“What harm is there in a simple conversation?He just wanted to hear how I’m doing.”
Whatharm?He had ruined their mother’s life, had made theirs hell for years too.The harm was long done, and it was fucking irreversible.
Hot tears prickled in Baz’s eyes, too stubborn to be blinked away.“We don’t need him!We never have.You and me, remember?”
“Of course it’s you and me.But people can change—”
“No, they don’t.Not Jack.You can’t fix him, Eve.”
Eevee pressed her lips into a tight line.
Why?Why was she doing this to them?They were fine, goddamnit!They didn’t need Jack.Why couldn’t she see that?
A gentle pressure glided along his shins.Lucipurr, rubbing her head over his pants—and hissing when their eyes met.Jesus Christ.
Baz ran his hand over his face.
Breathe.In and out…
“Look.”He forced his voice to be steady.“There’s a reason he called you and not me.He’s trying to take advantage of your kindness.”Baz would have ripped Jack a new asshole for daring to find out his number, and they all knew it.
“Yeah.Maybe.”Her tone was too cold for her to have believed him.
How could she not see what Baz saw crystal clear?Why the hell wasn’t Joel saying anything?
Baz marched to the counter to find Joel toweling a glass as if this were none of his concern.
“How are you okay with this?You saw how he treated Eevee!”
“And I’ll never forget it,” Joel said darkly, setting the glass down.“But we’re not teenagers anymore, Baz.Has no part of you ever wondered what happened to him?”
No, he hadn’t.Clearly, Baz was the only one here who hadn’t lost his mind.
Eevee’s footsteps echoed on the gray linoleum floor, her face pleading… Baz shook his head.No.No!
He would do anything for Eevee.Anything.But he would not stand by and watch her getting dragged back into the black hole that was Jack Hadley.
“If you’re desperate to subject yourself to his torture, fine.But I’m not gonna go through that again.”
“Baz, wait—”
He was already out the door and back in the biting cold of the evening.His nails dug trenches into his palm.
How could she do this to herself?To him?
Baz buried his face in his hands.His plan to spend the night working shattered into a thousand pieces, reflecting the haunted memories of a dead-silent house.What he needed was a baseball bat and a life-size mannequin of Jack.But he didn’t have that, so the next best thing had to do: alcohol.
Lots of it.
Chapter six
Ashabby-lookingbarbythe L-stop screamed Baz’s name.The once white facade had turned gray and fractured.He could barely see through the dirty windows.Fat chance he’d be running into any more ghosts from the past here, which meant it was perfect.
The outside was an appropriate mirror for the ratty inside.The rosewood aesthetic was outdated by at least thirty years, sporting visible scratches.The floor squeaked under his every step.At least the bar seemed well stocked.
A spring pressed through the thick leather of the stool and into Baz’s butt.
“Negroni.Be generous with the gin,” he told the bartender who nodded.
