AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Because I never realized what all of this did to you… the accident, Luke. You know none of us ever blamed you, right?”
Cody hops off the swing set and begins pacing.
“I was supposed to be watching him, just like I was supposed to have your back that night at the club. But I didn’t. I took my eyes off him, and he fell and now? Now, because of me, he can’t walk.”
I climb down, joining him on the ground.
“Man, you give yourself too much credit.” He looks at me incredulously. “I get it; you were the one with him when he fell. Let’s face it, though. It could have been any of us, including me. You think I didn’t check my phone and shit when I watched him? And Char? Between her schoolwork and the farm, she doesn’t have eyes on him twenty-four seven.”
“You know they hate me, blame me for it.”
“No, Cody. No one blames you, except you. It was an accident. It wasn’t anyone’s fault.”
He looks at me, his face is a bright red, tears welling in his eyes, and there’s sadness surrounding him as though the world is about to cave in on him.
“Oh God, Carter, I am so sorry, for all of it. Luke, what I’ve done to you. Oh God, help me.” Falling to his knees, sobs rack his body. I kneel next to him, my arm around him.
“Let me help you. Let’s get you into treatment. Beat this shit once and for all.”
“You want to help me?”
“Of course, I do, man. You’re my brother, from the same mother.”
“You’re an idiot.” He laughs.
“That, too. So, what do you say?”
“Let’s do this,” he replies. He grabs me and pulls me into a hug.
Together, as brothers, we make our way into the house. My parents had watched everything that transpired, but because of the distance, they have no clue what was said. So, we sit down, together, and tell them the whole sordid truth—the accident, the video, the guilt—every last detail.
“Carter says he can get me into a program, he’ll help me,” Cody says.
“Carter has enough going on. We’ll take care of this,” my father says.
“No. He’s my brother, and I’m going to be by his side every step of the way. Besides, at this point, what else do I have to do?” It’s meant to be a joke, but out of the corner of my eye, I see Cody hang his head. “I didn’t mean it like that, Cody. All this shit is going to blow over. You’ll see.”
Chapter22
Lexie
Iknow why Carter went after Cody. When I returned to the house, I was happy to see that it wasn’t to kill him.
My head was spinning, the idea of the whole world seeing me had always been bad enough when I was nameless. Now, though?
A sex tape is something Carter can recover from. It’s an indiscretion, a mistake. He’s a man working in a man’s world. On the other hand, I’m a woman trying to make it in a man’s world. The emergence of something like this will make that damn near impossible, especially when it comes to a job with the Knights.
As soon as I’m back at the house, I begin to pack. I need to get out of here. I need to talk to my father. I need to try to salvage what’s left of my life.
“Lexie, honey, I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay, Char, but I need your help,” I say, unsure who else to call.
“Of course. Anything.”
“I need your car. I promise I’ll get it back to you. I just need to get out of here. I need to get home.”
“Are you sure you want to do this?”
