Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
RORY
The next week and a half passed much the same. Paparazzi followed us everywhere, the kids at school filmed us in hopes of catching something good on camera, and we barely saw Skeeter since he was busy at the Shed.
It was now Thursday, and the whole house smelled like turkey and herbs as Josie cooked. The guys were hanging around the kitchen while I helped Josie, and despite warning her that I would ruin our Thanksgiving meal with my cooking skills, she insisted she’d risk it.
So far, I hadn’t set anything on fire or lost a finger.
“Boys, can you set the table?” Josie asked, and Caden frowned.
“You didn’t leave any staff on today?”
“No. Today is about family, and they all deserve to be with theirs. We’ll eat in the formal dining room, just in case Skeeter brings more people, so set plenty of places please. It won’t hurt you to set the table,” she said in a clipped tone, not letting Caden get out of it.
The guys got to their feet and headed into the second dining room that I hadn’t known existed until yesterday, which apparently had a fucking ballroom attached.
Josie said they hadn’t used it since Tristan moved out, so she kept it locked. The cleaners had gone through yesterday to make sure it was pristine for today, and I’d never seen a table so damn long before. It seated thirty people, at least.
Apparently, she had other tables stashed in the ballroom for big parties too.
Seeing Josie cooking was a little strange since I’d only seen her as the businesswoman, not the housewife, but she looked right at home as she hummed to herself while making multiple peach cobblers and apple pies.
The turkey looked so good, my mouth watered just thinking about it.
She got me to help finish the pie, and for a second, I had a memory of doing this with my mom. I had to stand on a chair to reach properly, laughing as we got flour everywhere.
“Are you okay, honey?” Josie asked, snapping me back to the present and making me realize I’d zoned out.
“Yeah, sorry. Was just thinking of Mom,” I smiled weakly. “I wonder if she still makes her pie too?”
“You can ask her when you find her. She probably has a lot to tell you,” she said warmly before opening the oven to pull the turkey out. Well, one of them. The private kitchen that Karl used all the time also had a turkey in the oven.
“That smells so good,” Skeeter grinned as he walked in, his eyes already on the food, and surprise filled me when I noticed Diesel was behind him, along with Brick and Jonah.
“You’re all just in time!” she exclaimed, putting the turkey onto a fancy board. “Can you carry this into the formal dining room? Rory can show you where it is.”
The guys all started taking trays and dishes of food, following me along the hallway to the formal dining room. Caden and the guys had just finished setting the table, so we placed the food in the middle and went back into the kitchen to grab more.
Between the two kitchens, Josie had prepared a lot of food. Two turkeys, a million different side dishes, and we still needed to save room for dessert.
There was a knock at the door so I went to answer it, grinning as Mule and Zeena appeared.
“Hey. You made it.”
“You said lots of food, so of course I came,” Mule joked, motioning to Zeena. “We usually hang out together on Thanksgiving anyway, so I dragged her along too. Hope that’s okay.”
“Totally fine. Josie is loving a full house. She’s made a mountain of food. C’mon, we’re in the formal dining room,” I answered, giving them both a look when they scrunched their noses. “I know, rich people are weird.”
I led them through the house to where everyone else was, introducing Zeena to Josie as we all sat down.
Caden carved the turkey, then everyone started helping themselves to food as they piled their plates high. I sat between Skeeter and Diesel, and conversation flowed around the table as everyone dug in.
“Josie, this is amazing,” Mule groaned as she took a large mouthful of turkey. “Thank you for inviting me.”
“You’re welcome. You’re always welcome here, all of you,” Josie smiled. “Does anyone want to say something they’re thankful for?”
“You and this turkey,” Mule grinned, making us all chuckle.
“I’m thankful for Mule dragging me along,” Zeena said as she motioned to me. “And Rory. We wouldn’t be here without her.”
“To Josie and Rory,” Skeeter said as he lifted his drink, and I rolled my eyes.
“It’s all Josie, trust me.”
“Take the praise, Donovan,” Brick chuckled, raising his drink too.
Everyone mumbled their agreement and lifted their drinks in a toast, and I watched Josie as she beamed.
