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“Right.” Gem.
“Yeah.” Theresa.
Alred nodded, finishing his donut.
Kira held up a hand. “I have an uncle who lives off the grid in Alaska. You could go there.”
Ramsay growled. “Maybe something actually productive?”
Theresa asked, “You have an uncle who lives off the grid?”
Kira shrugged. “I figure every family has a black sheep, right? He’s ours. He’s also a conservative liberal, if you can figure that one out. I still haven’t. He, like, mails us letters, but they’re mostly filled with threats about World War Three, and to save the trees, he writes on leaves. The leaves are usually broken by the time we get them, so the threats are like, ‘Save the—’ and nothing. We don’t know what we’re supposed to save. One said ‘take cover’ but again, the rest of the leaf was in pieces so every now and then I look up and wonder what I’m supposed to take cover from, but anywho. That’s my uncle. Maybe not such a solid idea.”
Theresa and Gem were fighting back smiles.
Ramsay bit out, “You think?”
The general theme was blackmail.
Alred knew people who knew people who knew people, and he was convinced he could get some damning information on my grandfather. Considering he didn’t know who to contact or what information he could get, it wasn’t a solid idea.
Theresa offered to ask some of their relatives if they could dig up dirt on my grandfather too.
Gem didn’t have a suggestion. She came over to hold Ramsay’s hand at times when I wasn’t holding her.
Clint suggested going to find that fraternity guy who knew my family and interrogate him about what he knew and see if there was anything there they could use.
Alex kept calling my uncle to see what he could do to help me. The conversation would end the same way, that Miles was doing what he could, but he’d have to get back to him. They’d hang up, and Alex would call a couple minutes later with the same request, but mixed with more impatience. I had to give my uncle credit. He always answered.
Trenton mulled it over before saying, “We could go to the golf course and infiltrate those cronies. Shit goes down on the golf course. Maybe we could plant listening devices in every hole.”
As ideas went, I was thinking that had the most merit.
Kira had another idea, suggesting she get me a room on a yacht heading to the Mediterranean next week. Most of her ideas were helping me go somewhere else. She wasn’t factoring in that my grandfather had a private jet. He could fly anywhere to get me.
After four hours of brainstorming and an early lunch, Ramsay tugged me to her bedroom. She held my hand. “I’ll go public.”
Hearing everyone trying to help meant more than I realized it would’ve, but I needed to end this. I shook my head, cupping her face. “With what?”
“He threatened me. I can say everything he said to me. I—”
“They’ll call him for a comment, and it’ll be laughed off. They’ll spin it so you look like some teenager who’s infatuated with me. You’re not going to say anything. I can’t let him hurt you anymore than he already has.”
“But—”
I pulled her to me, kissing her forehead.
Her hands reached up, fisting my shirt. “It can’t be over. Just like that.”
I struggled with swallowing before pulling back enough to see her face. “This, all of this, everyone coming, this means a lot to me.”
“Don’t, Scout.” She tried pulling away.
I held her close, a tenderness filling me that I never knew I could’ve felt in my life. “I’m glad I met you. I’m glad I got this time with you, with your cousins. You gave me something to hold on to when I’ll need it. The world is hard. There’s no color with him. No happiness. No love, and you gave that to me. I realized I loved you too late, but at least I realized it.”
“Don’t.” Tears welled up on her eyelids. “You gave that back to me too. I never would’ve let myself open up to someone again, not after Max. Sometimes I wonder if my dad brought you to me, if he—”
I pulled her to me again, holding her. I smoothed a hand down her hair, her back. “I’ve been broken for so long that I didn’t realize I was broken. You gave me life back.”
“Shut up. Just shut up.” She choked on a sob.
I chuckled lightly. “We’re a pair, huh?”
“We’re not broken anymore.”
I brushed a thumb over her forehead, tucking a strand of hair back. “Yeah. Not anymore.” We were both ignoring the inevitable. I’d leave and we’d go back to being two broken pieces. I didn’t want that. Not for her. I wanted her to be whole.
How could I do that? What could I do? Anything?
Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything, but no. No more secrets. Not between us.
