Chapter 6 #2
Jay straightened, worry replaced by the smooth, easy demeanor he put on for strangers. He sauntered over to the table, hand extended.
“You guys doctors, too?” Jay asked, offering handshakes all around.
“Yeah, I’m in the ER with her,” Eleanor explained, leaning forward and batting her eyelashes. “These guys do cancer research.”
“Nice to see Ava’s made some friends her speed,” Jay said with that easy charm.
Eleanor’s eyes cut to Ava’s, slid to Henry, then back to Ava. Her expression said exactly what her mouth didn’t: Who is this and what are you not telling me?
Ava looked away first.
When Jay reached Henry, the handshake was a brief, white-knuckled war.
“And what is it you do?” Henry’s tone made it clear that he already assumed the answer wouldn’t impress him.
Jay’s smile didn’t falter. “I’m an accountant.”
Ava decided it was time to intervene. “I’ll catch up with you guys in a bit. We’re gonna—”
“I’ll bring her back in one piece,” Jay interrupted, his hand settling at the small of her back as he steered her away. The gesture was nearly identical to Henry’s, yet somehow felt entirely different.
Ava tried to ignore the weight of their gazes. She didn’t want to know what this must look like to them.
Jay’s hand dropped as they reached the bar, and they settled onto two barstools.
Ava’s eyes swept the rows of bottles gleaming under dim lights and the bartender pouring shots.
Jay had stepped into a place designed for getting drunk, and it made her stomach knot.
Was this really where he wanted to have this conversation?
Seeming to ignore the smell of alcohol all around them, Jay pulled out his phone and typed something quickly. When he finished, he looked up and said something she couldn’t hear over the music and chatter.
“What?”
He turned on his stool to face her, leaning in until their knees brushed. One hand found the back of her seat, and he repeated himself, still barely audible over the noise. “So you haven’t seen her?”
His breath grazed her cheek, and she caught the faint scent of cigarettes.
The heat of his body radiated into the small space between them, and suddenly she was aware of everything at once: the way their knees pressed together, the rough texture of his jeans against her tights, how easy it would be to close the distance and—
She pulled in a sharp breath and closed her eyes.
Mira. Focus on Mira.
When she opened them, she made herself look past him rather than at him. “I didn’t know she was here.” The words came out unsteady anyway. “You said she was performing?”
He nodded, close enough that she could feel the movement more than see it.
Ava glanced toward the back of the bar. “I think I saw some green rooms past the restrooms.”
“Brilliant.”
Jay stood, and the spell broke. She could breathe again, which should have felt like relief and didn’t quite. He wove through the crowd, and she followed, trying to remember how to act normal.
At the hallway’s end, a bouncer scrolled on his phone by a door. Jay slipped off his beanie, blue hair catching the dim light like a beacon. Ava watched him square his shoulders and turn his smile on like a switch. This was the performer putting on his costume even without a stage.
The bouncer looked up, eyes wide. “No way! Jay Wyler? Your sister’s back here, right?”
“Yeah, man. You good if me and my lady go back?”
Ava bristled. My lady?
“Yeah, yeah! No problem.” The bouncer fumbled around in his pockets, starstruck. “Do you mind, actually—real quick…”
Jay nodded, already reaching for the Sharpie and hat thrust at him. He signed with a flourish, then looked up. “Got anything else?”
The bouncer shook his head with a wide grin.
Ava watched the exchange with detached amusement. Hard to take the rockstar persona seriously when she remembered the pimply kid who used to cry over scraped knees.
The bouncer finally let them pass after a long-winded story about how much he and his girlfriend loved Wicked Smile, capping it with a quiet, Sorry about Ari. Jay nodded along with patience, but the moment they were clear of the bouncer, his shoulders dropped and the performer disappeared.
The back hallway was cramped, consisting of a storage closet and two rooms. The door on the left was closed, and the one on the right stood ajar. Jay moved toward the open door, and Ava watched his whole body go rigid. He shoved the door wide and rushed inside.
“What happened?!”
Inside was a makeshift green room with a couch, a wall of mirrors, and a vanity. Near the door, a refreshment table had been knocked over, sending water bottles scattering across the floor. Granola bars were crushed into the carpet.
Mira lay crumpled on the couch with her face buried in her arms. Jay dropped beside her immediately, hands hovering like he didn’t know where to touch. “Mir…talk to me…”
Ava stayed by the door, taking it in. Mira’s shirt had been pulled down one shoulder, the fabric stretched and twisted. There was a fresh bruise on her right thigh, dark purple and finger-shaped.
The pieces clicked together for Ava instantly.
But Jay kept firing questions, not realizing he was adding to Mira’s distress until she finally dragged herself upright. She inhaled shakily before putting her hand up at him. “Jayesh, stop. You’re not helping.”
He stood, pacing between Ava and the couch with a defeated expression.
Mira looked up to Ava, the question in her eyes reading: What are you doing here?
“Maybe I should sit this one out,” Ava whispered, though she didn’t move.
Jay pointed to Mira and demanded, “Talk. Now.”
Ava squeezed his shoulder, urging him to be gentle, but he shrugged her off.
Mira rolled her eyes before scrubbing at them. She patted the couch cushion beside her. “Sit down and try to stay calm, please. I’m not talking with you standing there like a ticking time bomb.”
He stayed stubbornly in place for a moment before yielding and settling next to her again. Every muscle in his body was taut, like he was suddenly carved from stone.
Mira curled into herself, voice trembling. “Promise me you won’t freak out. I’ve wanted to tell you and Ari for a long time. I didn’t know what to do, and now everything’s—”
“Mira, who hurt you?” Jay growled, his voice low and deadly serious.
Mira took another shaky breath. She twisted her hands, staring at them.
“Riley.”
The name detonated the air.
For a moment, Jay went completely still. Then Ava watched him shatter.