My hands drop to my sides as my mouth falls open. No fucking way …
“Yes!” he answers Cole.
I let out a growl and run at him. My shoulder hits him in the chest, and I lift him up off the ground before slamming his ass to the snow-covered grass. “I’m gonna kill …”
“I love her!” he shouts.
I pause, one hand fisted in his shirt and the other about to hit him in the face again. “What?” I pant.
He lets out a long sigh and licks the blood off his lip. “I fucking love her, Deke.” He shoves me off, and I go willingly. Sitting up, he runs his hands through his hair. “You think I would risk losing you as a friend for a fuck or a fling?” I don’t answer. “I’ve been in love with her for a long time, and a year ago, I got my chance to show her just how much.” He looks over at Cole who continues to eat his apple with a smirk on his face. “I’m sorry we didn’t tell you. She wanted to, but I didn’t. I knew you wouldn’t understand. I was selfish and wanted as much time with her as possible before you found out.” He hangs his head. “She broke up with me after Cole killed Kellan. She thought I helped, which I did, but she said she wanted nothing to do with our lives.” He glares up at me. “It took a lot of groveling to get her back and show her that I can be different for her.” He huffs. “And I’ll be damned if I’m gonna allow you to come in and fuck that up for me.”
I stand staring down at my friend sitting in the snow with blood running down his nose. I should be mad, but all I can think about is how my sister can’t accept him for who he really is. I’m not surprised. She never really did me either. But she doesn’t understand our need for revenge. Demi understands it. She’s lived it with her sister for years.
I walk over to him and reach out my hand. He looks at it and then up at me before taking it. I pull him into me and slap his back. “I already consider you a brother, Bennett. But if you hurt her, I’ll have no problem killing you.”
He chuckles pulling away. “That’s not gonna happen.”
The three of us enter the house to find my sister sitting at her kitchen table. She jumps up the moment she sees us and gasps. “What the hell, Deke?” She runs to him, placing her hands on his bloody face.
“He’s fine.” I wave her off. “Just a scratch.”
“Where are the girls?” Cole asks, looking around for Austin.
“They left to go take Lilly to see Blanche for the day. They’ll be back later.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
DEMI
I SIT IN the spare bedroom scrolling through my Facebook when I hear a knock on the door. “Come in.”
Austin pops her head in. “Hey, I’m gonna go pick up Lilly from Blanche’s. Wanna ride with me? I thought we could grab dinner on the way back for everyone.”
“Yeah,” I say, getting up and grabbing my jacket. “Sounds good.”
She backs out of the driveway, and I send Deke a quick message. I haven’t spoken to him much today. Austin and I left earlier while he was outside beating the shit out of his friend. We had dropped Lilly off at Blanche’s and then met Shelby at the mall for some girl time. She explained the guys made up and how they were going to meet Shane at the clubhouse later to go over some things. Whatever that meant.
Me: Gonna pick up Lilly and grab dinner. Ask the guys what sounds good.
Locking my phone, I put it down in my lap and look out the windshield. When we arrived in Collins earlier today, it had been snowing. It’s stopped for the time being but looks like it could start again at any minute.
We’re on a two-lane road heading back to Blanche’s. She lives on the outskirts of Collins. The road is curvy with lots of hills so we’re going slower than normal due to the weather. We make a curve, and Austin slams on the brakes. Her hand comes out, shooting across to my chest to hold my back to the seat.
“What the hell is going on here?” she asks as we come to an abrupt stop.
“Maybe they wrecked,” I say, looking over the tire tracks of a car that sits in the middle of the road. You can tell that they were heading in the same direction as us and then spun around, doing a one-eighty. When it finally stopped, it’s now facing us head on but still across both lanes.
Austin opens her door and gets out, so I do the same. “Hello?” she calls out.