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“Lay down for half an hour and I’ll come and get you when the food is ready,” Blake said, then raised a brow when Speed opened his mouth to argue. “It’s been a little over a week since you were shot and almost bled to death. Don’t push your luck.”
“You’re all making too much out of this.”
“Speed!” Blake’s hand went to his temple before he clutched at his hair. He stifled a frustrated swear as his temper swelled. “You know, I was terrified earlier but I’m getting a little angry now that the shock and adrenaline have worn off. I won’t second-guess the decisions you made before but you don’t have to make this worse now. You said you wanted to have a good, quiet life but you keep stirring shit up with Lavender.” He let Speed see how mad he was and didn’t hide how damned gross it made Blake feel to argue and raise his voice.
The change in Speed was immediate. He nodded as he backed onto the bed and slid under the covers.
“I’m sorry. I’ll stay here until dinner’s ready and I’ll do better with Lavender.”
“Look…” Blake scrubbed the back of his neck and counted down from ten. He never liked raising his voice or arguing, even if he was right. Especially with Speed. “I swear, I just wasn’t wired for being right and arguing everything to death like Lane and Nate are. I will be the last person to tell you to trust Lavender. I understand why his whole existence offends you. It offends the fuck out of me and I didn’t lose my parents,” he said with a bitter laugh. “I don’t want you to make peace with him if it hurts you. You don’t owe anyone that. But you won’t find any peace if you keep this one-sided feud going.”
“You’re right. There does come a point when spite ceases to be a motivator and becomes toxic. I’ll talk to him.”
“Thank you,” Blake said as he went to help Speed. He kissed Speed’s cheek and then poured him a glass of water. “Take these and rest.” He opened the pill bottle and tapped two tablets onto his palm, pretending he didn’t see Speed’s nose wrinkle. “It’s ok to be injured and need help. No one’s going to think you’re weak or take advantage of you.”
“It’s hard to break old habits but I’m trying,” Speed said and obediently took the pills.
“Speaking of old habits…” Blake winced at Speed. “Mickey was Francis’s father?”
Speed nodded slowly as he sat back against the pillows. “It was just a thing that everyone around Mickey knew but no one would say anything about it because it was pretty shameful. Even if Mickey didn’t think so. But they used to whisper about it in the old neighborhood. And every now and then, Spillane’s boys would give Mickey a hard time about it before he helped Jimmy take over.”
“I can see why. Mickey slept with his cousin.” Blake shuddered, earning a sarcastic snort from Speed.
“He used that girl like he used all of them. Mickey didn’t care if they wanted him or if he knocked them up but he cared about Francis Michael because his mom knew. She didn’t know about any of the other girls so Mickey could pretend like they didn’t happen but she made him take care of Francis. And Mickey loved Francis, once he was old enough to be useful.”
“He really was a monster,” Blake said.
“He was and that’s why I’ll never lose sleep over Mickey. I’ll lose sleep over what I’ve done to Francis but Mickey can burn in Hell for all I care.”
It was hard to muster any sympathy for Mickey Winterstone as Blake pulled the duvet over Speed. “I don’t know that you need to lose that much sleep over Francis but that’s not my call.”
“You’re right and I’m trying to let go. It’s just hard after depending on each other for most of our lives.”
“I understand and I love you for being the kind of man who fights to the bitter end to protect his friends, even if they don’t deserve it.”
“Thanks. Get back to your grill and our guests. Let’s put Mickey and Lavender aside for the rest of the day.”
“That sounds like a good plan. I’ll come and get you when everything’s ready. Do you want me to put the game on?”
He nodded but Blake could tell by how heavy Speed’s eyes were that he wouldn’t last more than an inning. “I might bring your dinner up on a tray if you’re not in the mood to get up again.”
“But we’ve got company,” Speed protested weakly.
“They’ll understand and they want you to rest.”
Speed offered his lips. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” Blake said as he kissed Speed.
He left Speed to fall asleep to the Cubs and the Mets, grateful that the last awful secret had finally come out. At least, it had better have been the last awful secret. Blake would help Lavender murder him if Speed had anything else up his sleeve.
ChapterThree
Lavender was still seething despite promises from Blink, Lane, and Blake. Sage had tried to talk him down after Reginald’s revelation and the confrontation across the street but Lavender refused to discuss it.
“I’ve done everything Blink and Speed asked of me and I’ve been more than patient. I could forgive him for hiding the truth about their parents but Speed’s behavior has been nothing but disrespectful and I won’t tolerate it any longer,” he warned Blink before hanging up on him. Lavender walked out of the room every time someone mentioned his name so it shouldn’t have been a surprise when Speed presented himself a few days later.
“You have company,” Sage whispered from the door, pulling Lavender from his thoughts. He’d been at his desk in his study, pretending to read a report from his accountant.
