some cue from him.
“It’s going to be a long night, Kelly. How about I show you where the coffee machine is?” he suggested. “Or if you’d rather, I can show you to the cafeteria.”
“Just coffee,” Kelly said.
She gave me one last glare—but at least it was no longer directed at Hollywood—and whirled away. I settled Ruby into a calmer sway. Hollywood looked about two seconds from breaking.
“You okay, man? She’s a piece of work.”
“She’s just worried.” His face crumpled inward. “She’s probably right to be. What the hell am I doing? I don’t even have any kid stuff for Ruby.”
“Did she come in with a diaper bag?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” he said. “Aiden didn’t mention anything.”
I patted her soggy bottom. “Well, she’s due for a diaper change. The hospital will probably have something on hand.”
He blew out a breath. “You’re so good with her.”
I glanced down at Ruby, who’d laid her head against my arm and was half-dozing again. “She’s tired. You ought to get her home. Does Kelly have some stuff you could borrow?”
“I can’t ask her,” Hollywood said, sounding stressed. “She already thinks I’m totally incompetent. How am I going to look capable of taking care of Ruby if I don’t even have any basic supplies?”
“You’ll look like a guy who didn’t know he’d have a kid coming home with him,” Knight offered. “She can’t fault you for that.”
I nodded. “Besides, you can’t take Ruby home without a car seat. If Kelly has one, it’d save a lot of headache.”
Kelly returned with Aiden, holding a steaming cup of coffee. She narrowed her eyes on us. “Why are you still here?”
Hollywood bit his lip. I stepped forward. “Do you have a car seat Hendrix can borrow to get Ruby home?”
“Oh, shoot. I didn’t even think about that,” she said. “Yeah, I’ve got one in my back seat. You’ll have to return it tomorrow, though. I need it.”
“I will,” Hollywood said. “I’ll buy one right away. I just didn’t want to make Ruby wait tonight.”
She nodded, looking tired. “Bit late for that kind of shopping.” She fished around in her purse. “Here are my keys. You’ll have to deal with getting it uninstalled. I’m not leaving this lobby until I hear my sister is okay.”
Hollywood took the keys from her. “Thank you. I really will take good care of her.”
She shrugged. “I’m too tired to fight you on it. Besides, Ruby looks ready for bed.” She sighed. “Please tell me you have somewhere for her to sleep, at least.”
Hollywood looked stricken. I jumped in. “My sister has some stuff we can borrow. We’ll get her sorted out.”
“Okay.” She hesitated. “You’ll bring her back to see Carrie tomorrow?”
“First thing,” Hollywood promised.
“And you’re not going to try to steal her or keep her from Carrie once she’s recovered?”
“I’d never do that,” Hollywood said, sounding hurt. “I’m not the jerk you think I am. I just want to be her father.”
She stared at him for a minute, as if trying to see inside his head. “Okay. I believe you. Lord knows, Carrie could use the help. I hope this works out.”
“Me too,” he murmured.
I turned to Aiden. “Did Ruby come in with a diaper bag? She needs a change.”
Kelly clucked. “She’s barely started any potty training. She got sick recently, and it set her back.”
“Sorry, no bags were brought in. But I can arrange a change.” Aiden held out his arms, and I delivered a sleepy Ruby. “I’ll just get her cleaned up and see if we can find her a nice blankie to take home.”
“Thank you,” Hollywood said, sounding relieved.
I turned to Joyride. “Can you go buy him a pack of Huggies?” I glanced at Ruby. “Get the 2T Pullups. Some sippy cups too. Get some snacks like Cheerios and Goldfish. Oh, and apple juice. Get a big jug.”
“Got it,” Joyride said.
“I’ll go with him,” Ghost offered.
“Thanks, guys,” Hollywood said, voice thin.
Kelly raised an eyebrow. “Color me impressed. You must have kids.”
“Nope. Just the favorite uncle, but I’ve done my share of babysitting.”
“Well, that’s a start. Hendrix is going to need the help.”
My heart jumped. I hadn’t intended to promise anything. But the way Hollywood was looking at me—like I was his lifeline in a turbulent ocean—made me rethink my plans.
He was out of his depth. He needed help.
If I could be there for him, show him that I really cared, maybe we could repair our friendship. Even if he never spoke to me again, I couldn’t imagine leaving him to deal with all this on his own.
“I’m happy to lend a hand.” I turned to Hollywood. “I better head out so I can get over to Hayworth and back before too late. Just take Ruby home and get her settled.”
“We’ll help out how we can too,” Knight said.
