“She mentioned spending a lot of time in Nevada, and by the expressions that were on her face as she spoke, I don’t think she’s too keen on returning,” Ry answered.
“Okay, well that leaves either Omaha or New Orleans.”
The four of us pondered for a while, eventually digging a little deeper to figure out timing for both destinations. With all the information now on the table, Kade deduced that if we went to New Orleans first, and she didn’t show, we would still have time to make it to Omaha before the bus was due to arrive.
Zane was on his phone within minutes, calling his Manager and getting his private jet ready to fly.
It was an impulse buy one evening after he’d been drinking. I remember that night, clear as a summer's day. He came stumbling into the house, slurring and screaming “Bear can fly high,” before falling onto the living room carpet for the night. Confused the shit out of the rest of us—and even himself when we told him—until he saw his credit card bill the next month and realized what he’d done. It has its perks, mind you. Private customs if we fly abroad, no flight delays or layovers, and free food whenever we’re hungry. Not to mention times like today, where we need to get somewhere,fast.
Flying into Louis Armstrong International didn’t take nearly as long as I thought it would, and definitely less than a bus. Now here with time to kill, Kade found us a hotel within walking distance of the bus station, and booked us a roomfor the day. We all needed a nap, having been up since the debacle this morning and powered straight through everything else. It’s just after two in the morning and her bus isn’t set to arrive until closer to eight.
As much as I try to lay my head against the pillow and crash out, I can’t stop my mind from replaying how I treated her. How I yelled at her for something as stupid as not wanting to share a secret. It’s been twelve years of us being separated, and she’s clearly gone through something big, so really, she has every right to be guarded. But for some reason, I took it personally that she didn’t want to open up to us right from the get-go.
I’m a literal ass, and I know it. It’s just too bad my head also knows and it feels the need to constantly remind me when I should be passing out. Eventually, my eyes get heavy and I drift off into a fitful sleep, finally getting the rest my brain so desperately needs as it turns off.
It doesn’t feel like nearly enough time has passed when I’m woken by the guys screaming into my ear. And if the clock on the wall was accurate last night when I looked, it definitely hasn’t been.Two fucking hours, are you kidding me?!With a groan and bags under my eyes so large you’d think they were heading on vacation, I head to the bathroom to freshen up so we can go.
Not wanting to miss her, we spread out along the main entrance to the station. A solid thirty feet of space she could use to escape through, now covered by our eye-line. Like hawks all zeroing in on a single field mouse, our eyes scan every person as they leave the doors. Squeaks of suitcase wheels, and excited conversations, blanket the area with everyone rushing off to their destinations or meet-ups. I’m pretty sure I even saw an old couple making out on a scooter at one point…
As the crowd begins to dwindle, the doors open less frequently, and the footsteps have begun to hush. The four of us gather at the corner of the sidewalk, ready to take the loss and head to meet her in Omaha. When a mop of dark-colored hair strolls out of the entry, getting blinded by the early morning sun.
Smug as shit, we say nothing to her, just waiting for her eyes to open and notice us standing here. However, even blind as a fucking bat, she continues to walk forward—straight into Ry. The surprise and crash have her falling backwards, andhe manages to reach out, wrapping his arm around her waist to keep her steady. Her lips mutter an apology, along with some sort of muddled excuse as she looks up at his face.
Ridges form on her forehead as she blinks rapidly trying to get her eyes to focus. With a step back, her head swivels catching the rest of us standing there with matching glares and her shoulders slump. A sigh flies out of her lips, and her head falls back. She knows she’s officially caught.
“Damn it,” she curses, nose to the sky and arms dangling beside her.
Zane saunters up to her, the skin on his face tight and lips pressed into a thin line. He crosses his arms over his chest as he looks down at her disappointingly. If I didn’t know any better, I would swear he was about to pull out the: “I’m not mad, I’m disappointed,” card that our parents used to use.
Instead, he grabs her by her chin forcing her to look at him. Trying to pin her in place with his stare. Her eyes close as she tries to move her face away, her chest rising and falling in deep, controlled, anxious breaths. But Z’s having none of her shit today.
“Look at me,” he bellows in a deep tone, which causes her eyes to snap open and jaw to clench in defiance. “No more running, Mik.”
The tone in his voice rings with finality, their eyes locked on each other in a heated battle. She’s working her jaw, as if debating whether or not she’ll be able to win if she chooses to defy him again. She squints slightly as the sun hits her at an awkward angle, but she refuses to back down. Zane steps closer, their fronts pressed against each other, his hand still firmly gripping her face. Mik’s neck strains as her head tilts back to still be able to hold his gaze.
One, two, three, four breaths and her shoulders sag with defeat.
“Fine,” she mumbles weakly, pursing her lips and dropping her eyeline.
Hanging his arm across her shoulders, he turns her and starts walking towards our hotel. It’s time to have a real conversation and get some answers, but this time I’m shutting my big fat mouth. Ry grabs her bags, and Kade and I fall into step behind everyone.
The walk is silent, I don’t think anyone knows what to say or how to even bring up a casual conversation, without it leading to the elephant between us. My mindis fragmented between trying to figure out a way to apologize and wanting to get to the bottom of whatever is happening with her. But when the front of the hotel comes into view, my body acts without permission, jutting forward and grabbing her hand.
She stops walking to look back at me, her head tilting to the side in question. The guys look towards me too, but whatever my face shows, they must understand my intent, as they nod and continue on alone.
“Look, Mik…” I try to start, stumbling over my words as I had never planned a script. “I-I really need to apologize.” My head hangs, my teeth pulling my lip between their grasp. I can’t seem to look at her directly. To face the hurt or anger that may be brewing on her gorgeous features. “I’m so, so sorry, Bear. I had no right to yell at you, and definitely no right to stick you under a microscope like some fucked up science experiment. I hope I can earn your forgiveness, I-I just, I don’t even know…” The end of my sentence trails, my thoughts wandering off worse than lost sheep.
“Max…” Her tone is gentle, and although she seems calm, I brace for the hard truth that I might have crossed a line I can’t come back from. “I’ll always forgive you, Maxxy. It’s not like this is the first time we’ve fought each other. Remember the fourth grade pizza fiasco?” she giggles, the bubbly sound hitting me in the chest and loosening some of the tension surrounding my soul.
“Listen,” she begins again as she steps closer to me. “I may not like what you said or how you decided to bring it up, but there is truth to it. I just really need you guys to understand that I can’t tell you everything. At least, not right now.” Her hand presses against my cheek and I finally raise my eyes to look into hers. The glowing green of her irises seem to calm my body, allowing my heart to return to a slower rate and not threaten to jump through my rib cage.
“Maybe someday though?”
“Maybe someday,” she agrees with a small nod of her head.
Mik bites at her lip with a shy smile and my gaze flickers to watch the movement. I don’t even think about it as my hand raises to move a piece of her hair away from her pretty face, tucking it behind her ear. The tips of my fingers graze across her cheek and jaw, as the tension between us grows. Her hand slides, caressingdown the side of my face and neck before coming to rest against my chest. At almost the same time my hand cups her waist, pulling her close and against my body.
The pull takes her by surprise, causing her lip to pop out from between her teeth. A single sharp inhale has her mouth parting and the moment her eyes move south and stare at mine, I use this as the opportunity it is. I need to know if she feels it too, the magnetic connection we share. To see if it’s more than just Kade, like all of us are hoping.
