planned all these stupid events in Rachel's name that she would have hated. But they're demanding I attend all of them. Play the part of their dutiful son and shit."
Archer threw the covers back and grabbed his jeans off the floor. "Alright, give me ten, and I'll sort us out a jet."
Steele shook his head. "Nah, dude, you're not coming with me." He gave a short laugh. "I appreciate the offer, don't get me wrong. But this shit is going to be painful enough without you punching out my dad in front of the press."
Archer huffed. "That happened once, and he deserved it."
My gaze bounced between the two of them. I was dying for that story but now wasn't the time to ask.
"Well, he always deserves it," Steele agreed. "But I'll be fine. I'll just spend the entire weekend drunk off my ass and get in a fight with any rich prick who talks down to me. It'll be therapeutic."
Archer grimaced. He buttoned his jeans up, then scrubbed his hand through his hair again. "I think we should go with you. If Kevin tries to—"
"He won't," Steele snapped, cutting off whatever Archer was about to say. "He won't try shit or I'll kill him, and he damn well knows it. Just leave it alone, Arch; I'll be back first thing Monday." He cast a warning glare at his friend, then softened his gaze to run over me. The he turned on his heel and stalked out of the room without another word.
Alarmed, I turned my wide eyes toward Archer. "Is he...?"
Archer just shook his head. "He's far from okay. Can you talk to him? It's not safe to split up right now. Maybe he'll listen if it comes from you."
I was already nodding before he’d even finished his sentence. "Yes, of course." I scrambled out of bed and pulled on a pair of jeans.
Archer caught my arm before I left the room, pulled me back to him, and kissed me hard. "Thank you, Kate."
I shook my head. "Nothing to thank." Because I would move heaven and earth for Max Steele if it meant never again seeing that pained look on his face when Archer mentioned Kevin.
Rising up on my toes, I kissed Archer again, quickly, then hurried my ass into Steele's bedroom. He stood at the end of his bed, tossing clothes into a bag like he didn't much care what he was packing, with a deep frown marring his beautiful face.
"Hey," I said as I entered his room. I perched my ass on the bed beside his bag. "Wanna talk?"
He flashed me a quick, humorless smile. "Not really. Archer send you in here?"
I shook my head. "Archer D'Ath doesn't send me fucking anywhere, thank you very much. I came in here because I'm worried. Can we please talk a moment?"
He hesitated, a folded T-shirt still in his hand hovering over the open bag, then his eyes met mine and his shoulders slumped.
"There's nothing to talk about, Hellcat," he murmured, his gaze sliding away from mine and making me scowl.
"What did we say about lies and secrets, Max?" I kept my tone hard, and his nose wrinkled.
Tossing his packing aside, he collapsed onto the bed beside me. "Yeah, good point, beautiful." He buried his face in his folded arms for a moment.
I lay down beside him, propping my head up on my hand. "So, talk to me. What don't I know? Why is Archer so worried about you going alone? I get the impression it's about more than just your safety from my stalker, which, I might add, is a very valid concern right now."
Steele shifted his face on his arms, turning to look at me. "Because my parents are disgusting human beings who never should have had children in the first place."
I bit my lip, sadness for Steele's childhood washing over me. "I gathered that much. Kevin is your dad?"
Steele grimaced. "Yeah."
He didn't elaborate on why that was a cringe subject, and I didn't push him to. He'd tell me when he was ready. But I did need to understand a little bit more about Rachel's memorial to know why he was so out of sorts.
"Aside from my stalker, is there any other reason to fear for your safety if you go alone?" I asked him carefully. I was concerned for him, but didn’t want to come across pushy and prying.
He shook his head. "Not unless you count the damage I'll do to my liver while I'm there."
I frowned.