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“It’s my fault.” I admit, taking a shaky breath. I’m determined not to fall apart in front of Colt’s sister. She doesn’t need that. “I used to work there. They owed me money, so …”
“So Colt tried to collect the debt?” Becky cuts me off, her voice shrill. Alarm is written all over her face. “You let my little brother go to a strip club to take them on? How could you do that? Everyone knows security at a strip club is no joke. Why would you let him go there?” Becky is becoming hysterical and I reach out a hand to soothe her, but she moves from my touch as though I’ve got a filthy disease that she can catch.
“I’m sorry,” I plead. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s a bit late for sorry.” Becky glares at me, fear and anguish flashing in her eyes. Her protective instincts for her brother are in overdrive, and I don’t blame her. “I’m guessing you’re Sassy? He’s told me about you.”
“Yes, I’ve been looking forward to meeting you. In better circumstances, of course.” I glance around us. “Truly I’m so sorry. I want Colt to be safe, as much as you do.”
“Oh, really?” Becky lets out a huff and crosses her arms in front of her. “You want Colt to be safe? But you drag him to a damn strip club to demand money from a bunch of thugs? If you want him to be safe, why the hell is he lying in a hospital bed but you’re standing here with not a scratch on you?” The tears are falling freely from her eyes now while she looks at me for answers. I can see how this appears. She must think I sat in the car and sent Colt inside to do my dirty work for me. I could explain, but admitting he was a decoy while I stole from them isn’t much better.
Instead, I stare at the ground and stay quiet. She has every right to be angry at me. I didn’t keep Colt safe. I put him directly in the path of danger. Just like I’ve done every single day since I first met him. I’ve done nothing but lead him down a destructive path.
“You need to stay away from him,” Becky says, her voice low and steely. “Enough of your drama and bad influence. You’ll end up getting him killed. He’s not cut out for your lifestyle.”
I look up at her as she says this last part and catch the disgust that passes over her pretty features. She scowls at me like I’m a rat that just crawled from a drainpipe in front of her. I want to tell her how much Colt means to me. That I’ll do better. But I can’t. Because she’s right that I’m not good for him. I need to stay in my lane and only date guys who are broken like me. I need to leave the good guys alone.
Not trusting myself to speak in case a dam of tears breaks through, I simply nod. A silent agreement to her terms.
I turn and walk from the room. As I ride the elevator down to the lobby, the events of the past few hours replay in my mind.
Colt, a crumpled heap in the alleyway. Colt laid up in a hospital bed, black and blue. The betrayal on his face when I admitted my first phone call was to Chase. Then I think of Becky and the raw fear in her eyes.
As I exit the hospital, I harden my resolve. I’ll walk away from Colt for good. It’s the best thing I can do for him.
Chapter31
Colt
It’s been three days since the incident at the club and I’m still in the hospital. Thanks to a concussion, I’ve had to stay extra days for observation. I’m going out of my mind with boredom. Becky and Mason have been great, visiting me each day. They live three hours away, so they got a hotel room nearby.
My mates have also dropped in several times. The first time they came, I apologised to them. When they held that intervention about me going off the rails, I didn’t want to hear it. But they only had my best interests at heart, and I should have listened more carefully. They asked me what’s going on between me and Sassy and I told them the truth; I don’t know.
Sassy hasn’t been back to visit me since that first morning. She told me via text that it’s over, and won’t answer my calls. I know she’s only pushing me away because of guilt. She blames herself for what happened. I’ve told her through many text messages it’s not her fault, but she doesn’t seem to believe me. As soon as I get out of here, I’ll see her in person so I can clear the air between us.
I’m mindlessly flicking through TV channels when Becky arrives. She stomps into my room, a look of fury on her face. Even though she’s my big sister, she’s smaller than me, and it always amuses me when she tries to act angry. I smother my grin, because it will only make her more mad.
“Good day then, sis?”
Her nostrils flare as she drags the visitor chair close to my bed. Sitting down, Becky leans close to me.
“Care to tell me what the fuck’s been going on with you, brother dear?” She seethes, venom pouring out of her words. It hits me she was meeting Dean Pritchard today to explain my absence. The smile leaves my face. I bet he’s told her a few stories.
“That’s right,” Becky says. “Time to lose that smile and tell me what’s going on. I’ve just had a good chat with Dean Pritchard and he tells me you’ve been flunking out of uni. You barely show up for lectures anymore. You got into a bar fight the other week. And, here’s a good one: you got fired from your job for having sex on the premises.”
“How did he hear about the fight and me getting fired?” I’m genuinely puzzled. This man takes far too much interest in the lives of his students. It’s not a high school, for goodness’ sake.
“That’s not really the issue here, Colt.” Becky growls. I sigh and drop my head back against my pillow.
“Becks, it’s nothing. I’ve got it under control.”
“Under control? Colt, he’s going to kick you out of uni.”
“What?” I lift my head back up. “Why?”
“Aside from your attendance and failing your subjects?” Becky narrows her eyes. “He said he warned you to stay away from Sassy. Your run in at the very strip club she worked at supposedly brings shame on his university. He doesn’t want trouble makers dragging his reputation down.”
“What an asshole! A bunch of thugs who stole from their employee dragged me out the back and beat me unconscious.. How am I the bad guy in this?”
