I laughed. “Nah, man. Dory lied to her, told her this sob story about me keeping her shit at my house. Blake thought she was helping Dory get her belongings.”
Linc stared ahead, his eyes wide. “Now, that’s hard to believe. Did you tell her who you were?”
“Not yet.” I smirked, recalling our last interaction at Roxy’s wedding. Of all the people I’d expected to run into at the church, she hadn’t been one of them. But once I’d seen her, she was all I could see. There was something about her that had me transfixed, from her smile to the way she moved, the way she handled herself. She was refreshing, genuine. It’d been a while since I could laugh with a woman who wasn’t my sister. I hadn’t realized how much I missed that until now. I probably should’ve told her who I was, but I enjoyed teasing her.
“Didn’t y’all sit at the same table at the reception?”
Four years ago, Blake and I had ended up seated next to each other at Linc’s wedding reception. She’d arrived late and couldn’t sit with her siblings, who’d taken up the entire table next to ours. We hadn’t had a real conversation that night, nor any of the other times I’d seen her at random events. But she’d definitely left an impression.
“We did,” I confirmed. “But I was with Ayana, so…” My ex had a nasty attitude, especially in public around other women. She’d always acted entitled to all of my attention, which in turn made women avoid me. Even if I’d known them for years. We’d argued about it countless times over the course of the relationship.
“Oh, yeah…” he said. “She even treated Courtney like shit.”
“Don’t remind me,” I grumbled. Linc’s older sister, Courtney, had gone out of her way to be friendly to Ayana when we’d run into them at a restaurant. But Ayana’s cold demeanor had made it impossible. That had been the beginning of the end for us.
“Now that I think of it—” Linc chuckled, “—Blake was pretty drunk the night of my wedding.”
“I remember,” I said.
“We partied long and hard,” he added.
“How are y’all related again?” All I’d known was they were cousins. Linc didn’t talk too much about his family. I sensed it was because there was a lot of trauma there. I knew his father had struggled with addiction in the past, and had worked hard to leave that life behind. I didn’t know much beyond that.
“My father and Blake’s mother are cousins. They grew up more like siblings, though—lived in the same house. Aunt Vicky is the only family member my father maintained contact with after my grandmother died.”
“So you’re close?”
“I’m close to Paityn, Blake’s older sister. We’re around the same age. Courtney is close to their oldest brother, Tristan.”
I nodded, my mind running with questions I wouldn’t ask. Suddenly, I wanted to know everything about Blake—where she’d gone to school, how she’d chosen her career, what she liked to do when she wasn’t counseling her clients. Did she have a man? Did shewantone?
“I can’t believe you didn’t know her,” Linc said. “Y’all are the same age. She went to Pioneer. You had to have seen her at football games or something, even though y’all went to rival high schools.”
Pioneer High School was in Ann Arbor. While I’d grown up in the neighboring city, Ypsilanti, it felt like our hometowns we were worlds apart. “That doesn’t matter. I didn’t even know everyone inmygraduating class. I was too busy playing ball, trying not to get in trouble, and working.”
Linc sprinkled salt and pepper over his eggs. “Shit, I get that. I am surprised Blake would break into your house on the word of a student, though,” he mused. “She’s a fighter, but she’s not reckless. Well…” He sucked in a deep breath. “Not really.”
Resting my elbows on the table, I asked, “What do you mean by that?”
He hunched a shoulder. “She had a lot of energy. It often got her in trouble. But nothing like this.”
“She told me Dory was referred to her by someone she trusted,” I explained. “She did apologize, though.”
Frowning, Linc said, “Well, I’m definitely going to ask some questions. Thanks for not sending my cousin to jail, bruh.”
We finished our breakfast, shooting the shit about work and home. The more Linc talked, the more I knew he was D.C. bound. His wife was from Virginia and had been wanting to move closer to her family for a while. Linc had been complaining about the weather for as long as I’d known him. I definitely wouldn’t be shocked if he announced his departure soon.
After breakfast, I spent the rest of my morning in class. The talk had died down some, and several female students had approached me to apologize for believing the rumors. That afternoon, I caught up on work, attended a faculty meeting, and made it out of the building on time for once. Instead of going home, I headed to the bar.
The Ice Box was packed when I got there. Friday nights had become a popular night at the hometown bar, but I knew one of the owners so I was able to reserve a pool table.
Jace arrived a few minutes later. “What’s up, man?” He ordered a drink while I racked up the balls. “How long you been here?”
“Not long.” I bent low, aimed, and took my shot. Examining the table, I decided my strategy and set up my next shot. “I didn’t order food yet, though.”
“I’m not hungry.” He nodded at the waitress who’d dropped his beer off. “Ate at the station.”
“Alright.”
