I can’t remember a time when I’ve ever been so lost for words. Bree just laid her heart out—fuck, she laid her soul out in front of me, and I can’t come up with one damn thing worthwhile to say.
So instead, I kiss her. I kiss her with everything that I have. I kiss her to show her I love her. I kiss her so she knows this changes nothing. I kiss her because I’m a selfish bastard, and I just need to feel connected to her; as if she’s the only thing that keeps me tethered to the earth.
I’m hurt, confused, and angry. I want to hunt down the fuckers who did this to her and slit every one of their throats. But that won’t change what happened to her. I can’t fix it. I can’t make it go away. And that leaves me feeling powerless, a feeling I don’t deal well with.
I hear the door open just as I pull back from Bree, only getting one last look into those tear-filled eyes before everything goes to hell.
I know the second she looks toward the door who our audience is. I can tell in the way her body stiffens and how all the color drains from her face.
“Court.” It’s almost a plea on her lips.
And now I’m turning, releasing Bree who all but shoves out of my embrace. Courtney is standing in the doorway looking every bit like she’s seen a ghost.
“Court, I can explain.” Bree takes a step toward her best friend, who seems to be teetering between anger and a state of absolute shock.
“Explain?” Court’s eyes meet mine, and the hurt there is so evident it damn near knocks the wind out of me. “Bree, Ant?” She keeps her gaze focused on me. “Out of every girl in the fucking world—Bree?” Her voice bounces off the walls around us.
“I’m sorry. We didn’t mean for you to find out this way.”
“Are you fucking kidding me right now?” Her voice is shrill, eyes wild.
“Court. Please. I can explain. Just give me a chance to explain.” Bree steps in front of me protectively.
It’s strange. I want to tell her that I should be protecting her, but I also can’t deny how good it feels that her first instinct is to shield me from the line of fire.
“So you’re the friend huh?” Courtney turns her sights on Bree.
“Just give me a minute. I need you to let me tell you everything. Maybe then you’ll understand.”
“Oh, I understand perfectly. I understand how my best friend has been screwing my ex behind my back for who knows how long. I understand that she lied straight to my face. I understand that she let me humiliate myself going on and on about Ant, all the while knowing that she was fucking him. I understand everything.” She grinds out the last part, her gaze honing in on me as she continues.
“You fucking asshole. You fucking asshole.” She repeats louder the second time. “You two must think you’re really smart. Jesus Christ, I’m such an idiot.” She steps back, throwing her hands up in the air. “The signs were all there. All of them. But I chose to look past them. I chose to trust my best friend.” Her tear-filled gaze finds Bree again, and it takes all I have not to step in between them and shield Bree the same way she was willing to shield me.
“I know how awful this is. I know,” Bree starts but Courtney instantly cuts her off.
“You don’t know anything. You have no idea how this feels. And after everything, after everything we’ve been through together for you to lie to me. My God, Bree, this isn’t even about Ant. It’s about the fact that you were able to look me in the eye and lie to me. God, I thought we were closer than that. I thought we meant more to each other than that.”
“We do,” Bree chokes.
“No, clearly I don’t mean that much to you. I never would’ve lied to you. I never would’ve kept something of this magnitude from you, ever. Fuck, Bree, this is something I never in a million years thought we’d have to deal with. You were my sister.”
“I am your sister.”
“Not anymore you’re not.”
And with that one statement, I feel Bree emotionally crumble next to me.
“You two fucking deserve each other,” Court bites, eyes bouncing between the two of us before she abruptly turns and disappears down the hallway without another word.
“Bree.” I catch her by the forearm just as she starts to go after her.
“Let go of me.” She rips her arm out of my grasp and spins on me, her eyes so full of emotion it’s damn near crippling. “Did you see her? Did you see what we did to her?” She runs both hands through her hair and lets out a primal growl. “I have to go after her. I have to make sure she’s okay.”
“Maybe you should give her some time?” I suggest.
“No!” she practically screams in my face. “She’s my best friend. I have to make this right.” With that, she spins on her heel and takes off in the same direction as Courtney.
