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“Rhyland doesn’t already know?”
“Well, he sort of does, but he doesn’t realize how bad Alex is getting. And honestly, I wouldn’t have even brought you out here if I’d known how bad he is going to be … When Rhyland first told me I needed to pick Alex up, I thought he was just hungover. But then Alex messaged me while I was driving up here and … I can tell he’s messed up pretty bad.” His gaze slides to me again, a silent plea filling his eyes. “Can you please just promise me you won’t say anything to anyone about this? Not even your sisters. Alex … he’s been in a lot of trouble, which I’m sure you already know, and if the wrong people find out what he’s messed up in …” He gulps. “Just promise me, okay?”
I wonder what he means by wrong people. The police? Yeah, I have a feeling there’s more to it than that. I could ask him, but with how hush-hush he’s acting right now, I doubt he’ll tell me.
“I said I wouldn’t tell anyone, and I meant it,” I assure him. “I may think your brother is an asshole, but I totally understand the whole protective sibling thing. Plus, my dad’s an alcoholic and drug addict, so I have a good idea of how this is going to go down.”
His brows furrow as he stares at me. “You’re different from what I first thought.”
“Okay …? Is that a good or bad thing?” Not that I care. I’m just curious.
“It’s an … undecided thing.”
“Touché, dude.”
That makes him chuckle, but only for a brief moment. Then he goes right back into worrying mode, a place I constantly reside.
Stillness surrounds us, and the longer her remains sitting in the car, the more I wonder what he’s waiting for.
“Are you going to go in there and get him?” I finally ask. “Or is he supposed to come out here?”
He checks his phone and frowns. “I’m sure I’m going to have to go in and drag his high-ass out. I’m just giving myself a moment to mentally prepare myself.”
“For having to deal with him?” That I can understand. I have to do it with my dad all the time.
“For that and for dealing with the other people inside.”
“You mean, your father’s acquaintances?”
He nods, stuffing his phone into his pocket. “They’re complicated to deal with.”
I rest back in the seat and tuck my legs underneath me. “Why?”
His brow curves upward as he glances at me. “You ask a lot of questions.”
“Not normally, but yeah, when someone drives me out to the middle of nowhere to what I’m guessing is a crack house, I start to get a little question-y.”
“It’s not a crack house,” he swears. “My dad actually owns the home and the land. He lets the people who work for him live here. He owns quite a few houses in Honeyton. All of them equally as shitty as this one, except his own.”
“Does he own your house?”
“No, my mom does … or, well, she did until …” He hastily clears his throat. “But yeah, once I turned eighteen, I became the official owner of the shithole that is my home.”
“That’s pretty cool that you own the place.”
“I guess.” He shrugs, sadness creeping into his expression. “Sometimes I wish I was living in some shitty apartment in some big-ass city, paying way too much for rent and spending my days doing … well, anything but this.” He clears his throat again then shoves open the door. “But yeah, anyway, I’m going to go drag Alex out. Be back in a minute … hopefully.” He jumps out and slams the door. Then I watch him hike across the grass to the front door. He knocks once then walks inside and closes the door behind him.
As I sit in the quietness of the SUV, waiting for him to come back out, I replay everything Blaise just said. Some of the stuff was, I think, accidental, like the part about wishing he lived somewhere else. I don’t know why he confided in me, even accidentally. Maybe because he’s overly stressed out? I can understand that. I’ve babbled crap I wanted to retract when my mind was overworked. Hell, I’ve done it while I was talking to Blaise and to Rhyland.
All questions aside, I think I learned something else this morning. That my initial impression of Blaise was incorrect. He may not be as big of a jerk as I originally assumed. Perhaps he was really just trying to protect his brother. Although, there were a few times I can’t blame his asshatery on Alex. Like the first time we met. Or the time he saved me from getting detention and thought I owed him. Or, and quite possibly the biggest, when he threw that kiss into the deal. Of course the kiss itself wasn’t awful. I’m never going to admit that aloud.
“Just exactly who are you, Blaise Porterson?” I mumble to myself as I stare at the house. “The cocky jerk I first met? Or the guy who’s in that house, taking care of his brother?”
The longer I analyze the questions, the more I become highly aware of something else. Something that makes me very uncomfortable.
I’m obsessing over a guy and breaking my own rules. How the hell did this happen? It’s not like I want to date Blaise, but I am thinking about him way too much.
“Get your shit together, Hadley,” I tell myself in a firm tone. “Stop worrying about Blaise and just focus on getting through this deal so you can go on with your life and your plans.”
