I try to reel myself in because not only is Cole fine, but he’s a fucking adult. It should be none of my business if he decides to go up to the local bar on a Saturday night and drink until he blacks out. But I do care about him a lot, and I know this is out of character for him. He was there. He saw how awful it was when my parents were killed by a drunk driver. That shit never leaves you.

  “I don’t know what to say. I’m sorry.”

  “For the shape you were in, I can’t even believe you’re awake this early.”

  “It wasn’t by choice, that’s for sure. Freddy was jumping all over my head. Once I was awake, I didn’t want my truck sitting at the bar.”

  “What made you go down there last night anyway?”

  He runs his hand through his hair. “My dad texted me.”

  Now it all makes sense. If there’s one person who could drive Cole to the AV Tap, it’s his dad. We all witnessed how much of an asshole Ted McBride was to Cole. It didn’t seem to matter what Cole did, it was never good enough for his dad. He was always downright nasty to him. I’m not sure we’ll ever know what it was really like for him behind the closed doors of his childhood home, but to this day, I still don’t know how Cole turned out the way he did. I’d like to think my parents had something to do with that.

  Cole and all the boys spent a lot of time at our house when we were younger. My mother was the kindest and most giving woman I’ve ever known. She treated all of our friends like they were her own kids. There was always food, games, and a hug when you needed it. We were the house whose yard was filled with bikes. Sometimes it feels like it was an entirely different lifetime. I miss it. But I don’t miss Cole having to take the emotional abuse his father dished out daily and his mother who did nothing about it.

  “What did he say?”

  “That my aunt is upset I’m not coming.”

  “You wouldn’t drink like that just because your aunt is sad. What did he say?”

  “Nothing he hasn’t said before.” He puts his elbows on the table and leans his chin into his hand as his eyes narrow to take in the light from outside. “I’m torn about this fucking party, Steph. I want to go because my aunt wants me there, and honestly, I miss her. But I don’t know if I can hack my dad and his constant berating. Maybe I’ll just go visit her in a few months or something.”

  “No you won’t. He lives there, Cole. He’s going to be around anytime you go, and you know it. You’ve been talking about going to visit her so many times, and you never do it.”

  “Why did he have to move back there? He ruins everything. And apparently, after last night, I can’t deal with his ass all by myself,” Cole says quietly. He takes a slow drink from his coffee, and I look for the right thing to say but come up short. He stays silent for a minute, and then his eyes travel down to my chest. “Are you on a run?”

  “I was.”

  “Well, don’t let me stop you. I just walked down here to get my truck and attempt to down two cups of caffeine so I can be a human today and get some stuff done around the house. I’m fine.”

  “Don’t do that again, Cole.” His head falls slightly. “If you want to drink until you can’t see straight, I can’t stop you. But don’t do it with keys to a vehicle in your hands. Or take a friend with you. What if I couldn’t come get you? I can’t even think about that.” I take a deep breath and look out the window down the quiet main street.

  “I shouldn’t have called you. I’m so sorry.”

  “No. Nope. That’s not what I want to hear. We have each other, Cole. We are there for each other. You always call me if you need me, just like I will always call you when I need you. But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to have something to say about it in the morning. Just like when you talk to me about the guys I date. Understand?”

  “Understand.”

  “That scared me,” I whisper.

  Cole’s jaw ticks, and he tilts his head to the side as he looks me in the eye. “I’m sorry, Steph. I never want to scare you.”

  We lock eyes for a few silent seconds, and something passes between us. I clear my throat and adjust my sports bra band in an attempt to break whatever this is. “You never scare me. The scenario you put yourself in scared me. I’m just glad I got you home. That wasn’t easy.” I smile, trying to lift the mood because I don’t want to drill Cole so hard that he shuts me out.

  Cole chuckles. “I don’t remember a fucking thing.”

  “No? You don’t remember upchucking in the bushes?”

  Cole puts his head in his hand. “Oh God.”

  “I’ll take that as a no,” I say, shaking my head with a smirk. “I’m going back to my run. You enjoy that hangover.”

  Cole nods, and I get up from the table with every intention of walking out. But I just can’t let it go. “I know it’s easier said than done, but you’re just giving him the power. Every time you back down, in his eyes, you’re only proving him right.”

