A shuddered breath leaves me, so fast and shaky it feels like I just cut the right wire on a ticking bomb.
Great. See you soon.
Thank you.
Chapter Nine
MATT
Standingon the doorstep of my aunt’s house, my pulse pounds hard, a stupid reminder that I’m still here while my cousin isn’t.
That this is his mother’s house.
That she lost her son.
That his son lost his dad.
And I lost one of my closest friends.
I swallow the nerves jammed in my throat. I ran through a dozen scenarios on the drive over, things Cece might say, things I could say back to keep shit from blowing up. I haven’t seen her in years, and while I understand why she hated me back then, she doesn’t have a reason anymore.
Truth is, I deserved every ounce of it. I was the nephew who came into town and stirred up trouble. And I dragged Nate into the middle of it.
Trouble.
Understatement of the damn century.
I was ruthless as a teenager. Full of anger and unresolved issues, and an ego big enough to match any asshole on Wall Street. I had resentment toward my father, disappointment in my mom, and I let it out the only way I knew how: drugs, alcohol, and sex. I was wild,reckless, and Nate, Jensen, and Jordan got caught in the crossfire more than once.
I came to Chicago with my mom for Cece’s wedding when I was seventeen. Nate was a mess. His dad had only been gone a little over a year, and his soon-to-be stepfather was already trying to take over. He was pissed, and rightfully so.
Enter me.
Nate was good by nature. Straight A’s. Honest. Never touched booze. Never touched a girl.
We ducked out of the rehearsal dinner early and hit a house party because the girl he liked was going to be there.Why wouldn’t we?
I encouraged him to drink.
And drink.
And drink.
Later, we got in his car and drove. He made it half a mile before plowing into a neighbor’s house.
Nobody got hurt, thank God. But Nate was about to get a DUI and his ass handed to him by his mom and her fiancé. His life would’ve been hell.
I made him switch seats. Told the cops I was driving; it was my fault anyway. He never would’ve had a drink in his hand if it weren’t for me.
I knew my father would throw money at the problem, make it go away. He always did. He’d do anything to protect his image, even at my expense.
Cece never let me forget it. I was the reason her son got drunk. The reason the car was totaled. The asshole nephew who put her son in danger and wound up with a DUI.
It was worth it, though. Nate got his first kiss, even copped a feel. Jordan and I were together at the time, so I was strictly on wingman duty.
When I got back to New York, my father made the DUI disappear, right after telling me what a useless piece of shit he thought I was.
Nothing new there.
