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“Piper will be here soon,” he says. “Do you need me to stay?”
She shakes her head. “We can take it from here.”
He nods. “Good. I need to go find my brother.”
At Harlow’s confused expression, Linc gives me a meaningful look. It takes less than a second for Harlow’s mouth to drop open and for her to turn her shocked expression on me. I swipe at the stray tears still leaking from my eyes and try not to meet her gaze. Luckily for me, she turns an accusatory glare at her boyfriend.
“You knew about this and didn’t tell me?! How long have you known?”
Linc immediately holds up his hands in surrender. “Harlow, listen,” he says, “I wanted to tell you, but it wasn’t my secret to tell. I swear, I hated not telling you.”
She narrows her eyes even further. “Just how long have you known about this?”
“A while,” he says, a sheepish expression on his face.
Her brows go up and she turns to look at me. “Just how long has this been going on?What,exactly, is going on, anyway? Will someone tell me what the fuck is happening?”
I open my mouth to answer her, unsure of just what I should or shouldn’t say. But I’m saved by a knock on the door. My relief is short-lived, however, when I hear my sister’s worried voice on the other side of the door.
“Layna? I’m here. What’s wrong?”
I sigh as my eyes fill with tears again.
The worry and fear on my sister’s face is the first thing I see. I know it’s not something I’ll forget for a long time. She rushes into the room, pushing open the door as soon as Linc turns the door handle.
“Layna? What happened?”
She’s at my side in an instant, sitting beside me on the couch and wrapping her arm around me. I see Linc and Harlow exchange a meaningful look that says he’s going to have a lot of explaining to do later. Then he sneaks quietly from the room. When it’s just the three of us left in the room, Piper shifts to face me, handing me another tissue. She pushes the hair from my face and tries to tuck it behind my ears, but it keeps falling forward.
“Talk to me,” she says in a gentle voice that nearly breaks me all over again. “You never cry. Are you hurt? Did something happen?
I shake my head. “Not physically,” I whisper.
“Tell me,” Piper says. “I love you, and I’m here for you. No matter what.”
Chapter 32
Cole
After storming out of my hotel room, it doesn’t take me long to realize I don’t have anywhere to go. I don’t have a plan. It’s not like I have another hotel room to go to and I can’t exactly go home. I have a wedding to attend in a few hours. I don’t even know why I left, but I know I can’t go back now. I need to get as far away from Layna as possible before I say something even more horrible to her. Not that what I already said isn’t bad enough. I doubt she’ll forgive me for that. I push that thought aside. I don’t want to think about her right now. I’ll deal with it later. For now, I need to decide where to go.
I look down at myself as I walk. I’m wearing a pair of gym shorts, an old t-shirt with the bar’s logo on it and carrying my shoes. I never thought a person could do a walk of shame from their own hotel room, but that’s exactly what I’m doing right now. I make my way to the elevator, pleased when it opens as soon as I press the button. I push the button for the lobby before leaning against the back wall to put my shoes on. I still don’t allow myself to think about Layna or the fight we just had. I especially don’t let myself think about last night.
I make my way to the hotel’s restaurant, intending to find some coffee or maybe something for breakfast, but I remember I’m wearing gym attire and they probably won’t let me in here like this. It’s early, but this isn’t the kind of place that overlooks decorum. Already, I can see the curious stares of people in the lobby. Okay, change of plans. I turn toward the exit, intending to walk until I find some place that will serve coffee to someone in gym shorts. There’s got to be some kind of coffee shop around here, right?
I exit the hotel and turn left at random. I don’t even have my cellphone, so I can’t look up a nearby coffee shop. I’ll just have to hope I’m walking in the right direction. The realization that I don’t have my phone reminds me that I also don’t have my wallet. Sighing, I stop walking and look up at the sky.
“Shit,” I mutter.
“Rough morning?” a voice asks from beside me.
I turn and see Wyatt King standing there, looking as disreputable as ever, his long hair falling around his shoulders and his tattooed arms exposed. His expression is a mixture of concern and humor.
“Too much partying last night?” he asks, smiling at me.
I sigh and shake my head. “I wish a hangover was my biggest problem. I was trying to find coffee, but I left my room without my wallet or my phone.”
He nods, though he looks like he wants to ask more questions. “I was on my way to the coffee shop around the corner,” he says. “Come on. I’ll buy you a cup.”
