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“Kyler—”
He pressed a finger against her mouth. Not a soft touch, but firm. Stressed. “I’ll come back as soon as I can. Please, for now, just listen to me.”
The detachment in his gaze hurt, cutting so deeply into her battered soul that she needed to force air into her lungs. No, don’t go. Stay. Don’t be different. But his features weren’t playful and they weren’t focused on her, they were somewhere else. Somewhere so far from where she wanted him to be.
He leaned down and kissed her cheek like she was a casual acquaintance. There was no heat. No love. No passion. Only a tight embrace that spoke to the heady emotions raging through him.
Then he left.
Just like that.
Ella stared at the closed door, tears welling in her eyes. What would become of them now? How could he possibly forget about Rory when he simply seemed consumed by it? She didn’t want him to deal with Rory. She wanted him here, with her. Her strength drained out of her, weakening her knees.
“Hugs help.”
Tears streamed down Ella’s face as she turned to Cora. Her arms were opened as she added, “Come here. We’ll stay with you tonight.”
Ella found her feet moving, without even thinking. She dropped down next to Presley and Cora, with Kenzie on her knees in front of her. “I’m sorry.” She sniffed. “You all never signed up for this.”
“Oh, please,” Kenzie muttered, giving Ella’s leg a light slap. “We all have shit in our pasts. Horrible shit that we wouldn’t want anyone to know. Yours just happened to explode in front of us.”
Somehow staring at Kenzie, Ella thought Kenzie understood her more than anyone else. From the warm hints of understanding in her gaze, Ella wondered if Kenzie had been through dark times herself, or at least that’s how it seemed.
“Kenzie’s right,” Presley agreed. “We’re your friends now. Maybe new friends, but friends nonetheless. And when we go through tough shit, we’re here for each other.”
Ella looked from face to face, appreciating these women. She cherished that they didn’t pity her. They were simply there for her. Holding her. Loving her. For the first time in so long, she experienced the warm comfort that comes from being around people who truly cared for her. She looked to each of them, wiping her tears. “Thank you for being so good to me.”
Presley smiled softly. “You’re stuck with us now, Ella. Get used to it. There’s no getting rid of us.”
“Damn right you are,” Kenzie added with her typical sassy flare.
Cora jumped off the couch in her bouncy way. “Okay, let me go talk to Aidan. I’ll send him on a junk-food-and-movie run.” She moved toward the door.
“It’s Club Sin tonight,” Ella argued. “You don’t all need to stay with me.”
“Hush, you.” Cora glanced over her shoulder. “It’s a girls’ night. I’m sure the club will survive without us. We’ll have a blast and eat horrible food that we shouldn’t.”
Kenzie nodded with a dancing gaze. “Get him to grab some wine, too. No girls’ night is official without a big-ass bottle of wine!”
“He’s awake. Sober, too.”
Sitting at his workstation, Kyler glanced to his father. “Glad to hear it.” He leaned back in his chair, noting the tension from last night hadn’t vanished. He had wanted to stay with Ella, not deal with the shithead who needed time to sober up. But knowing the girls stayed with Ella eased the ache in his chest … slightly.
What a fucking mess!
Had he known that Rory would’ve drunken himself stupid and showed up at her door, he would’ve arrested his ass at the casino and forced him back to Savannah. Not until Rory showed up at her house did he realize how wrapped up in Ella Rory was.
Though he understood.
He was equally taken with her.
She was special, and worth fighting for.
“Care to tell me what this is all about?” his father asked.
Kyler gave a long sigh. Truth had always been a strength between them. He’d learned the importance of it from this man. Though some things were not for him to share, and this situation belonged to Ella, not him. “It’s about Ella.”
Andrew leaned against his cubicle, folding his arms. “That’s all you’re going to say?”
