He warned me this would happen…
In the end I packed by grabbing fistfuls of whatever I had and just stuffing it in my bag. A minute later I hit the bathroom and did the same.
“Hayden!”
It didn’t matter; I could sort it all out later. All that mattered right now was getting away from the three people Iloved most. The three men whose lives had been totally derailed, just by my very presence.
My veryselfishpresence.
I finished packing and sat on the bed for a moment, gathering myself. I still couldn’t believe they’d lost the bar. Then again I could believe it, because Cole was so unfortunately fucking connected to everyone in town, and had been for years. The friendships he forged during his hero days had endured even beyond his fall from grace, and it made perfect sense he’d know someone who could call in the fire marshal, send in the department of health, or even get the building condemned if he wanted to. The asshole would do it all without thinking twice, too. He’d do it without any regard for the lives he shattered, as long as it served a means to his own end.
Walk away from them.
Cole’s deep voice resonated in the back of my pounding, spinning head.
Go back to your place, and I’ll never go near them.
It was a little late for that. Then again, if I left now there was a chance I could at least appease him. If I did what he said, maybe I could get him to undo at least some of the damage that had already been done. Cole could call off his dogs. He could lean on whatever he needed to, to get The Refuge’s liquor license temporarily reinstated.
No matter what happened, it was worth a try.
“Fuck it.”
Bouncing up from the bed, I slung my bag over my shoulder and steeled myself as I placed my hand on the knob. I knew none of them would stop me from leaving; physically,anyway. There would be pleading, and reasoning, and words that made me cry, but nothing could keep my legs from moving me down the hall, out the door, and into my car.
Nothing, Hayden?
I stopped, blinking back all new tears. I loved and adored these men. That was a truth I’d already faced and even embraced, knowing it would probably mean heartbreak later on. I loved them, yes, but could you really love more than one person? And what about three?
My mouth tightened into a frown. Gluttony is what got me here in the first place. I’d been greedy with my own wants and needs, without thinking of the emotional repercussions. And now here, just beyond this door, I had to face the reality of my reckless actions. I was about to hurt these three guys, very deeply. On top of everything else I’d done to them.
I threw open the door, and flew down the hallway as fast as my trembling legs would carry me.
Ripping the Band-Aid off quickly was the only way I knew.
~ 40 ~
HAYDEN
The pylons stretched out into the water, jutting past the surface like broken, blackened teeth. In the day’s dying light they even looked like teeth, all rotted and pitted as the waves lapped gently against them.
It wasn’t always like this, though.
No, in my childhood those pylons had supported an old wooden pier, its surface worn slick with use. My father had taken me fishing there, back when I was four or five. We had so much fun we went again and again, all throughout my childhood. Just the two of us, a bucket of shiners, and smiles so wide it felt like our faces would crack.
There was nothing left of the pier itself, now. Just two rows of shattered pylons… and the memory of me running excitedly between them.
I’d been driven here by pure nostalgia, without any other real destination in mind. It was more than an hour away, but it was always worth the trip. Even now, when the only angling I did was fishing for memories.
I heard the obnoxious engine rumbling in the distance, long before I saw the familiar headlights. It took everything in me to fight back the growing sense of dread, as the car pulled next to me. I had to, though. I needed to maintain my composure.
“Hi, beautiful.”
My stomach rolled. I bit my lip to keep it from curling back in disgust.
“Cole.”
He killed the engine and climbed out of the Mustang. It reminded me of one of those coiled snakes, leaping from a can of fake peanuts.
