AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Lexi is right. I know stuff has gotten… messy within our group, but maybe some things need to be put on the back burner for a bit so we can help Rhys.” I say before I glance at Marcus. “Even today, despite how pissed off you are at Bossi and Hastings, you still reached out to our group after she sent you those messages. You knew she was acting out of character, and you knew helping her is more important than the other shit that’s going on.”
Marcus bites the inside of his cheek as he struggles to hold in his anger. I get it. His mates betrayed him in the worst way. Fuck, even I kind of have, which just makes me feel like a fucking prick even more. Rhys George is hard to refuse. But there’s just something inside me that won’t let me step over that line. I guess, in a way, I look at these guys as my family. And I don’t want to lose my family. They are everything to me.
“Fine. We can talk about helping her, but I’m not talking about that other shit.” Marcus grumbles, his shoulders dropping a little as he begins to relax.
“What if sorting out that other shit will help her?” Bossi’s words seem to surprise everyone. He’s not shying away from the hard truth here. I can respect that. “She has a lot going on, and in a way, it’s all linked.”
Lexi nods knowingly. What does she know that we don’t? “Shaun’s right. Maybe sorting out this,” she waves her hands between the guys, “will help Rhys.”
“How am I meant to sort out this shit?” Marcus yells, glaring at Lexi. “They fucking betrayed me!” He points a finger toward Shaun and Simon before turning his glare to them. “You fucking betrayed me! You knew how much I fucking cared about her, yet you still fucking went there with her!” His nostrils flare as his rage takes control, and instead of shying away, Lexi steps in front of him, peering up at her childhood friend.
“It’s fucked.” She nods. “What they did was wrong. It really was. You understand now why Rhys is the way she is, but they don’t suffer from the same condition…” she turns to look at Shaun, “well, maybe Casanova over there might.” She turns back to Marcus, “So yeah. They are total douches for doing that to you, but maybe you can hear them out. Maybe it will help you understand where they are coming from.”
“Shit, Lexi. You’re like a therapist or something.” Simon’s tone is nothing but serious, and Lexi smiles over her shoulder at him.
“Hopefully, one day, I will be.”
The room falls quiet as we each take in the words spoken.
“What condition does Rhys have?” Simon’s voice breaks the silence, and all eyes turn to him. “You said before that we don’t suffer from the same condition that Rhys does. Is she sick?” Simon frowns. Poor Guy. His head is probably leaping to a hundred different scenarios.
“Ahhh, well. Not exactly. Well… maybe, kinda. I’m not sure how to class it.” Lexi stumbles over her words, shaking her head.
“She’s a sex addict.” I offer, trying to save Lexi.
All eyes swing to me in shock. I guess they really didn’t know that about her.
“How the fuck do you know that?” Marcus hisses. “I was under the impression that she didn’t share that information with anyone.”
“She didn’t really share it with me. I guessed.” I shrug. “I could see the signs of addiction and put two and two together, and when I called her out on it, she didn’t deny it.”
“Cherry is a sex addict?” Hastings asks, and Marcus growls.
“Who the fuck is Cherry?”
“Rhys is Cherry.” Simon shakes his head, shooting Marcus a duh look.
Fucking hell. This is going to get worse before it gets better.
“Why the fuck do you call her Cherry?” Marcus grits between his teeth.
“Well, there was the Cherry pie, and–.”
“We are getting sidetracked.” Lexi chimes in, talking over Simon. “Rhys told me about her addiction the other day,” she glances back at Marcus.
“So all of you fuckers knew about it?” Marcus shoots us an accusing glare, and I hate that I’m included in it. “I was the only one that didn’t know until the other night?”
“Hey, don’t yell at me. I thought I just established I didn’t know.” Hastings holds up his hands in surrender, and Marcus turns his glare to Bossi.
“I had my suspicions, but Kitten never told me.”
“Kitten! Are you fucking serious right now?” Marcus bellows, and Simon steps forward, nodding.
“Oh yeah. It’s like a pet name he has for her. Just like Cherry-.”
“I don’t want to fucking hear this!” Marcus screams, fisting his hands in his dark hair, his face turning red like he’s about to explode. “What about you?” He turns to Jared. “What the fuck do you call her?”
“Uh… Rhys, obviously, man. I don’t have a fucking pet name for her. Don’t put me in the same category as these fuckers.” Jared points his finger our way. “I have no interest in fucking your girl, dude.”
