“Ben.” My voice comes out quieter than I mean it to. “Let’s talk.”
“Talk?” He laughs. Bitter. Broken. “The right time to talk was before you all fucked her.”
The door slams behind him, and the sound fills the penthouse.
Silence.
Tania’s still standing in my t-shirt. Barefoot. Frozen. Callum wipes the blood from his mouth and doesn’t say anything. Evan stares at the closed door like Ben might come back.
He won’t. I know my best friend. He won’t come back until he’s ready. And I don’t know when that will be. If ever.
Tania moves first and crosses to Callum.
She examines his jaw gently. “Let me get ice.”
He catches her wrist. “I’m fine, Red.”
“You’re bleeding.” She leans into him. I don’t know if it’s to offer him comfort or to seek comfort. Probably both.
He wraps his arms around her. “I’ve had worse.”
“I’m getting ice.” She pulls back gently and heads to the kitchen.
Evan finally looks at me. “What do we do?”
“Nothing.” I sit on the arm of the couch. My legs won’t hold me standing anymore. “We give him space.”
“And if he doesn’t come around?”
I know my brother is looking for answers, but I don’t have them.
Tania returns with ice wrapped in a towel and hands it to Callum. He presses it to his jaw and sits on the couch. She sits beside him. Evan drops onto the couch, too, and stares at the floor.
We sit in silence.
“I’m sorry.” Tania’s voice is barely audible. “This is my fault.”
“No.” I look at her. “It’s mine.”
“It’s all of ours,” Evan adds quietly.
“He’ll forgive us.” Callum lowers the ice. “Eventually.”
I want to believe that. I don’t know if I do.
Ben’s face showed his true feelings when he saw Tania in my shirt. The betrayal. The rage. That’s not something that fades quickly.
“I need to call him.” Tania stands.
“Give him time.” I catch her hand. “He needs to cool off first.”
“How much time?” she asks.
“I don’t know.”
She pulls free and heads for the stairs. I watch her go.
When she’s out of sight, I lean forward and press my palms against my eyes.
