need some air.”
The second my feet hit the welcome mat, big, ugly tears roll down my cheeks, mirroring the rainstorm outside.
She’s the one I go to for advice. The only adult I had left to look up to.
The last good piece of my mom.
I’m all alone now. I no longer have a family. I don’t have…
Something inside me snaps and I take off running like a bat out of hell…speeding toward the only person in the world who will understand.
The only person who can make it better.
The only one who can put me back together again.
Chapter 39
Jace
I pause when I pass Cole on the staircase. His jacket’s on and his car keys are in his hand.
“Where are you going?”
He shrugs. “It’s Saturday night.”
Over my dead body is he getting drunk at Christian’s tonight. Hell, he shouldn’t even be driving for another few hours. Especially in this crazy ass weather. We rarely get storms here, and this is the second one in a month.
“You were discharged three hours ago. Stay your ass home.”
He levels me with a look. “Dad doesn’t have a problem with it.”
No surprise there. The second he heard Cole’s injuries weren’t dire, he went back to the office and he’s been there ever since.
I’m also willing to bet Cole didn’t even ask him, he’s just trying to get under my skin.
“Fine. Next time you need something, make sure to ask your sperm donor.”
I brush past him, but he stops me. “I’ll stay home.”
I give him a curt nod. “Good choice.”
He squeezes the back of his neck. “Look, I know we didn’t talk about it at the hospital, but what you did…”
“I don’t need a thank you.”
He’s my little brother. Going after the person who hurt him—especially that motherfucker—wasn’t even a thought, it was instinct.
If the Vikings didn’t pull me off him when they did, I’d still be sitting in a jail cell…facing twenty years to life.
Cole’s expression is uneasy as he digs his hands in his pockets. “I guess what I’m trying to say is…I would have done the same for you.”
I raise a brow. “Really?”
My brother has no qualms about being selfish. Just because I have his back doesn’t mean I expect him to have mine.
I fight my own battles.
“I don’t know, maybe.” Grinning, he shrugs. “It’s the thought that counts, right?”
My lips twitch. “Asshole.”
“Never claimed I wasn’t.” His expression turns serious. “I know we don’t say it…but…” His voice trails off.
This conversation is officially awkward as fuck, but I catch his drift. “Yeah. Ditto.”
If Cole or Bianca think I won’t go to the ends of the earth and back protecting them, they’re dead wrong.
He blows out a breath. “Now that we got that out of the way, wanna play some Black Ops?”
“Wow, you really do love me if you’re willing to play—”
A loud thwack against the house cuts me off mid-sentence.
“What was that?”
He lifts a shoulder. “Beats me. Probably the storm.”
“Yeah, you’re proba—”
Another thump, much louder than before, has us both running up the stairs.
“Bianca?” I shout.
She comes out of her room as we reach the hallway. “What?”
“Are you okay?”
She looks at me like I’ve sprouted another head. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“You didn’t hear that?” Cole asks.
She makes a face. “Yeah, but I figured your dumbass dropped something.” She motions to her door. “Can I go no—”
The sound of glass shattering has the three of us sprinting down the hall.
Thinking quick, I grab Bianca’s arm and yank her back. “Stay here.”
“Seriously?”
Swear this girl’s sole ambition in life is to give me a heart attack before I’m twenty.
The look I give her must make it clear not to press me, because she relents.
“It’s your window, Jace,” Cole shouts.
I mutter a curse when I enter my room, taking in the glass on the floor, the big-ass rock, and the busted window. Shit is right.
Cole rubs his chin. “Think it was Tommy?”
“Doubtful.”
Not only is the fucker without wheels, he’s also without legs.
Well, one of them at least.
Cole catches the next rock that sails through my now broken window. “Well, whoever it is, he’s still out there.” He flaps his hand around. “And he has a killer arm.”
I seize his shirt sleeve when he takes a step forward. “No.”
Last thing he needs is to get pummeled in the head with a rock and develop another concussion.
I march across the room to my window, narrowly missing the next rock. “Hey, assho—”
I freeze when I see Dylan. Although I’m having a hard time believing it’s actually her because she’s…a wreck.
I can count