But she’s had a rough night.
She was very upset, thinking she
“Messed everything up”
Her words.
I’m with her now.
With no response, I return to the room where Elliot is already back in the bed. I set my phone down next to hers, climb between the sheets with her, and pull her back into my arms.
TWENTY
ARCHER
Oh,hell. I glance down at the text messages from Cannon that had come in while Kingston and I were asleep.Elliot.My breath catches and my heart drops, settling somewhere in my gut. Cannon found her in the shower, emotionally battered and lost.Fuck.Considering I have experience with Elliot when she’s at her most vulnerable, I think it must have been bad from the way he’s describing it. I read between the lines of his texts the same way I understand his expressions and the way he attempts to nonverbally communicate.
I try to breathe, but my lungs only want to constrict and cut off my air supply. A raw, gaping wound opens in my chest because piled on top of my worry for her, I’m also concerned with how Kingston will take the news. But this isn’t the sort of thing that can wait. I have to tell him.Now.
“K. Wake up.” My first words are sleep-rough, so I clear my throat and try again. “It’s Elliot.”
“Hmm?” He rolls toward me, resting his head on my chest.
He’s not quite awake, but I forge on. “She’s okay. But Cannon says he found her early this morning. In a ball on the floor of her shower.”
“Where is she now?” He lurches from a completely relaxed state to ready to kick someone’s ass in about two seconds. It’s rather impressive the way he can do that.
“With Cannon. In her room, I presume.” I stroke my hand over my jaw, eyeing him carefully. He’d been the most affected by Elliot’s apparent betrayal last night, but he’d admitted to me that he might love her. So, it’s a fine line we’re walking today, and I know I’ll be directly in the middle, should there be a problem. “Do you think you’re okay to go to her now?”
He lets a deep sigh rumble from his chest as he scrubs his hands through his sleep-mussed hair. “Yeah. I’m still wrapping my head around some of it, but… I think I see why she kept things to herself.” He shakes his head. “She didn’t fuckin’ have a choice if she wanted to sneak in here for the purpose of digging up information on Will’s stay here.”
“Definitely not going to classes today.” My lips twist as I watch him hoist his joggers up over his ass sans boxer briefs.
“Probably not. You got a spare toothbrush for me?”
* * *
Elliot’s door is unlocked,so after a few taps to the door, which result in no response, I glance at Kingston before I turn the knob and nudge the door open. My eyes temporarily widen, scanning over the towels littered on the floor, the hairdryer on the nightstand, and what appear to be Cannon’s wet boxer briefs. “Damn, are we late to the party, or can we still join in?”
From beside me, Kingston bristles, but says nothing. Cannon shifts a bit, propping himself up on an elbow as he eyes us. Elliot looks at us through those big, dark doe eyes of hers that carry a hint of what I think is both sadness and apprehension.
“I’m joking around, though it does look like we missed out on the good stuff.” I jut my chin toward her. “You okay, Peaches?”
Elliot scoots up in the bed and leans back against the pillows, pulling the sheet up to her chin. “I’m fine.” Everyone in this room, including Elliot, knows that those two words are nothing but a lie.
I take a moment, scrubbing both hands over my face. We need her talking to us. Fuck. We needourPeaches, not this odd, stoic version of her. Kingston must recognize it too because his expression turns to stone as he studies her. The only thing that moves on his face is the muscle high on his jaw, which twitches like mad.
In an effort to calm him, I put my hand on his back and carefully rub it up and down. I know he’s taking this hard, and the way she’s keeping it in isn’t helping. For Kingston, it throws him when there’s the slightest hint that her mental health is in jeopardy. He has trouble sorting his emotions because of what he went through with his sister. I certainly can’t blame him for that, but I do hate that it affects him like this.
“Elle, please don’t do that.” Kingston presses his lips together, folding his arms over his chest. “We know about last night.”
Cannon pulls her close and whispers in her ear. She winces at his words and his mumbled, “Sorry.”
She stares into his bold blue eyes. “You told them.”
I let a disturbed breath exit my lungs before she turns her head to meet my gaze. “No secrets between brothers, Peaches. Especially not with us. Don’t push us away. We’ve got things to talk about, but it’s nothing that will permanently damage what we have. We do need to sort through things, though. And soon.”
Chest heaving, Kingston circles the end of the bed until he’s where Elliot can see him better. “Elle, can I get into the bed with you? I-I need to be close to you right now.”
