Page 90 of Finding Kyler
Brad leans back on his lounger, copying my position. “It seems everyone’s family has demons to battle.” Arching his head, he stares up at the sky. I could latch onto that and squirrel my way into his mind, plucking all the right strings and diverting focus from me. But I could never manipulate a friend like that, and that’s what Brad has come to mean to me. Instead, I bide my time, knowing he’ll open up shortly.
I tilt my head and join him, marveling at how peaceful the nighttime canvas looks compared to the turmoil on the ground. Amicable silence descends as we are both lost in our thoughts. I clear my throat after a bit and look sideway at him. “It works both ways, you know.” He twists around to look at me. “I’m here ifyouneed to talk.”
He doesn’t say anything for several minutes, and I don’t push. I’ve put it out there that I’m willing to listen. Now the rest is up to him. “I haven’t told anyone.” A sad look appears on his face. “There hasn’t been anyone to tell.”
“I’m listening now.” We face one another, on our sides.
“Do you promise to keep it to yourself?” His eyes betray a world of pain, and I can see how much he needs to let this out.
“I promise I won’t tell another soul. You can trust me.”
“There’s a warrant out for my dad’s arrest” is his startling opening line. “He knew it was coming, and that’s why he fled abroad with my mom and sisters three months ago.”
I sit up in a flash. “Wait! What?”
“They all left. I stayed because I…I don’t want my future to be jeopardized by his actions. I want to graduate and go to college as planned. Between my grades and my skill on the field, I should be able to score a football scholarship. I couldn’t throw all that away.”
I stare at him, flabbergasted.
“You think I’m selfish?” He jumps to the wrong conclusion.
I shake my head vehemently. “Definitely not. I’m just shocked that you’ve been left all alone. How are you coping by yourself?”
He sits up, swinging his legs around, and our knees brush. “I’m still in one piece.” He worries his lip between his teeth. “The government is going to seize the house, and they’ve already frozen most of his assets, but I’ve got some cash to tide me over, and I have my car, and I’ll stay in the house for as long as I can, and then”—he lets loose a shaky breath—“well, I’ll figure something out. I can probably move upstate to my aunt’s.” He sends me a half-hearted smile.
Or movein here.
But I don’t say that out loud, tucking it away in a mental cubbyhole for later.
Reaching out, I grasp his hands. “I can’t believe you’ve been living all alone and you said nothing to no one about it. You should’ve told me.”
“I’ve ostracized myself from most everyone, and I was too embarrassed. Not that it matters now, since it’s about to go public. The feds have been keeping a lid on things while they investigate, but soon, everyone will know.” He looks off into space.
“What did he do?” I ask quietly.
“Embezzled funds. He’s stolen millions from his clients. It’s a total shitstorm.”
“I’m so sorry, Brad. That’s awful. When did you find out?”
“Seven months ago.” He gives me a meaningful look, and alarm bells start howling in my ear.
“Does this have something to do with Addison?”
“That time I slept with her was the day I found out. I lost it with my dad, stormed out of the house, and drowned my sorrows in a bottle. I shouldn’t have gone to the party without my wingman. Ky was in Nantucket, and Addison was there, alone. I was completely wasted, but I still should’ve known better. When she came on to me, I didn’t refuse her, because I didn’t allow myself time to stop and think. I wanted to get out of my head, needed to forget everything, and sex was a welcome distraction. But, the next day, when I realized what I’d done”—he closes his eyes—“I wanted to die, way worse than I had the previous day. Knowing I’d done that to my best friend, I still hate myself for it.”
He buries his head in his hands, and I move over to sit beside him, wrapping my arms around his waist. “Brad? Are you saying that you only slept with Addison that one time?”
His head whips up. “Yes. Why?” Recognition dawns on his face. “Ky thinks it was more than that?”
I nod. “You don’t even know how he found out, do you?”
He shakes his head. “I figured someone at the party told him. We weren’t exactly discreet.” A look of self-loathing drifts over his features.
“Someone sent him an anonymous email, and from what he told me, it contained photographic and video evidence of you and her together, and it was more than one occasion. Ky thinks you were cheating with her for months.”
He launches himself out of the lounger, his wild eyes meeting mine. “Are you fucking serious?”
I stand up beside him. “Yes. It was definitely only one time?”
