“I appreciate it, though. I appreciate you.” I swallowed hard, glancing down at the table. “And what I did at the club...if that upset you at all, I’m sorry.”
Skye cleared her throat, then gave me a gentle smile. “Now’s not the time to worry about that. Right now, you need to focus on you.”
“Are we good?” I asked, needing to hear it, needing her to tell me that despite the chaos, despite everything, we were okay.
“We’re good,” she said, leaning in closer, brushing her lips across mine in a soft, lingering kiss.
I let out a shaky laugh, the sound almost foreign. The way she moved closer, the warmth radiating from her, it anchored me. I rested my forehead against hers, letting the feeling soak in.
“I just can’t get it out of my head,” I said. “Finding Ol’ School like that…the shit keeps playing over and over. I feel like I should’ve done more, been faster...any fucking thing. I should’ve made sure those dogs?—”
“Don’t do that,” she said. “Don’t blame yourself for what happened. That’s not fair to you. You can’t control everything, Ocean.”
Her words hit me, grounding me a little. I leaned into her touch, resting my hands over hers, willing myself to believe it. “You’re right,” I said, quietly. “I just hate that he still felt like he needed to go over there and feed them. I hate that he’s gone. I hate that someone could be that careless with some fucking dogs. And I hate that I can’t undo it.”
“I know,” she whispered, kissing my temple. “I know you do.”
I let out a slow breath. “I’m handling the funeral arrangements. It’s in a few days. And his son? His bitch ass better not show up acting like he cared.”
Skye cleared her throat. “Hopefully, he won’t cause any problems.”
My phone buzzed on the table, and I glanced down.
It was my aunt.
Skye slid off my lap to grab her plate and sit across from me.
“Hey, Auntie,” I said.
“Ocean! I just heard. What the hell happened? Are you okay?”
I ran my hand down the back of my head, glancing at Skye as she started eating quietly. “I’m fine. But Ol’ School...he didn’t make it. The dogs across the street…” I let the words trail, not needing to go into all the details.
“Oh, baby…” Her voice softened. “I’m so sorry. I can’t even imagine what you’re going through right now.”
“It’s a tough pill to swallow,” I whispered, leaning back in my chair. “The police were called on the owners and the dogs are being put down.”
“Good,” she said, voice heavy with relief. “I just want to make sure you’re okay.”
“I’m fine. I’m just tired, Auntie.”
We talked for a few more minutes.
Finally, I ended the call.
I sat the phone down, and looked at Skye, who was halfway through her plate.
“You’re amazing, you know that?” I said, quietly.
She smiled, still eating. “And so are you.”
51
SKYE
Nyx and I stood just outside the reception hall, but it felt like we were in some bubble separate from the world, waiting for the repass to begin.
“How’s Ocean been holding up these last few days?” Nyx asked, keeping her voice low.
