Page 31 of Reins

“Cade,” Pete exhales and runs his palm over his face. “You know we went down this dark path more than once. All it’s gonna do is drive you crazy.”

I can’t hold back the tempest of emotions whirling inside of me. “But what if it was him?” I yell, spinning away. “He was there that night, buying me drinks. Ava showed up at the last minute. What if he was trying to get me fucking drunk so he knew I’d crash?”

Am I imagining the gleam in Eli’s eye when Ava decided to come home with me? If he knew he was setting me up, why did he almost encourage her to go with me?

Jerking my hat off my head, I run my fingers through my hair and tug on the ends. I need a damn trim, yet the ache in my scalp helps to redirect me.

“I just don’t want you getting lost in this again,” he says quietly, shaking his head. “You were in a bad place for a long time.”

I dig the heel of my hand into my temple in a failing attempt to drown out the throbbing, then trace down the scars lining my cheek.

Part of me wants to rebel against his wisdom. But there’s a lot of truth in his words. I nearly drowned myself in a bottle for years after the accident in self-loathing and anger. “I won’t. But I need to know.”

“Cade,” he grumbles, pushing his chair towards the filling tray. “You deserve some peace, friend. I shouldn’t have brought you here.” He gathers the pictures and shuffles them into a tidy stack, then holds them out.

Except when I reach for them, he pulls it away.

“Just fucking promise me you’ll give it only a day or two, then pitch these in the garbage. It’s almost Christmas. Call this whole thing off for a while and spend some time with your family.” He finally lets me take the hefty pile.

“I will. That sounds like a good deadline.” Tucking the photos under my arm, I pause at the door. “Thanks for being my only friend, Pete.”

He nods and gives me a half-hearted wave as I leave.

I hate that I can recognize the look on his face. I’ve seen it before, more times than I could ever count.

Pity.

Chapter 19 - Rosalyn

Cade left so fast I barely had my coat off.

Standing in the middle of the small kitchenette, I spin in a slow circle, clueless which direction to move.

All I’ve ever known is life with my brothers. With them I have to constantly be on my toes, cleaning behind them and anticipating anything they need.

I don’t want to make Cade angry that I’m here, he’s the only chance I have to get away.

Twisting my lips, I chew on the inside of my cheek while my focus flits from the small handful of dishes in the sink to the scattered bits of mud by the door.

Nothing is dirty enough to really warrant focusing on, but I don’t want to be caught idle. There’s always been some sort of punishment if I am.

When the door blusters open, letting in a swirl of heavy snowflakes, Cade appears from the porch with a pile of papers tucked under his arm.

Then he freezes, scowling at my hands submerged in the soapy water. “What are you doing?” He kicks the cabin shut and stomps his boots against the frame.

“I thought I’d just make myself useful.” My brows furrow into a knot over my nose.

He shakes his head, dropping some wet snow onto the floor from the brim of his hat, then takes it off to reveal his dark hair plastered over his forehead. “You don’t have to do that, Ros.”

I’m not sure why that nickname makes my heart race a little faster. “I don’t mind.”

“That isn’t the kind of help I need,” he grumbles, dropping the stack of pages onto the small table.

I can feel my lower lip tremble. “I’m not sure what to do.” All I know is how to deal with my brothers.

Cade takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly while he toes off his Ariats and leaves them near the threshold. “You’re safe here. I swear. You ain’t gotta work it off.”

He tugs open the short dorm-sized fridge and pulls out two bottles, then holds one up to me. “Want a beer?”