He burst out laughing. “Oh now, don’t go getting all sappy on me, Rox.”
She released him and watched as he walked out, closing the door behind him. T remained silent, staring at her. It lasted a minute with neither of them speaking, until she finally broke.
“Let me guess, he’s not a bad guy, right, T?”
“You know he’s not.”
She nodded. It was the truth and the hardest part about their breakup. If he’d been a total dick, she could’ve hated him. It would’ve been easier to get over him, for sure.
Her bottom lip trembled. “I wish he were. It’d hurt less.”
T didn’t respond. He settled into her chair and clasped his hands in his lap. Of all her brothers, he was the least emotional and responsive to sad situations. Yet, that didn’t stop her from letting her tears flow down her face, swiping her chin with the back of her hand.
“Love sucks.”
“Yeah, sometimes. But it’s worth it.”
“Yeah.” She snorted. “When it’s reciprocated. You try being in a one-sided relationship and tell me how it feels.”
“Alright, but I can only speak to Jonah’s side.”
She glanced up.
“He loves you, Rox, I’d bet my fucking life on it.” He stared at her. “Maybe he just doesn’t think he deserves you.”
She shook her head. “It’s a cop-out answer.”
T scoffed. “Yeah, I bet if you asked Cass, she would’ve said the same shit about me.”
“T, you’re a good guy.” She shrugged and muttered. “Just a little rough around the edges.”
He snorted, and she glanced up. His lips spread into a smile, and he held up three fingers. “Only three women ever thought I was a good guy. Mom, you, and Cassie.” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Wanna know what you all got in common?”
He didn’t wait for her to answer. “You know me. You know the truth. You know all the ugliness, the shit that almost ended me. You three knew it.”
She did. All the horror he went through before he came to live with them. It was years and years later, but it was shared just among the family. They may not have talked about it, but there were no secrets among them. They each had their story, some more painful than others, but they all knew it.
“But that’s not Jonah.”
“You sure about that?”
Was she?
Roxanne sighed. “He broke up with me, T.”
T stood and nodded. “And I pushed Cass away more times than I could count. We all got our demons, Rox. Some of us are just better at hiding them ‘cause we don’t want anyone else to see. Especially those we love.”
T walked across her room and out the door without another word. He’d said enough.
He’d said everything.
****
Jonah had been holed up in the workshop since he got home three hours ago. Holden was still avoiding him since his outburst a few days ago. Hell, he couldn’t blame the kid. Jonah had losthis shit. He rested his knuckles on his workbench and lowered his head. The breakup continued to be a sore subject.
“Hey, man.”
Jonah glanced over to find Cord walking through the shop.
