She spins to face Camile again. “And fuck you, too. The pair of you deserve each other.”
“Vani, please…” Camile begs.
I'm not sure how I found myself here. Stuck between two yelling, crying women. Yet here I am.
I can't stand it a minute longer. One thing I've never known how to deal with is women's tears—even my own daughter's.
Everyone is standing around, staring at the scene unfolding, including members of my own MC. God, we can walk into gunfire, but none of us can deal with emotional women, and isn’t that just the story of most men’s lives?
Ace is staring, his eyes bugging. Ghost looks like he’s ready to jump into the fray the moment something physical breaks out. Saul just looks like he’s searching for an escape route, his eyes constantly shifting to the side door.
“I never want to see you again,” Vani throws at her friend.
Camile bursts into tears and turns and runs from the clubhouse. I watch her go, feeling completely helpless. After all, I'm the reason for those tears. And I can't deny it. There is something between us—Vani is completely right—and it's literally tearing me in two. I can't stand to see Camile cry. That girl is breaking my fucking heart,and I don't know what to do about it. Whichever way I turn, someone is going to lose.
"Go after Camile," I snap at Ace.
"What?" he says.
"Go after her," I repeat. "Stop her from fucking crying."
"How am I supposed to do that, Prez?" he asks, clearly feeling as helpless as I do.
My frustration builds. "I don't know, and I don't care. Make her feel better. Do whatever it takes."
He throws me a salute and goes after Camile.
I turn to my daughter and very calmly state, “You were cruel today, Vani, and I didn’t raise you to be cruel. She’s lost her father and her home and has no idea what the future holds for her.”
Vani’s face drops, and I can see those calm words have hit her way harder than me shouting or laying down the law would.
“It hurts to see you move on from mom,” she says, and then she bursts into sobs, too.
Fuck my life. I’ve really screwed this up.
30
CAMILE
Without even botheringto shut the front door properly, I run into the house and into the bedroom, tears streaming down my face. I throw myself facedown onto the bed.
I pillow my face in my forearms and cry with great, wracking sobs that shake through my entire body. Is this what it feels like for your heart to break?
How could Vani say those things? I understand her hurt, though, because if my mom died and then my best friend had feelings for my dad, possibly reciprocated ones, I’d be furious, too. I never wanted to come between Vani and her dad, yet somehow, even though we’d done our best to stay away from each other, I still have.
What the hell had I expected? I'd wanted him so badly that I lost sight of everything else. And now Jack's probably going to kick me out of the compound, and if I go back to the college, everyone's going to know why if Vani talks. I'll be ruined. All the other girls will hate me, and the boys won't comenear me. I'll become a pariah.
And that's before I even take into account the possibility that I'm still in danger from Ledger and whoever the fuck killed my dad. I want to speak to my mom and my brother, find out where they are. It seems like the only sensible thing to do is go to their safe house and hole up with them. At least if I'm with them, I'll know I'm wanted.
They love me. They'll accept me. I won't feel like an outcast, no matter where I go, like I do here.
Footsteps catch my attention. Not just one set, but two. Even over my crying, I hear them, heavy and solid. Men's footsteps.
I sense someone in the doorway of the bedroom and raise my head from my hands. Rook and Ace are both standing there with similar expressions—concern mixed with uncertainty.
"Go away," I tell them.
Ace shakes his head. "No can do. Jack sent me after you."
