When I finally stand to leave, Queenie pulls me down for a hug.
“I love you, my boy,” she whispers against my shoulder. “And I’m proud of you for trying. No matter what happens with Marley, I’m proud of you.”
“Love you too, Queenie.”
I ride back to the clubhouse with a slightly lighter heart, though the ache of missing Marley is still there, sharp and constant.
My brothers are waiting for me when I arrive, Sin, Ghost, Bear, Koa, Will. They take one look at my face and immediately rally around me.
“Brother…” Sin clasps my shoulder. “Talk to us.”
So I do.
I tell them everything, just like I told Queenie. And just like Queenie, they don’t judge. They listen, offer support, and remind me I’m not alone.
“We’ll figure this out,” Victoria says, her voice firm. “Derek’s been making digital threats. Ghost is getting close to tracking him down. When we do, we’ll make sure he can’t hurt either of you anymore.”
Ghost nods from his corner, fingers flying across his keyboard. “Already on it. This asshole’s going down.”
The support warms me, even as my heart stays broken.
Because at the end of the day, none of them can give me what I really want.
They can’t give me Marley.
Only she can do that.
And I have no idea if she ever will.
Chapter Twenty-Six
MARLEY
I’m drunk.
Not tipsy.
Not pleasantly buzzed.
Drunk.
The kind of drunk where the world tilts sideways when I stand up too fast, and Sage’s apartment looks as if it’s underwater, all wavering edges and blurred corners.
The wine bottle sits empty on the coffee table.When did we finish that?There’s another one somewhere. Or maybe we already drank that one too?
I can’t remember.
I can’t think.
I can’t do anything but sit here on Sage’s sofa and feel everything all at once while simultaneously feeling nothing at all.
“You should eat something,” Sage says from somewhere to my left. Or maybe my right. Space is weird right now.
“Don’t wanna eat.”
“Marley!”
“I wanna drink.” I reach for my glass, but my hand misses, and I knock it over instead. Wine, red wine, spreads across the coffee table like blood. “Oopsie.” I giggle.