  Before he can argue with what I just said, I walk out of Sunrise, adjust my phone to make sure it’s still secure in the leg pocket of my pants, and start jogging. After thirty minutes of trying to run the thoughts of Cole telling me he loved me last night out of my mind and failing, I head to my usual end-of-run stop. Do I have Gatorade at home? Yes. But it doesn’t taste as good as it does from the gas station after a run.

  The door chimes as I walk in, and Sylvie flashes a wide smile. Sylvie has worked at the gas station for five years now, but she’s lived here her whole life. She’s a staple to Airabelle Valley, and she knows everyone in town by name.

  “Hey, Sylvie. They got you in here on a Sunday morning this week?”

  “Yeah,” she says, looking over my shoulder. “Renee is sick, and they begged me. You know I can’t say no.”

  She bites her bottom lip as the door opens behind me, and her expression lights up. I turn around, and my shoulders feel like they fall all the way to the floor.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” I ask, disgust laced in my words. The same reporter that was lurking around when he was writing his shitty story on Ella walks in.

  “Good morning, Mr. Aiden,” Sylvie says with a little too much pep.

  The reporter gives her a slimy wink and then turns his eye to me as he nods. “Ms. Judge.” It’s not a surprise that he remembers me. I cussed him out a time or two when he tried to run in front of Ella and me when we were at the grocery store to get a statement.

  “Why are you here?” I ask, crossing my arms. It’s quite possible people think I’m a bitch. I don’t really care because as long as I’m looking out for the people I love, it doesn’t matter what they call me. And this reporter has done nothing but harass Ella since she was kidnapped.

  “Good morning to you too,” he snickers and looks to Sylvie, who’s undressing this man with her eyes. “I’ve discovered I kind of like it here in Airabelle Valley. Thought I might stay a while. Chat with the locals.” He wags his eyebrows at Sylvie, and I simply can’t believe she’s falling for this. I swear, the women in this town need to get out a little more.

  “Whatever. Just stay away from us, and we won’t have a problem.”

  I start to walk to the wall of refrigerators and hear his footsteps behind me.

  “Actually, I think you and I could help each other out.”

  “And I think your brain doesn’t work so well. Instead of focusing on getting a story, maybe you should focus on why you’re such a heartless prick.” I shrug, grab my drink, and head back to the register.

  “Oh, come on. Not everyone thinks of me like that. You like me, don’t you, Sylvie?”

  My mouth drops open as he leans onto the counter, kicking his foot over his ankle and giving her puppy dog eyes.

  “You’ve always been nice to me,” she says.

  I stick my card in the reader, and as I wait for Sylvie to hand me a receipt, I spot a small bouquet of flowers sitting on the counter behind her. “You got flowers?”

  She turns to look at them, and her face turns red. “They got delivered yesterday. I can’t take them home because my cat loves to eat flowers, and then he gets sick. But aren’t they just the prettiest thing you’ve ever seen?”

  “Who sent them?” I ask, wondering if she’s part of this random gesture.

  “I don’t know. It didn’t say who they’re from, so I’m pretending they’re from a famous movie star that’s going to ride into town in their limo and whisk me away.”

  “That’s weird. I got flowers today too, and there wasn’t a name attached.” I laugh, temporarily forgetting about Aiden.

  “Wait,” he says, and I pray for the strength not to punch this man for sticking his nose in where it doesn’t belong. “Are you saying that two women in town have received flowers from a mysterious source?” He pulls out a tiny notebook from his back pocket and starts writing.

  I hate everything about the vibe Aiden is putting off. Then again, he is a reporter, which already takes him down about hundred notches in my book. My family ran Judge Media for generations. I watched my father struggle with the expectations and pressure laid on him by his father and grandfather to continue the family business. He wanted to be a family man who was home all the time, but he was born with responsibility. He couldn’t be the one responsible for letting the dynasty fall. I understand that now.

  It was important to my parents that Jaxon and I weren’t raised the same way. My mother was a strong woman, and they decided to move to this small town and raise us like everyone else. Until we were older, we didn’t even know we had so much money, which is exactly how they wanted it to be.

