Chapter 2
Rhys
Just as I did every time I came home with Sloane, I watched the iron gates close behind the car before I relaxed.
I’d been telling her to buy a house outside of the city and invest in a good security system for years, but she wouldn’t budge.
I knew she loved the convenience of being in the city and close to her firm, so after a few years, I quit pushing.
A high-tech security system in a house planted in a smaller, quieter part of town would give me a little peace of mind. But given her desire to do just about everything I begged her not to, I’d settled on paying the security guard by the front door to keep an extra eye on her while I couldn’t.
I spared a glance in her direction, watching the muscles in her jaw tick as she threw the car into park. She took a deep breath, her chest inflating against the seatbelt, and I waited for the yelling to start.
Slowly, Sloane turned to face me, and the look on her face made me regret my decision to get into her car.
“Do you know how you blow off steam, Rhys? Huh?! You work out. You go for a run. You—you have sex, dammit! You don’t go on a binge at a high-end bar in a big fucking city and end up with a stripper on your lap and a line of coke on her ass!
I’m pretty sure more people saw you than not.
” Her slender fingers gripped the steering wheel, her knuckles whitening as she squeezed tighter.
I’d bet an insane amount of money she was trying her hardest not to punch the shit out of me.
I knew she was mad at me for a multitude of reasons, being caught with cocaine probably resting somewhere toward the top of that list right now, but I also hadn’t been calling her back.
I hadn’t been hanging around; I’d been ignoring her texts.
I left her high and dry with no explanations and then came crawling back the second I needed help.
“Sloane, I—”
“Don’t! I don’t want your half-assed apology. I’m not done being mad at you. So, save it for when you’re sober and actually mean it,” she snapped, hastily grabbing her things and climbing out of the car.
She slammed the car door shut, and I flinched. I hadn’t seen this side of her. Very rarely did I see the cool, collected resolve crack, and my stomach churned with regret for being the one to cause it.
Even through closed doors, I could hear her heels snapping against the concrete as she made her way to the elevator.
As much as I’d like to stay in the car with a cracked window instead of facing her in her apartment, Sloane’s hand on the elevator doors told me that wasn’t happening.
Her eyebrows snapped up in sheer annoyance when my eyes landed on hers.
Reluctantly, I climbed out of the car and accepted whatever fate lay before me.
***
“I don’t know, Cami. I—I mean, I’ve never seen him like that.”
I froze, coming to a stop when Sloane’s voice carried through the apartment.
Once we’d gotten inside last night—well, this morning—I’d expected her to yell and scream at me about how careless and stupid I’d been. However, the actual situation was almost worse.
I’d followed behind her, stepped through the threshold, and braced myself for the venom she’d been holding back.
But instead, she sighed. She just sighed.
She looked at me with sad, defeated, tired eyes and fucking sighed.
Without another word, she dropped her purse onto the counter, locked the front door, and disappeared down the hallway to her bedroom.
I would’ve preferred the loudness of her beratement over the deafening silence I got instead.
I planned to sneak out before she woke up.
I got a couple hours of much-needed sleep, though the headache behind my eyes was still present when I woke up.
I planned to have Marvin call me a cab so I could run home and wash the shame of the night off me before our meeting with Cami.
At least then I wouldn’t have to suffer through another awkward, silent car ride.
But as soon as I tiptoed out of the guest room, my shoes in hand, I heard her voice as it carried through the apartment.
Her fingers tapped rapidly on the keys of her laptop, the rich smell of a fresh pot of coffee wafting through the air. There was zero chance of my getting out of here without her knowing.
Even with palpable anger, I could still hear the concern in her voice when she spoke.
“I mean, I haven’t heard from him in like… two months? And then all of a sudden, I’m bailing him out of jail. For coke? This isn’t Rhys.”
She wasn’t wrong. It wasn’t me. I wasn’t acting like myself.
But the momentary distractions felt like a much better alternative to watching her date asshole after asshole, knowing I never stood a chance. It was too painful.
“I have ten contracts right now that need to be reviewed, and I’m supposed to be at the courthouse this morning for Gavin.” She paused to sigh, her voice lowering. “I hate that even after being ignored by him for months, I’ll still drop everything to help him.”
