Chapter 25 #3
“But they keep her safe because they want her. Lines haven’t been crossed, but I sense there’s more there.
You can’t just hug it out with her, you know?
You really fucking hurt her by not visiting the prison and cutting her off like she never meant a thing to you.
As much as I hate to say it, you can’t be mad at her for getting closer to them after you abandoned her. ”
I winced, knowing he was right. “I really thought she’d gone behind our backs.”
“Grovel like your life depends on it. That’s the second time you’ve turned on her for no goddamn reason. You won’t get a third chance,” he said seriously, and I had a feeling he meant it. “I’m heading home. You said you were going to the warehouse?”
“Yeah. Faris is sneaking Rory and Ty out to a party later and they invited me. I only left to punch Skeet,” I shrugged, a small smile tugging at his mouth.
“A party?”
“Yeah. The one that Marco’s already at. It’s in Lake Rowland,” I replied as I climbed behind the wheel.
“Yeah, I know where it’s at. Be careful,” he said before heading to his truck to leave too.
My face was hurting now the anger was wearing off, and I checked my reflection in the rearview to see the red marks where Skeeter’s fists had connected. At least he hadn’t broken my nose or knocked a tooth out.
I drove for a while, trying to figure out what to say to Rory. The more I thought about it, the more pissed off at myself I became. So fucking stupid.
Hunter was waiting outside the warehouse when I arrived, a cigarette between his lips as he patiently waited for me to approach.
“You don’t have to like me,” he started, blowing smoke at me.
“But remember who answered her call for help when no one else did. I drove to Fairview multiple times a week to see her. I made sure her commissary never ran dry, and I was there the second she needed a ride home. And you think I’m the enemy even after all of that, while you took Skeeter’s side like he wasn’t the villain in all of this?
” he asked in a flat voice, studying me.
“I thought—”
“I know what you thought, but you didn’t even let her explain to defend herself.
Don’t you think if one of us fucked her, we’d brag about it to Skeet?
Mark would have loved to rub that shit in his face.
We haven’t touched her, but don’t think for a second that I won’t.
I have every intention of being with her.
You can’t even be mad about it because at the end of the day, I’m the one that keeps showing up for her.
You have to decide if you want to stick around and deal with it, or watch from the sidelines. ”
“You’re not going to threaten me to stay away from her?” I chuckled, and he raised an eyebrow.
“I was going to, but knowing you punched Skeet makes me feel a little better. D said it was a good little fight too.”
Diesel might not have liked them either, but it was obvious he was getting closer with them too over this situation if he’d called him.
“Can I go inside now?” I asked dryly, and he motioned to the door.
“Go ahead. Just be warned that if she tells you to leave, you’re leaving. This isn’t your safe space, Holloway. It’s hers.”
I nodded and let myself inside, scanning the large space for Rory and Tyler, but I couldn’t see them.
“Office,” Faris called out from the bar, pointing to the stairs, so I thanked him and headed upstairs, knocking before opening the door.
Tyler was sitting in the chair at the desk, Rory straddling him as they seemed to be deep in conversation. He looked a little more sober, and there was an empty bottle of water on the desk, which I assumed was his.
“What happened to you?” Rory asked with alarm when she looked over at me, and I closed the door behind me.
“Got into it with Skeet,” I replied, moving closer to sit in the chair opposite the desk.
“You left here to punch him?” Tyler scoffed, and I sighed.
“I won’t let anyone put hands on her. I don’t care how mad at her I am,” I grumbled, leaning back and crossing my arms, noticing I had her attention.
“I’m sorry. That doesn’t fix things, but I really let him get in my head.
I’m not blaming him, it’s my fault, but I really believed you’d fucked us over. ”
“You’re right, that doesn’t fix things,” she answered, getting to her feet and sitting on the desk in front of me.
“You’re an asshole. Turning on Skeet doesn’t make up for the fact that you turned on me.
You didn’t visit me once over those couple of months.
You didn’t just ditch me, you ditched Tyler too. ”
“I know. I’m sorry for that too.”
“You’re not welcome back in my bed any time soon. I don’t even know if I’ll forgive you.” It looked like that hurt her to say, both emotionally and physically, and when she started coughing, I felt bad for even trying to have this conversation right now.
“Don’t talk. We’ll talk later,” I promised, and I knew I’d done the right thing when Tyler gave me a nod, even though she flipped me off.
Hopefully, I could fix the damage I’d caused.