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"The only people who won't ask questions," I mutter, standing up and turning to the sink. "Please tell me you have a first-aid kit." She doesn't meet my gaze. "Right. Of course not."
I pull the front door open quickly, letting Braden and his dad come inside. Brooks places a steady hand on my shoulder and gives it a firm squeeze before heading upstairs, not saying a word. He doesn’t have to.
"He'll take care of her," Braden says a few seconds later. I don't know if he's trying to convince me or himself.
"I know." I push out a harsh breath and nod to the kitchen. Braden follows after me and we walk to the table, sitting down.
"I'm sorry, man." There’s genuine concern in his eyes. I appreciate it but don’t bother telling me that. I rest my head in my hands when I feel my eyes start burning. I have no idea what I'm doing anymore. I just want her safe. Is that such a bad thing? Allen has another thing coming if he thinks I'll let him lay a fucking finger on her and get away with it. He's a dead man.
"He has her so brainwashed. She thinks it's her fault that he hurt her. Not to mention she's still using. I think it's the worst it's ever been."
"Have you ever thought about looking into rehab centers for her?" His voice is void of any sort of judgment. "Kill two birds with one stone kind of thing?"
"She won't go. She won't listen to me."
"We can help, Tyler. Me, dad, Gracie, Oakley. You're not alone in this."
My thumb swipes across the damp skin under my eye before I look at him. "Nobody is helping me take care of my addict mother." I brush him off more aggressively than I meant to.
"I don't think Gracie would give you much of an option."
"I'm not going to tell her about this. And neither are you."
Braden raises his brows and stares at me like I just told him I had a third eye. "That seems like a stupid idea."
I shrug. "Gracie has enough going on in her life. She doesn't need to worry about my fucked up problems."
With everything going on with her mom, the last thing she needs is to worry about this. I never should have even introduced her to my fucked up problems in the first place. It was incredibly selfish of me.
"I'm not trying to tell you how to act in your relation-"
"Then don't. Just leave it alone," I snap, cutting him off.
He looks like he wants to push me further on the topic but doesn't. Instead, he just nods, leaning back against his chair. "Okay. I'm sorry."
"Tyler?" Brooks is standing in the doorway now, a piece of wet paper towel squeezed tightly in his clenched hands. "Where is that sack of shit?"
"I don't know," I reply grimly. If I knew where that son of a bitch was I wouldn't be here sitting around talking about my feelings. I would be out there with my fist through his skull and my foot so far up his ass he would be able to taste my leather boots.
"What are we going to do with her? She can't stay here." Brooks' voice has an edge to it that I've never heard before. It manages to send a chill down my spine.
"She could stay with us?" Braden offers, standing from his chair and offering me a look of support.
"What? I'm not dropping my mom on you two. You've already helped more than enough."
"No, that's a good idea. She's probably safer with the both of us. At least until we can convince her to go to the police," Brooks adds while dropping the paper towel in the garbage. "You don't want Gracie to be involved if Allen shows up at your house and she happens to be there, Tyler."
My fists clench at the thought of Allen getting within an inch of Gracie.
"Okay. That's that then," Braden chuckles with his eyes stuck on my fists with a knowing smile.
"I don't know how to thank you both. For coming here and everything," I mumble, unable to make eye contact with either one of them. I don’t know what I did to deserve the kind of support they’re offering me, but I’ll take it. No questions asked.
"You don't have to thank us. You're family."
I move my gaze to Brooks when he smiles, exposing his several missing teeth and smile lines that look as if they've been there since he was a kid. His words hit a nerve deep in my chest. Family? I don't think I'll ever be used to that word.