The guilt I’d felt last night was no longer simply gnawing at my chest. It ripped through me like a rusty knife, slow and painful. No matter what I did, I was always hurting her.
I didn’t mean to get her involved in this.
I honestly thought if I did get caught, Cami would get me out of it.
A bit selfish on my part, I knew that. But that was nothing new, apparently.
I didn’t know it would look so bad that a lawyer would have to get involved, and that Sloane would be the one they called in.
I sighed softly, raking my hands through short, but tangled hair. This was so much worse than I’d anticipated.
“Yeah, Cam. I know. I just—”
A shoe slipped through my fingers, thudding against the hardwood. “Shit,” I mumbled, leaning down to scoop it up before rounding the corner.
Sloane’s eyes flicked to me as I walked into the kitchen. “Listen, I gotta go. I’ll see you in an hour.” Without waiting for a response, she ended the call and turned to face me, arms crossing over her chest.
She stood in the kitchen wearing pink pastel leggings and a matching sports bra, bright white tennis shoes laced on her feet.
“Heading to the gym?” As soon as the question left my mouth, my eyes followed the bead of sweat trailing down her neck. Maybe an early morning workout would work in my favor? Maybe it meant I’d escape her frustrations before we got into the car. Unlikely, but a guy could dream.
“Already been.” She shrugged. “Couldn’t sleep. Decided to figure your shit out and review your contract. Make use of my time...” Her eyes swept over me as she did a once-over, not even attempting to hide the judgment on her face.
I wanted to disappear. Lay on her oversized, fluffy white couch and let it swallow me whole.
I was still wearing last night's clothes, my teeth desperately needed brushing, and despite my best efforts, I could feel my hair sticking out in several directions.
This was it. I braced, waiting for the blow-up. I waited for everything I expected last night, lowering the invisible shield I was used to putting up between us, ready to take whatever she threw at me. It was well deserved.
“You look like shit.”
I narrowed my eyes in her direction when her lips twitched, a small burst of laughter bubbling from her throat.
She broke into a smile despite the palpable tension in the room, and I let myself relax marginally, but was hesitant to laugh with her.
Some hysteria from the lack of sleep we’d both gotten seemed entirely reasonable to me.
But then she threw her head back, and I couldn’t stop the chuckle that fell from my lips. I didn’t even care that it was at my expense.
Claiming that laughter was contagious was one thing. Sloane’s laughter was irrefutable proof. The way her whole face lit up, her amusement clearly displayed for anyone to see. It was hard to ignore and utterly impossible not to laugh with her.
She crossed her legs, her body folding as she shook with laughter.
Every. Single. Time. But my absolute favorite thing was a mannerism of mine that she’d adopted as her own after all these years.
When the laughter was too much, her hand would come up to slap the left side of her chest, and it warmed my body from head to toe.
I loved that we’d been around each other for so long that even the little things weren’t just mine anymore.
Maybe I couldn’t share the entirety of my life with her, I knew that. But even if a year from now she was married to some asshole I would never think was good enough for her, it was still my mannerisms she mirrored every day.
Once the two of us sobered up, Sloane stood up straight and rolled her eyes. “I’m still mad at you.” I knew that, but the smile spread across her lips made it a tiny bit less believable.
I shrugged, walking over to my best friend and wrapping my arms around her sweaty shoulders, pulling her into a hug. Her arms circled my waist, her cheek resting against my pec. For a moment, I let myself savor the warmth and familiarity of her soft body.
I could steal little moments like this, and they would satiate the painful pull I felt toward her. But I wouldn’t let myself have anything more.
I couldn’t.
“I missed you, Rhys.”
My heart stuttered, but before I could respond, she was pulling away. Her fist came flying at my shoulder.
“Coke?! Are you fucking kidding me?”
Jesus. That actually hurt.
I rubbed my shoulder, trying to ignore the way my cheeks warmed. “I already told you, Pip. I’m clean. It was—I don’t know—a poorly timed photo. I didn’t do any drugs. I had a few drinks, that’s all.”
“That’s all?”
“You know what I mean,” I said with a sigh.