It was hard to make myself turn away, but the sooner I left, the sooner I could be back. I pressed a hand to Hollywood’s back, letting it linger long enough he threw me a surprised glance.
“Hang in there. I’ll be back soon.”
He swallowed. “Yeah. I can handle it.”
I smiled. “Of course you can.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to call him darlin’, as I had Ruby.
I bit it back. Now was not the time to let my messy feelings come spilling out.
I’d pushed them down, lied to myself about them, tried to forget them.
None of it had worked. But Hollywood had more important things on his mind—and he needed a friend, not a confused-as-fuck man who couldn’t figure out his sexuality.
I made the drive to Hayworth as quickly as I could while adhering to mostly safe speeds. I called ahead to my sister so she’d be ready for me.
When I arrived, the garage was open, light spilling out, and my sister—a fairly dainty thing at five-foot-four—was dragging a toddler bed out from the back.
I backed the truck into the drive, tailgate facing the house, and hopped out. “Hey, let me do that!”
She stopped, panting, and swiped her hair back. “Figured you’d want to get back as soon as you can.”
“You figured right,” I said, joining her by the little bed. “But I can do the labor. You just direct me.”
“Fair enough. Lanie just grew out of this. I was thinking of selling it or something, so take it for as long as you need.”
“Thanks.”
“There’s a booster seat in the back and a potty chair and some old clothes and toys. Grab anything you want.”
“I really appreciate it. This all happened fast.”
She nodded. “That poor little girl. How’s her mother doing?”
“I don’t really know. In surgery still, I think. Knight told me it was a bad car accident.”
She grimaced. “Even if she comes through it, she may not be able to handle childcare for a while. This won’t just be a couple of days, Tex. You realize that?”
“Yeah, I kind of figured,” I said. “Even if it does end up only being a few days, Holly will feel better if he has a proper bed for Ruby. He’s so worried about taking good care of her. I just want to make it a little easier on him.”
Her eyes softened. “Of course you do. You’re a good friend.”
I really wasn’t. But my sister didn’t know half the shit I’d done. Like Holly, she tended to look for the good in people. That’s probably how she ended up staying with her asshole ex for as long as she did.
I didn’t think he’d been abusive in the beginning.
I’d have put him on his ass years ago, if that was the case.
He’d always been a bit of a dick, though.
While I was in prison, shit had gotten worse.
By the time she got divorced and Dad called to tell me Luke was harassing her, his behavior had escalated to the point I’d worried I’d have to put the man in the ground to get him to leave Chastity alone.
Knight had saved me from that fuckup, but I still worried.
“Luke been staying away?” I asked as I put down the tailgate.
“Yeah, he hasn’t said boo in weeks,” Chastity said. “Don’t worry about me. You’ve got enough on your plate.”
I grunted agreement as I hefted the toddler bed over the tailgate. Metal screeched as it slid, and Chastity cringed.
“Ugh, I hate that sound.”
“Sorry.”
She directed me to the mattress that went with it—easier to manage than a full-sized one—and then a few trash bags of outgrown toddler clothes.
I got everything loaded up in about fifteen minutes.
“I owe you for this,” I said.
“Just this?” she teased.
I laughed. “Okay, just add it to my tab.”
“I will,” she said, stretching up to hug me. It was surprisingly comforting to be held by her. Made me realize I hadn’t had a hug in a long damn time. “Take care of your friend and that little girl. It’s going to be a tough time.”
“I’ll try.”
She pulled back, looking into my eyes. “You’ll do more than try, Jedediah. You’ll do what needs doing.”
I cringed. “Okay, jeez. No need to full name like that.”
She smirked. “Fine, Tex. Get your ass over there. You’ll feel better once you see he’s got everything he needs.”
She wasn’t wrong about that. I latched the tailgate and climbed into the driver’s side of the truck. I fired off a text to Hollywood, trying not to notice the three I’d sent previously that went unanswered.
Be there in forty-five minutes.
And for the first time in weeks, three dots appeared. He was answering.
Okay. See you soon.
My stomach flipped. I could almost imagine us exchanging these messages in better circumstances. Maybe at the end of a regular day. Maybe because we’d made plans to hang out like we used to.
But this wasn’t that.
Hollywood was allowing me in because he was out of his depth. Soon, he’d remember that I bailed on him. Just walked away and pretended like that kiss meant nothing.
Then he’d go back to giving me the cold shoulder.
But damned if I was going to let that stop me. Hollywood needed me. As long as he did, I’d be there.
I wasn’t going to walk away again.