“Shit, did I wake you up?”
“No,” I say, opening the door a bit more. I’m sure my eyes are red and puffy, but I don’t give a shit.
He doesn’t comment on it, instead pushing the bottle into my hands.
“Been a long week, figured you might need more than one bottle to de-stress.”
“Oh yeah. Thanks,” I say, sending him a pathetic smile before closing the door.
He knocks again. “Colt?”
I open the door faster this time, slightly more agitated. “Yes?”
“What's wrong?”
“It doesn't matter.”
“You’ve been quiet this week,” he notes, pinching his brows together. “Did we go too far with the things we did?”
“The things we did,”I snort while making air quotes. “No, that was fine.”
“Are you sure? We didn't plan things out, and you were in a vulnerable position with me and Wick. I'd understand feeling weird about it. I thought maybe you needed to talk about it.”
“I don't want to talk about it,” I say, attempting to close the door again.
He sticks his foot in the way, and I don’t know why he’s suddenly being so pushy. “You have to tell me what's going on. Why are you so sad? Is it Destry? Is she not doing well in rehab?”
Rolling my eyes, I shake my head. “No, she's fine. Actually, she’s doing very well. We've been texting every day, and she did exactly the right thing, asking for help when she did. It’s just…” I sigh, frustrated and hurting. “FuckingWick.”
“What did he do?”
“He told Luke about Destry going into rehab again. I didn’t need him to, but Luke paid for her rehab. And apparently, he's got a rental not too far from the place. He's insisting she stay there after she's out of rehab and transitions into day visits.”
“Wow. My son-in-law is a good and generous friend.”
That’s not the point.
“I just don't know why Wick did that. He knows Luke’s already done so much for me. I would've never asked Luke for help with this.”
Joaquin’s arms flex, like maybe he wants to hug me, but I don’t think I can handle that right now. He sees me shift behind the door and crosses his arms over his chest. They don’t stay crossed for long because he cannot talk without his hands.
“It was probably the only way he felt he could help. It's tough not knowing what to do when somebody's going through this. Giving the money makes Luke—and by extension, Warwick—feel like they’redoingsomething. If you don’t mind my opinion, I would let Luke help you, especially since it's well within his financial ability.”
I exhale heavily. “Yeah, I know. Anyway, I’m not actually mad about that. It was so generous and kind of Luke. And thoughtful of Warwick.”
“If that didn’t upset you, then what happened? I promise I'm not trying to be nosy. I just…when our Colt is sad, something isn't right in the world.”
Breathing a little easier, I chuck his arm. “So dramatic.”
“Excuse me,” he says, dramatically placing his hand on his chest. “I am not dramatic. Soy Argentino.”
A laugh escapes my chest, lifting a weight from my heart.Fucking Joaquin.
“Oh, thank God. There you are,” he says, cupping my cheek. I nuzzle against his hand, letting a few tears slip.
He slides his hand to the back of my head and pulls me in for a kiss. I don't know why he does it, but it's warm and sweet and…
“Ohshit. What the hell have I stumbled into?” Abel walks out onto the landing, eyes wide with surprise.
