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Vincent fell silent for a moment before saying, “When we got kicked out of the army, he started selling some of his older books that were worth money because they were first editions. It broke his heart, but we were desperate for the money. So when I started working again, I began buying them back for him. The look in his eyes every time I brought him another one…”
I pressed a kiss against Vincent’s shoulder when his voice cracked. “It’s okay, you don’t have to go on,” I murmured.
He shook his head. “No, he…he deserves to be remembered more often.” Vincent’s fingers trailed up and down my back as he continued. “Even after he died, I kept buying the books for him. I only have a few more to find. Not sure what I’ll do then.”
The heartbreak in his voice tore at me. I sat up and leaned across him to turn on the light next to the bed. I let my fingers skim over his cheek. “Which one was his favorite?” I asked.
“The Outsiders.”
I glanced at the bookshelf. “Can I read it to you?”
Vincent sucked in a breath and then nodded. I didn’t care that I was naked as I climbed out of the bed and went to the bookshelf.
“Right side, third shelf. All the way to the right,” Vincent said.
I found the book and returned to the bed. I leaned back against the headboard. Vincent sat up and did the same as I flipped the book open. I was about to start when he put his hand on my wrist. I watched as he reached over into the second drawer of the nightstand and pulled out a small picture frame.
I knew without needing to ask that the picture was of David. Vincent handed it to me and I studied the smiling face looking back at me. He was a beautiful young man with bright green eyes, light blond hair and a wide grin that lit up his entire face. I couldn’t even fathom the demons that had consumed him.
“That smile,” I said softly.
“Yeah,” Vincent agreed and then he was taking the picture back. He held it reverently for a moment before standing it up on the nightstand. He straightened and then nodded at me. As I began reading, Vincent’s fingers curled around my free hand which I had resting in my lap. When it came time to turn the page, he did it for me.
My heart skipped a beat as I realized how easily I could get used to this.
Except that I’d promised him I wouldn’t.
How the hell was I ever going to be able to keep that promise?
Chapter 22
Vincent
I’d just turned on the stove when my watch vibrated. I’d assumed it was Nathan getting up, but a glance at the display showed my guest wasn’t the man I’d spent the entire night making love to. I kept pulling ingredients out of the refrigerator, but turned the stove back off. By the time I’d searched out a second mug and filled it with coffee, Everett was entering the kitchen. He didn’t say anything as he pulled out one of the island bar stools and sat down. Once I’d finished preparing the coffee the way he liked it, I slid it across the island to him.
“Thanks,” he murmured.
He looked tired and, for once, he seemed to carry the weight of all his fifty-eight years.
“I’m sorry, Vincent. I shouldn’t have participated yesterday. Nathan didn’t know any better, but I did.”
I knew what he was talking about, of course. If anyone would have known what I was going through as I’d raced to get back to the house, it would have been Everett. He’d seen the police report. He’d known the torture Pierce had been forced to endure.
“Why did you?” I asked.
He shook his head. “I wanted him to rattle your cage.”
“Nathan?” I clarified.
A quick nod, then, “He’s good for you, Vincent. You’ve been…different these past few days. Except for yesterday. Leaving without telling him. Refusing to answer our calls, even knowing he’d be worried about you.”
“I didn’t consider that,” I interjected. Everett’s eyes lifted to meet mine. “I knew he’d be pissed, but I thought that would be the extent of it.”
“He was terrified,” Everett murmured. “He hid it well, but it wasn’t until my phone rang that first time that he relaxed.”
I nodded. Nathan had admitted as much yesterday when he’d told me he’d imagined my body lying in a motel somewhere. “We’re good, Ev,” I said as I took a sip of my own coffee.
Everett relaxed somewhat, but the smile I was so used to seeing didn’t return. I’d known the man for more than ten years, and he nearly always had a smile on his face.
But it had been that fake smile he’d worn for the cameras for so many years. On the rarest of occasions, he’d let me in enough to let me see the man who’d fallen in love with my brother. And it was usually when he was talking about Pierce that I got to see that piece of him. Like when something came on television that he thought Pierce would have liked, or when the military had finally repealed Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell years earlier. For those few moments, he’d let himself think of my brother and his reaction to something, and he’d be the Everett I should have met one day when my brother had been ready to introduce me to him.
