“I forgot that I told you guys that you could use the in-law suite last night. Anyway, I found him earlier this morning, and he was livid.”
“Good.”
“I just wanted to warn you. He was talking some mad shit. That he was going to fuck you up—”
I snort. “Thanks for the warning.” Nate doesn’t want to even come near me. I’ll break his fucking face next time I see him.
“I’m serious, Colt. After I untied him and removed the duct tape from around his mouth, he was throwing shit around. Running his mouth about begging … I don’t know what he was talking about, and he wouldn’t explain it to me, but he promised I’d understand soon enough.”
Well, at least he thinks I got the girl. I’d rather him not know that she turned me down. No matter what happens between Raylee and me, I know she’ll never go back to him. “Thanks.” I hang up before he can say anything else.
A knock comes at my door, and I open it up, expecting it to be her but let out a growl when I see it’s Finn. “What do you want?” I should have stayed in bed.
“Everything okay?” he asks, stepping into my room.
“Yep,” I lie. “Why wouldn’t it be?”
“Because I just saw Raylee run out of the house with a bag packed and tears rolling down her face. She was obviously upset.”
I run a hand through my hair.
“I don’t want to get involved,” he adds.
“Then don’t,” I snap at him.
He closes my door, letting me know that’s exactly what he’s about to do. “Don’t get me wrong, last night was fun—fucking great—but the show you put on was equivalent to the one where she burned your car down.”
“Your point?” I growl, not liking where this is headed.
“My point is, what the fuck are you doing, man?” He points at my door. “You two are going to kill each other trying to prove that you don’t love one another.”
I snort. “We don’t—”
“She may not love you, but you’re in love with her.”
His words are like a punch to my gut. I never considered her not feeling the same way about me. She comes crawling back to me every time I push her away. I guess, over time, I thought I could make her love me the same way I make her want me.
I sit down on the edge of my bed, and admit, “We got into a fight.”
“And?”
“And what?” I snap. Before he can answer, I add, “She’ll get over it and return home. Or come back to set it on fire.” Either way, she’ll return. She always does.
“Ahh, I see.” He sits down beside me. “Can I say something without you punching me?”
I give a rough laugh. “No promises.”
“You’ve been hell-bent on making her as miserable as you for the past six years. Now is the time to fight for her as hard as you’ve fought the feelings you have for her.”
I look over at him, and he pulls a joint out from behind his ear, staring down at it. “She’s got one more year left of college, and then she’s gone, Colt.”
“She won’t …” I trail off as his words sink in.
I’ve done whatever I needed to do to keep her in my life. To make sure she stays close to me. Afraid if she put too much distance between us that I wouldn’t be able to pull her back to me. What will I do to keep her here with me after graduation? What if she moves across the country? The thought alone is crippling.
“What?” He laughs. “She won’t leave? She will. Why would she stay here in a house with four guys?” Pulling his lighter out of his pocket, he puts the joint to his lips and lights it up. Taking a hit, he tilts his head back and blows it out slowly. “No matter how much she enjoys being your slut, she’ll eventually want to be someone’s wife.” He slaps my shoulder and holds out the joint. “It’s human nature. A woman wants to be more than a booty call, Colt. And after all the shit you’ve put her through, I think Raylee has earned the right to be happy. Whether that’s with you or someone else.”
Both of our cell phones go off at the same time, signaling a text message. I don’t even bother to look at mine because he removes his from his pocket. “It’s Tyson. He wants us at Blackout in thirty.”
