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“Are you senile?” I’m losing patience with the repeated questions. I haven’t even processed what happened myself, let alone prepared a speech for Grinder’s nosy ass. “She told me to leave. My options were go voluntarily or bethrown outby security. I didn’t think the second option would make the situation better for Emily.”
“Bro, how was any of ityourfault?” Rooster asks.
“Because she washere,” I gesture toward the clubhouse, “instead ofhomewhen her sister needed her.”
Grinder’s oddly silent. I glance over and find him tapping away on his phone.
“What are you doing?” I snap. “Stay out of our business.”
“Not everything’s aboutyou, Dixon. I want to know if Libby’s okay,” he mutters.
“What hospital is she at?” Rooster asks. “You want me to run out there and check on them?”
Why does his selfless offer make me feel so much worse? “I don’t know, brother.”
Jigsaw scratches his head. “I still don’t understand why she blames you?”
Didshe actually blame me? Not exactly. Emily’s hardest onherself. Jesus, the answer’s so obvious, it stabs me in the chest. She blames herself for not being there the night her parents were killed. She wrongly carries all the blame for everything bad that’s happened to her and Libby. “A lot of bad shit’s happened to them. Emily’s the only person her sister has,” I answer quietly. “She’s…hard on herself.”
Grinder tucks his phone away. “Serena’s calling her to find out what’s happening.”
That’s just fucking great.
“You need to turn your ass around and fix this,” Grinder warns, stepping into my space.
“She’s the one who broke it off, not me. She was really fucking clear that she was done with me,” I warn, in case he gets any ideas about breaking my bones. “I hope you’re happy for pushing me into this with all yourrusting or ridingbullshit. She turned my fucking heart inside out.”
I’m so fucking miserable, I don’t even give a fuck about all the embarrassing words flowing out of my mouth.
Jigsaw approaches us slowly, hands tucked in his pockets, thoughtful expression in place. “Easy, Dex,” he says. “Look at it this way, not every storm is meant to wreck your world. She opened you up to the possibility of being with someone again. That’s a big step for you, right?”
He’s talking about Emily as if she’s already been erased from my life.
“I want to be withher.” I stop and replay what Jigsaw actually said. He wasn’t around when my wife died. I glare at Grinder, confident that’s where Jiggy got his one-sided info. “Must you gossip to everyone about my business?”
Ignoring my hostility, Jigsaw clutches my shoulder. There isn’t a trace of his usual humor on his face and that somehow makes what he’s saying even worse. “Some storms clear a path for you to start anewchapter of your life. You’ll get through this and come out stronger on the other side.”
Rooster must be concerned I’m about to grab a wrench and beat his best friend to death. He grabs Jigsaw’s shoulder and pulls him back. “Enough.”
Jigsaw doesn’t know how wrong he is. Emilyisthe new chapter of my life. She’s not a storm. She’s the sunlight that brought me back to life. A once-in-a-lifetime kind of woman that I’m not letting go of without a fight.
* * *