I stand here for a long moment, not sure what the hell I should do. Do I go after her? Do I let them sort it out on their own? How can I just throw Bree to the wolves and let her face this alone? I did this. I put her in this situation. I’m the one who just couldn’t fucking stay away.
Without another thought, I dart through the house in search of the girls. What I find instead is Vi and Crystal, my sisters, hunkered together in the kitchen having what looks like a very intense conversation.
The moment I see them I want to spin around and run in the opposite direction, but I know it’s too late.
“We need to talk.” Vi swivels toward me, saying the four words no man ever wants to hear.
“Now’s not a good time,” I clip, looking past them through the back windows, trying to see if I can spot Bree or Courtney outside.
“Well, make it a good time,” Vi demands, her gray eyes that match mine narrowing in on my face. “We just buried our father today, or do you need to be reminded of that fact?”
“I’m here aren’t I?” I yell, my patience nonexistent by this point.
“Not really, no,” she challenges, broadening her shoulders. “You’ve been anywhere but here,” she accuses. “You haven’t spoken two words to Mom, and you’ve barely said a hello to any of our relatives or dad’s friends.”
“Maybe because I don’t want to say hello. Did you ever consider that? Fuck, Vi. I’m here. That’s the best I can give you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have more pressing matters to deal with.”
“More pressing?” It’s Crystal’s turn to chime in. The younger of the two sisters, Crystal is much more laid back than Vi, but push her far enough and she can be ten times more lethal too.
“That’s what I said.” I move to push past the two of them, but Crystal steps in front of me.
“More pressing than your mother ending up out on the street?” Now this gets my attention, and I stop my attempt to move and actually look at my sisters for the first time since stepping into the kitchen.
“What the fuck are you talking about?” I question, not trying to hide my confusion. “I’m sure that asshole had some kind of life insurance policy. Besides, the house is paid for, is it not?”
“He didn’t have life insurance.” Vi softens her approach. “He didn’t have much in the way of savings either. And you know he never wanted Mom to work.”
“But she still gets the house. She’ll figure it out from there.”
“He left it to you,” Crystal says, sending my head reeling in a completely opposite direction.
“He did what?” I hear the words leave my mouth, but my brain does little to process it.
“You get everything. He left it all to you,” Vi confirms.
“How is that fucking possible? She’s his wife. I thought it defaults to her,” I object.
“It does, unless the person instructs otherwise. Dad met with an attorney a few days ago, had some papers drawn up. None of us knew what he was doing until this morning when his attorney showed up and delivered the paperwork to Mom. She gets nothing.”
“He left me the house?” I question, still not fully processing what the fuck is happening right now.
“He left you the house,” Crystal confirms again.
“Why the fuck would he do that?” I pinch the bridge of my nose between my thumb and index finger, taking a long inhale when I suddenly feel like I’m on the verge of collapsing from lack of oxygen.
“Your guess is as good as ours. We figured maybe it was his last-ditch effort to make things right with you.” Vi reaches over and squeezes my forearm. “Maybe you should talk to Mom.”
“I can’t right now, Vi.” I pull my arm away. “I… I have to find Bree.” I step past them through the kitchen, looking out the back door before turning around and heading in the opposite direction.
“What about the house, Ant?” Crystal steps in front of me again as I move to exit the kitchen.
“Mom can have it. She can have all of it. Just get out of my way,” I seethe, my temper flaring.
“Just let him go,” Vi says seconds before Crystal steps out of the doorway to let me pass.
I hear Vi say something else, but I’m too far out of earshot to hold onto her words. I feel bad. My sisters are the last people I want to alienate right now, but I just can’t fucking deal with this right now; not with everything else going on.
He left the house to me?
God, just thinking it makes me hate him even more. He thought he could buy my forgiveness? Fucking typical Aaron Treadway move; my God that man is a real piece of work. Was. I remind myself as I push my way out onto the front porch. Was a real piece of work. Fuck, it’s strange referring to him in past tense.
But none of that matters the second I spot Bree on the sidewalk in front of the house. Every single thought goes spilling from my mind, and all I can see is her. All I can hear is her. All I can feel is her.
And then her eyes meet mine, and I swear the entire world falls out from under my feet.