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“We’re trying to fix his mess,” Easton said, raising his voice.
“Maybe you should be more concerned about fixing your relationship with him.”
His eyes went to Drew. I saw the unmistakable hurt on his face. “I’ve tried. I’m trying,” he said quietly.
“Try harder. Go back to that.” I pointed at a framed photograph of the two of them when they couldn’t have been more than ten. They were standing by a lake, holding up the fish they’d caught, arms around one another, smiling. “And stop pointing the finger at one another. Look at yourselves and fix it from there.”
“I don’t know where it went wrong,” Easton lamented, and I actually felt sorry for the man. He was more torn up over this than I’d seen over the past several days.
“I’m going to check on Mama. Come on. We’ve got to get you back to Paths of Purpose,” Drew said.
I frowned at him for shying away from the situation. He didn’t back down, even from the hard stuff. Hell, he’d gotten in a fight with two men at once for me, no questions asked. But like a coward who couldn’t come up with anything to say, I let Drew drag me to the bedroom, not bothering to shut the door.
“Don’t say a word,” he warned, stripping the shirt off my head and nudging me in the direction of the bathroom.
He swiftly removed his sweatpants and stalked past me. I trailed him, stepping behind the shower curtain with him and pulling it closed. He dipped his head under the spray first, enough hitting me so chill bumps rose on my skin.
“Why did you back down? Run away?” I demanded, thumping him in the chest when he refused to look at me.
“I said—”
“I know what you said, but I don’t care. What happened out there?”
“I don’t want to talk about it. Not with him. Not with you.” His movements were rough as he ran his fingers through his hair, working the shampoo through the locks.
“Your brother seems willing to meet you halfway. Maybe even more than that. It’s what you want, so why aren’t you taking the chance to fix your relationship?”
Fierce brown eyes met mine. “If you’re on his side, then get out of this shower and go fuck him. Sounds like you almost had that worked out anyway.” He rinsed his hair.
“I’m on your side, you idiot.” I shoved my way under the water, tired of being cold. “I wasn’t going to fuckhim, but I think your sister-in-law would like to watch the two of us.”
Drew spun, pushing me up against the plastic wall of the shower/tub combination. “If you want to help me, stay out of it.”
I lifted my hands in surrender. “I sure as hell don’t want to do anything of the kind.”
He quickly soaped and rinsed himself, leaving me in the shower alone. When I got out, there wasn’t a single towel or Drew to be found.
Chapter Thirty-One
Sonya
Glutton for punishment.
That was what I was. The second I arrived at the apartment building from my day working off my bill at Paths of Purpose, I went straight up to the Carter apartment under the guise of checking on Loretta when I really wanted to see Drew. He hadn’t come to the shelter at all that day, so I assumed he’d been with his mother. I didn’t like the way the morning had gone down, the semi-fight different from our others.
Mulaney answered the door when I rang the bell. “Glad to see you wearing a little bit more.”
“Are you sure about that?” I tossed back as I entered the foyer. The expression on her face was livid. “How’s Loretta?”
“She’s had a rough day.” Mulaney frowned and looked away. “Can't keep anything down,” she elaborated in frustration.
“What do the doctors say?”
“That it’s normal, and they’ll monitor it. Fuckers won’t do a damn thing for her,” she finished under her breath.
“I thought they were the best?”
We walked down the hall to Loretta’s bedroom, the apartment quiet. “They are.”
