AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I shook my head, blinking back tears. “I am, though. If I’d gone home like I was supposed to, they wouldn’t have had to come get me. If I wasn’t drinking or smoking way under age, I would’ve been able to get home on my own. It was–”
“A fucking accident,” he snapped. “Shit happens. It's not like you were hoping for them to get hurt. You called your people when you were on a bad trip. That’s what you’re fucking supposed to do. The rest is out of your control. Don’t put that shit on yourself.”
The girls all nodded like they agreed with him and my chin trembled with the effort to hold back tears. No one ever agreed with me outright. Not my family, not the church, not the therapist I tried to talk to. They all said I was at least partly to blame, because I was the reason my parents were on the road that night. After so long hearing it, I started to believe it myself. Only Tyson ever said I wasn’t. One person wasn’t enough to combat dozens of people saying it was my fault. But now there was an entire group of them telling me I was wrong, that it wasn’t my fault, and I couldn’t cope. Big tears spilled down my cheeks and when Clink pulled me closer, I buried my face against his chest, choking back sobs.
“Who the fuck made the electrician cry?”
“Shut up, Knox. She’s going through something,” Riley snapped. “Where’s Croy? I thought you were in a meeting.”
“Meetings done. He’s in his office. Baby, you make one of those for me?”
I heard Allie scoff. “I didn’t even make mine. Quinn made it for me. Make your own sandwich.”
While they argued with each other, Clink stroked my hair, giving me the time to process. It still felt off, like I couldn’t quite believe that people would be on my side, but I wanted to believe it. More than anything, I wanted to.
When Clink finally made me look at him with a knuckle under my chin, I scrubbed my face with my hands to banish the tears away. He didn’t look annoyed or weirded out by my crying all over him. He just looked worried.
“You okay, honey?”
Nodding, I did my best to muster up a smile. “I’m okay. Thank you for saying that.”
“It’s the fuckin’ truth. Anyone who says otherwise is on something.”
When I raised my eyebrow at him, he smirked. “I’m sober, so you know I’m tellin’ the truth.”
I huffed out a laugh and didn’t argue. I was done fighting with people about it. If this group believed I wasn’t at fault, I was going to lean into it and enjoy it as long as possible. Tyson would be proud. I wrapped my arms around Clink’s middle, sucking in a shaky breath when he hugged me tightly.
“I need your keys, honey. I’m gonna go with Brewer and pick you up a few things. I might be gone for a while and I wanna make sure you’re set up here.”
Frowning, I pulled away enough to look up at him. “Where are you going?”
“Can’t tell you that. It’s club business.”
My frown deepened, but Riley interrupted before I could question him more. “You’ll get used to that. There are some things they can’t tell you. It’s not because they can’t trust you. It’s more to keep us safe. If the cops or any rivals come at us asking questions, we don’t know anything and we have no reason to lie to them.”
It made sense, but it also made me a little uneasy. That meant Clink was going to do something dangerous or illegal. Or both. And after everything that's happened, it made me nervous.
Like he could see my anxiety in my expression, he used his knuckle to guide my face back to him again and raised his eyebrows.
“Don’t stress out, honey. You’ve got plenty to do around here to keep you busy while I’m gone. Brewer and Chase are gonna take you to work to pick up the shit you need to start on the wiring. You can do your work and stay out of trouble, and by the time you finish, this bullshit should all be through.”
Riley’s indignant noise drew my attention. “Hold on. She gets to leave and work, and I don’t? How’s that fair?”
“She’s gonna be workin’ here, baby. It ain’t the same and you know it. Stop bitchin’. You got your own shit to do,” Croy drawled as he approached. When Riley spun around, seething at him, he didn’t even acknowledge it, pulling her against him and fisting her hair roughly as he dipped his head and kissed her. When he pulled back, she looked a little less defiant, and more like I did when Clink and I were outside. Dazed and a little lust drunk. She blinked a few times, scowling at Croy.
“I don't like it when you do that.”
He smirked. “Liar.”
She pressed her lips together, her eyes narrowed, but she seemed to shock everyone when she shrugged and wrapped her arms around his neck. “What kind of stuff do I need to do?”
A pleased look overtook his face, and he tipped his head towards the stairs. “Let’s talk upstairs.”
After she left, I noticed Quinn and Allie’s confused looks and frowned. “What is it?”
Even Clink was frowning. “The First Lady never backs down without a fight. And Prez was askin’ for it. She should be screaming at him right now.”
“She probably will be screaming in a minute,” Knox snorted.
