I frowned, unconvinced, but before I could say anything else, Alec leaned over and brushed his lips on my forehead in a soft, barely there kiss. Then he stood and, like the gentleman he always was, offered me his hand.
“We should head back before they wonder where we’ve gone,”he said. I knew he was trying to end the conversation in the nicest way possible, but I couldn’t stop my thoughts from circling back to King.
What had he done to hurt his son so much?
Chapter 18
We spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out with my sister, and before I knew it, five hours had passed in what felt like a span of minutes. For dinner, I helped Rose make baked macaroni loaded with enough cheese to clog our arteries, and when we finished eating, she forced everyone to play Monopoly.
It ended up being a blast.
“…five, six, seven… Oh, shit,” Asha said when she realized where her roll had landed her.
Boomer pumped his fist in celebration. “Thank you for visiting Boomer’s Boardwalk luxury hotel and spa. That will be a cool two grand, please.”
Asha looked down at her measly pile of ones and fives, sighed, and then pushed everything she had—the pocket change, Baltic Avenue, and St. James Place—over to her boyfriend. “Well, I’m out. Doubt that will cover it.”
“I can think of a few ways for you to make up the difference,” he suggested with a smirk. “You could start with—”
“Boomer!” Asha exclaimed. Red bloomed on her cheeks, and she kicked him underneath the table. “This is a G-rated game. Behave yourself.”
“Babe,” he grunted as he rubbed his shin. “I’m pretty sure board games don’t have ratings.”
She pointed at the box. “It says right on the frontages eight and up.”
“Well, we’re not playing with any eight-year-olds,” Boomer said, “so you don’t have to worry.”
Alec turned to him and gestured at his Game Boy, which Boomer had pulled from his pocket and deposited on the table along with his wallet, cell phone, and a crumpled-up receipt from the Gas Exchange. “You sure?” he deadpanned.
Rose nearly choked on a sip of wine, while Asha threw back her head and laughed, embarrassment forgotten. Glancing around at our small group, I was unable to control my smile. I couldn’t help but think how perfect this moment was, being here with the people I cared about.
Then Alec’s phone rang.
His expression stilled when he saw the caller ID. “Excuse me,” he said, pushing his chair back and standing. I tried to catch his eye, to silently ask if everything was okay, but he slipped out of the apartment without a backward glance.
My mouth settled into a hard line. It had to be King calling. No one else could rattle Alec so easily.
Before I realized what I was doing, I pushed away from the table, my gaze focused on the doorway Alec had disappeared through. “Guys, I’ll be right back,” I said, not bothering to explain myself.
I knew he didn’t want me to worry, but I was done letting Alec deal with King on his own. There was no way for me to fix whatever was broken between father and son, but that didn’t mean Icouldn’t justbe therefor Alec. If he wasn’t ready to tell me what was going on, I could live with that. It wasn’t going to stop me from supporting him. After what he’d done to help me find Rose, it was the least I could do.
As I made my way down the stairs, the sound of Alec’s voice drifted into earshot.
“Please, Vi,” I heard him say, his normally deep voice high with distress. Was he…begging? “I know this isn’t what I promised you, but give me a chance. We can work things out.”
Wait, what?
I gripped the handrail, not willing to believe what I’d heard. Maybe my subconscious was projecting my nerves into an imaginary conversation.
Yup, that had to be it.
But then he spoke again: “Of course I’m with you on this! After all the time we’ve spent together, how could you think otherwise?”
A sickening feeling rose inside me as all the doubts and fears I’d tried to suppress crawled out from the pit of my stomach. Alec was fighting for his relationship—withViolet. God, I was beyond stupid. Had I really thought he would pick me over someone like her? He was a musician, she an actress. They were perfect for each other.
“No, I’m in Seattle,” he said. No mention of why he was here. No mention of me. “As soon as I get back, I’ll come see you, okay?”
He went on talking, but I didn’t catch any of it. My ears were ringing with words I couldn’t get out of my head.
