I suck in a breath and tap Everleigh’s name, pressing my back to the house while the phone rings. My mind drifts to Hayvin, her words echoing like ghosts I can’t outrun. I want to argue with every accusation, but something deep down warns me I’d only be doing a disservice to her if I did.
"You're lucky, you fucking cunt nugget, that I'm answering your call right now. What the hell do you want?" Everleigh answers.
My eyebrows shoot up and I gape at the sky, chest tight with disbelief. My mouth works, but no words come out.
"Oh, come on. Don't be a little puss now, Alek. Actually, scratch that. It seems you're superb at not saying shit, so I can't say I'm surprised."
This is the first time in three years that I've seen this side of Everleigh aimed at me, and I'm stunned speechless. Each time I open my mouth to say something, shock renders me mute again. This is the side of Ever that I had hoped to never have to come face to face with because, if I'm honest, she's scary as fuck.
Everleigh lets out a frustrated growl. "You know what? If you're too much of an idiot to figure out where Hayvin is or why she's not answering your calls, then you need to think long and hard about y'all's talk from the other day. I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you. It's not my job to help you figure out where you fucked up. I never took you for a stupid man, Alek. I always had a small amount of respect for you andthought you were a decent guy because my best friend wouldn't have fallen in love with you otherwise." She gets quiet for a minute, and I'm about to open my mouth to say something when I catch her sniffle from across the line. "You hurt her, Alek. The moment I opened my door to find my best friend falling into my arms in despair is the moment I lost all respect for you. It's also when I realized that you've been so busy running from one thing while chasing another that you've been blind to what's right in front of you for the last three years. I pity you for that. So, to answer the question I'm sure you were calling about, no, I don't know where Vin is. No, I won't let you talk to her when I see her, and no, I actually won't tell her you called. I swear God wasted a good asshole when he put those fucking teeth in your mouth," she finishes with a snarl before the line goes quiet.
I pull the phone away and stare at the blank screen, Everleigh’s words echoing in my skull. Hayvin would be proud—hell, I’m proud of her for defending my woman. Still, I can’t figure out how I became the villain here.
Frustration claws at me as I dial Hayvin again, anxiety coiling in my gut. Straight to voicemail, just like every other time. Hopelessness rises, and I don't even waste time leaving one this time because if I know my woman, she's probably not even listening to them anyway.
That's the crux of it all, isn't it? Me thinking I know my woman.
Grinding my teeth, I open our message thread to send her another text and desperately hope she’ll pity me enough to throw me a bone and not ignore this one, too.
ME
Baby girl. I need to hear your voice. I need to know you're okay. I should be home tomorrow, but I fucking hate not hearing from you. This isthe longest we've been without speaking to each other, Hayvin, and I got to say...I'm not a huge fan of it, baby. Will you please call me when you can? I think I messed up somewhere, and I want to fix this because this distance...this tension, I ain't good with it. Let me know what I need to do to make this right between us.
I hear Jerica and David coming out of the house, so I press send even though there's a shit ton more I want to say. Maybe some things can’t be fixed over the phone, anyway.
"Hey, you. I was wondering where you snuck off to," Jerica says, shooting me a smile and coming to stand beside me after they drop their boxes off at the truck.
She stands closer than usual, her body heat brushing against me, and I’m not sure I like it. There’s an uneasy tension between us, something new and unsettling that’s been growing these past two days. Restlessness and discomfort knot inside me, though I've been unable to pinpoint exactly what it is.
I edge away, trying to make it look casual. "Had to call Hayvin."
Jerica snorts. "Had to? What? Does she have you by the balls, or is she afraid you're going to fall in love with me while you're here?"
My head snaps toward her, stung by that smug, condescending tone. I glare. "Being a bitch doesn't make you pretty, Erica."
She lets out a small gasp, and her eyes widen, becoming glassy.
When I realize what I've said, I blow out a breath and grab the back of my neck. "Look, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I'm just dealing with some shit, and you caught some of it."
"Don't apologize to her. She was being a bitch, and it wasn't even called for," David says. "Something I'm surprised youhaven't learned by now, we Baladucci's create chaos and hurt others when we're hurting." He shrugs. "It happens when you grow up in a family like ours. I just thought she'd finally gotten help for that or some shit. Hayvin still not answering you?"
His question makes my frustration spike, and I shove off the house, pacing in front of them. "No, she's not. Fuck, I even tried Everleigh, but only got her dark side. Trust me, you don't want to end up there—she's fucking terrifying. How am I supposed to fix things if she won't talk to me? I know I'll see her when I get home, but I don't want to wait." I rake my hand through my hair, let out a growl, and kick the same damn rock again. "Should have just stayed home."
"So, why didn't you?"
David's question freezes me mid-step. Shit. I hadn't meant to let that last part slip out.
So, why didn't you?
My eyes bounce from David's eyebrow lifted, smirking face to Jerica's knowing one and back again as I work my jaw back and forth. "Because you needed my help."
"Did we? Because you can see how little she has. I only asked if you wanted to come help me, not that we needed you to," David replies.
"Maybe not, but you don't leave your friends hanging when it's something like this."
David glances over at Jerica and then back at me, his eyes holding something I'm unable to decipher. "So, why didn't you bring Hayvin with you?"
I start to answer, but my mind goes blank. The emptiness only pisses me off more. I curse under my breath and slam my fist into the side of the house. It's the first time in a long fucking time that my anger has gotten the better of me.
