balance was at any given time. My father barely remembered I was alive most days, and I was pretty sure he was greatly disappointed I’d survived my last overdose and came out of my latest stint in rehab with a clear head. He was also in show business, and I’d always seemed to somehow be a direct reflection on him, so when my life and reputation started to slide south, he figured ignoring his troubled son was the best option. The only thing I was grateful to either of them for was the extended family they brought into my life. I wouldn’t have Jeno if my dad didn’t make it a habit to find a new wife every five years. And I wouldn’t have my grandmother on my mom’s side, who was my only blood relative still around who gave a damn about me. She helped Jeno manage all my affairs and my money when he was still too young to legally make any big decisions. She’d even taken my younger brother under her wing and made sure he had a place to call home when his mother proved to be just as difficult as mine. Mine was negligent and absent. His was overbearing and demanding. We both owed my grandma a lot and did our best to check in on her regularly.
She was the only reason neither one of us was feral.
“I can’t relate either. My folks kicked me out when I was fifteen. I’ve always envied the fact that Maren knows her dad will be there no matter what, even though they don’t talk all the time.”
The conversation felt weighed down by the heavy topic, so we naturally lapsed into the kind of silence strangers shared when they were suddenly faced with too many details about one another. Fortunately, the hotel came into view before things became too awkward to bear.
Arrow peeked out the windshield and looked at the hotel with obvious skepticism. “This is where you’re staying?”
It wasn’t the fanciest hotel in the artsy New Mexico town by any means, but Jeno checked online, and it had good reviews and excellent amenities.
I laughed, this time for real. “If I stay at the most well-known, five-star spot in town, someone will definitely recognize me. If I stay here, it’s more likely someone will just think I’m some dude who looks like Salinger Dolan. If I give you my number, can you at least let me know how Maren’s dad is doing?” I held up a hand and put my other over my heart. “I swear I won’t bug you for information on her.”
I fully planned on giving her the space she required from here on out. It was the least I could do for her at this point.
The assistant gave me a lopsided grin but shook her head in the negative. “Can’t do that, Superstar. If Maren wants you to know anything, she’s gotta be the one to give that information out. I won’t ever do anything that might cause her not to trust me.” Her eyebrows lifted, and her mouth shifted into a smirk. “I bet I’m the first girl who’s ever turned you down when you offered your number.”
I slipped out the door, telling her as I went, “You might be right.”
It’d been a long time since I used sex as a coping mechanism to fill up all the empty spaces inside of me, but that didn’t mean I’d lost any of my appeal. Getting girls was never a challenge, until Maren.
It wasn’t like I was chasing her to fill the empty spot in my bed, but still… She was the only one who seemed to be immune to my legendary charms from the start.
Maybe that was why it was impossible to forget about her after all this time. It was always the things that were most difficult, the biggest challenges I’d had to face, that lingered with me through all the ups and downs.
Maren
I WATCHED MY dad as he shuffled around the living room, complaining under his breath that the new company I’d hired to take care of his landscaping while he was laid up wasn’t doing a very good job. He also complained about the young nutritionist I’d hired to come in and make sure he transitioned his questionable diet to a heart-healthy one. And he really hated the nurse who was coming to the house to check on him twice a week. He told me I was overreacting. He grumbled that he’d been