“I’m thankful to have a full house. I’m so happy to have you all here,” she said brightly, and I glanced at Diesel, finding a blank look on his face as he picked at his food. He didn’t look like he was in the room with us, his mind elsewhere.
Skeeter kept glancing at him too, telling me my worry wasn’t me being paranoid and something was wrong.
“Excuse me,” Diesel said as he abruptly stood, leaving the room like his ass was on fire.
“Is he okay?” Josie asked as her eyes remained on the door where he’d left, and Skeeter sighed.
“Holidays are hard because of Sasha. He’ll probably leave, I shouldn't have pushed him into coming.”
“I’ll check on him,” I replied, his hand shooting out to grab my wrist before I could leave the room.
“I’d leave him alone. He’s—”
“He’s hurting. If he wants to go and sit with Sasha instead of being here, I’ll go with him. I’ve got him, Skeet,” I answered firmly, waiting for him to nod and let go before jogging after Diesel.
I found him in the kitchen, his breathing forced like he was reminding himself to do it.
Was he having a panic attack?
“Hey. You don’t have to be here if you don’t want to be,” I murmured as I approached, his head snapping up at the sound of my voice.
“Sorry. I don’t think I can do this, Donovan. I tried, but—”
“That’s okay. Would you rather go and see her? I’ll come with you if you need me to.”
He watched me silently, my heart breaking for him all over again. Sasha was so lucky, and I bet she’d known it too.
Being loved by Diesel would have been magical, I was sure of it. He put his everything into her, even all these years later.
I didn’t want to see Slash’s grave, but if I really had to go, I would. I’d do it for Diesel.
When he didn’t speak, I took a step closer. “Do you want a hug? I don’t want to assume—”
I was cut off as he pulled me against him tightly, giving me an answer, so I wrapped my arms around him and held on. He let out a shuddering breath, his body shaking slightly as he tried hard to relax, and I ran my hand up and down his back to comfort him.
His face burrowed into my neck as if he could hide his pain there, and I hugged him even tighter when I felt my hoodie getting damp from tears.
I slid my hand higher to the back of his head, lightly trailing my fingers through his short hair and feeling his body sag a little from the touch.
“I can pack us some turkey and we can go sit with her while we eat. Josie won’t mind,” I promised quietly, hating how broken he looked when he pulled back to wipe at his eyes.
“No, it’s okay. You stay here.”
“D,” I sighed, reaching up to wipe his cheeks with my thumb. “Don’t spend today alone. If you want, you can hang in the room you sleep in here and I can finish eating. Then we can go.”
“You—”
“She’d hate you being alone today,” I said softly, and he winced, knowing I was right. “Besides, I want to hear stories about you guys on Thanksgiving, so you have to let me come with you.”
“I’ll tell you stories later. I need a smoke,” he mumbled, motioning for me to follow him outside.
We sat by the pool, side-by-side on one of the suntanning benches, a comfortable silence falling between us.
“I wish Slash was here,” I said after a moment, my eyes staring out into the night.
“Me too. I think he and Sasha would have enjoyed a big meal like this,” he replied softly, and I could hear the smile in his voice.
I shuffled closer, resting my head on his shoulder with a sigh.
“You should stay tonight. We’re all going to just watch movies in the theater room.”
“I’ll pass. I appreciate the invitation, but you guys will just want to pretend to watch the movie then have an orgy halfway through,” he said dryly, and I felt his head lean against mine.
“Josie will probably want to watch movies too, so you’re not ruining an orgy, promise,” I joked, blowing smoke into the air.
“We can talk about this stuff, right?”
“Sex stuff? You can tell me anything. I won’t tell other people your business.”
He was quiet for a moment, seeming lost in thought before speaking again.
“Sasha was my first everything. I can’t imagine doing anything with another person. It’s like being a virgin all over again with the awkwardness. Was it awkward for you when you slept with someone new for the first time?” he asked carefully, making me huff.
“I’m really awkward. Being intimate is something I never thought would be special, for obvious reasons, but I’ve found it meant something when I started doing it because I wanted to and not because I was forced.
You’re sharing a connection with another person, being exposed to them and trusting them with your body.
Even now, I can get embarrassed with group stuff,” I explained, putting my cigarette butt on the ground. I’d throw it out when we got back up.