How can I be responsible for this? This has gotten so out of hand, so much bigger than what I was looking for. My only saving grace is that Nic won’t want to see me harmed.
I have to admit, the last few days haven’t been so bad as I've sat in bed and healed. Milo has come over to keep me company, just as I did for him. He instantly started comparing our battle wounds, subtly suggesting that he was left in a worse way after his attack. But honestly, two guys beating on him really doesn’t compare to the twenty Wolves jumping me. I think he just wants to pretend that he’s tough, and that’s more than okay. We all need a little tough in our lives sometimes.
It’s Saturday morning, and I’ve just spent the last hour spying through the bathroom window of the pool house, looking into the mansion and watching Colton working up a sweat in his home gym. I can’t believe I’ve never noticed that the two windows line up before, but walking in here to find him dragging his shirt over his head and revealing his perfectly sculpted chest and abs was one hell of a nice surprise. I’ll never get bored of watching Colton working his body. It’s hypnotic. He’s hypnotic.
Realizing how ridiculous it is to spend the day hiding out in my bathroom and spying on my boyfriend, I make my way back to my room, getting dressed in a comfortable pair of sweatpants and a cropped black tank. Hell, I even brush my hair before throwing it up. I’ve been holed up inside the pool house all week, and it’s starting to drive me a little stir crazy.
I take myself into Colton’s big ass home and give a quick smile to Casey, who I pass in the living room, not surprised to find her nose stuck deep in a book. She hardly looks up as I pass, just grunts out a quick ‘hey’ and looks more than happy to see me continue past.
I make my way down to Colton's home gym and lean against the door frame, looking in to find him lying on the bench with a weighted bar above his head. The bar slowly travels up and down, and I instantly become mesmerized by the way his muscles bulge.
“Are you just going to stand there and watch me, or are you going to walk that sweet ass in here?
I grin as I watch him, and then push off the door frame, welcoming myself into his gym with a nervous cringe settling across my face. “I … um ... I think I need to go into Blaxlands Grove today.”
Colton instantly racks his bar up above his head and pulls up until he's staring right at me. “You're fucking insane, right?”
“I'm serious,” I tell him. “I can't just sit back and do nothing. I need to know the plan, and I need to know how to fix it. Sitting back in bed all week is killing me. I have to change his mind somehow. I can't be responsible for a mass murder.”
“Nic is a big boy, Ocean. He knew what he was doing when he killed your father. He would have been expecting this very outcome since the second he decided to go ahead with it. I know he's a fucking dickhead, but he's not stupid. He knew what he was doing.”
“I get that,” I argue. “But what about the rest of them?”
Colton stands, letting out a breath before grabbing his drink and taking a hard pull. He walks toward me and places his hands on my shoulders, making sure that I'm listening to his every word. “They're not your problem. This isn't on your shoulders. All you did was give Russo Nic's name. He's the one who's doing this. He would have eventually figured out who killed your dad, and he would have still gone to war. You need to stop allowing this to bring you down. The Widows know what they're doing following Nic just as the Wolves know what they're doing being in league with Russo.”
I drop my haze, unable to meet his eyes. “I …”
“Jade, no,” he breathes, desperate to keep me here where he knows I’ll be safe. “What can I do to make you see that you're not guilty in this? You haven't hurt anyone, you've never taken a man's life, you've only ever been guilty of caring too much.”
“I'm just ... I'm sorry. I have to go down there and see what's going on. All this waiting to hear something is driving me insane.”
“There's nothing I can do to change your mind, is there?” I press my lips into a hard line and gently shake my head before he steps in close and drops his forehead to mine. “You're going to do everything in your power to make this happen without me by your side, aren't you?”