No. That wouldn’t work. “Can’t do that.”
“Can wepleasetake a breather?” Hans asked.
“You knocked up my sister!” Linx yelled the truth, flinging it at Bax like a weapon. A weapon Bax had readily supplied him with. “Youjacked with the band!”
“Linx, breathe,” Knox said, though it didn’t really seem to do any good.
“Dimefront is done.” Linx slashed his hand through the air like a dagger.
Bax flinched.
Knox shook his head. “Not accepting that.”
“Serious. Over.Done.” Linx had never sounded so sure of anything since Bax met him as a kid. “Bax wanted to talk about contracts. I read the goddamned contract. Any of us want to call it? It’s done. I’m calling.”
“Whoa.” Brek strode through the door and held up his hands.
Bax should’ve taken that opportunity to bolt. To go find her. Find out what was really going on here.
“I thought we agreed no decisions until I came to referee?” Brek asked, his hands on his hips.
“That was before Bax knocked up my sister.” Linx closed his eyes, apparently unable to even look at Bax.
“Tell me this isn’t real,” Brek said to Bax.
“We don’t know for sure.” Knox stood. “We’ll have to talk to Courtney.”
“No one talks to Courtney until Courtney makes that move!” Linx shouted.
“The kid is mine.” Bax studied the laces of his boots. He swallowed against a whole throat filled with guilt. “I need to talk to her.”
“That’s not happening until she says it happens.” Linx shoved his finger toward Bax. “Stay the fuck away from my family.”
Bax shook his head. He couldn’t do that. Wouldn’t do that.
Linx marched out the door.
At that moment, a lot of things weren’t clear. But the one thing that held an abundance of clarity? He’d single-handedly destroyed his band.
Chapter Eight
Courtney
There she was,minding her own business while watchingManifeston Netflix, when her phone rang. She glanced at the screen and picked it up immediately. “Hey, Linx.”
“Bax knows you’re pregnant,” Linx said, quick as hell.
Say what now?
Courtney pulled her eyes from the current episode and refocused her attention on her brother’s voice.
“What?” she said. Okay, really, she sort of yelled it.
“Everything okay, Courtney?” Mom hollered down the stairs.
Uh. No. “I’m fine. Just got a surprise, that’s all,” she said, already planning how she could turn this around and convince Bax that she’d been the first to tell him.
“Apparently, there’s a little something you left out of that announcement, little sister,” Linx continued, and he sounded pissed.