  Dad was gone a lot, but I still have so many memories of laughter and ice cream dates on the weekends when he would fly home. Looking back, I can’t believe how much time he spent in a plane or a car just to see us, even if it was just for a day. My pure disdain for the media came when my parents died in that accident. Suddenly, there were cameras in our faces, and every newspaper I saw had a picture of our family when Jaxon and I were little. The headlines were awful.

  BILLIONAIRE MEDIA MOGUL DEAD.

  WIFE TOO.

  Wife too? As if she was just some afterthought and the money was front and center. That’s when I understood everything they did to shield us. Jaxon and I couldn’t have sold our shares fast enough after we read the letter our father left us in his will. He gave us the choice to carry on the family business or to back out, sell our shares, and live in peace. Neither one of us had to even think about it. It was the best thing we’ve ever done. And up until Ella’s kidnapping, Jaxon and I had managed to stay out of the media’s eye.

  So I don’t buy one damn word out of Aiden’s mouth that some hoity-toity newspaper just wants to put Airabelle Valley on the map for its good deeds. Especially when they put a story with the face of a woman who had just gone through something so traumatic on the front page of a city newspaper. He’s lucky I still haven’t used my ball-kicking foot to rid him of the ability to procreate.

  “Don’t tell him anything, Sylvie,” I tell her as I turn to leave.

  “I will get a story, Stephanie Judge. You can bet on that.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Cole

  Every time I finish a stroke from the straight razor on Jaxon’s cheek, he gives me a huff. He knows better than to talk while I’m shaving his face if he doesn’t want to get cut or lose a piece of his beard. But when I take a little too long of a break, checking that I’ve got all the little hair, he just can’t help himself.

  “Are you sure? Like really sure. I mean, beyond doubt that you aren’t going?” he asks. At least he waited until I was almost finished with his cut and shave before he got into my aunt’s party again.

  “You do realize I have a straight razor next to your neck, right? Stop talking.”

  I lean in close, taking care not to shave into the part of his beard he likes to keep, and then double-check my work. There is an art to the traditional barbershop shave that I was determined to perfect when I started this business. It’s what most of my clients rave about, and I’m very particular when it comes to my work.

  “If I didn’t think you should go, I wouldn’t be so adamant about it.”

  I grab the hot towel and lay it over his face. “You want to know the truth? Saturday night after you dropped me off, my dad texted me.” I take the towel off because I know he doesn’t like it on for more than a few seconds and grab the moisturizer. “I haven’t spoken to that man in over two years, and the first thing he does is call me a piece of shit.”

  Jaxon’s lips press into a thin line, and his brows pinch together. “What a dick.”

  “Well, I didn’t take that too well and digested his words with a bit of tequila.”

  Jaxon sits up in the chair. “You didn’t.”

  I point back to the chair, and Jaxon relaxes back again so I can rub the moisturizer into his skin.

  “I was blasted. Don’t even remember getting home, but…” I put up my hand to stop him before he freaks out. “I didn’t drive. I got a ride.”

  Jaxon sighs heavily. “That’s not like you.”

  “I know. And I’m actually a bit nervous about how I’d handle him if he was right in front of my face. What if he digs in even harder? What if I ruin my aunt’s party in front of the whole damn town that you know is going to be there. That fancy-ass invitation means it’s not just a party. It’s an event. I won’t be responsible for getting into a fight with my dad and ruining the whole damn thing. He might be a dick, but I don’t react well to him either.”

  “Then bring someone with you that can be a neutralizer. You know I’d go with you in a heartbeat, but I’m not leaving Holly. River is always at the fire station. Maybe Zayn can go?”

  I walk in front of the chair and lean my ass against the counter that holds all my tools. “Why are you and Steph so invested in this?”

  “Because we both know what it’s like to live with regret. There were things I had pushed off that Dad or Mom wanted to do with me. But at that age, I thought I had better things to do. Steph thought Mom would be around forever. Who thinks any differently? You think you have so much time, and then you blink, and the opportunity is gone forever. All those choices that you made hit you in the face over and over again. I’m not trying to be morbid, but it’s no secret we’re all getting older, brother. I think you should ask yourself, if you don’t go, would you regret it? Would it be something you would wish you could do over again? I think those answers are yes, and I don’t want you to feel like I do.”

  I clear my throat, but it doesn’t help the lump of reality Jaxon just spit at me. “I can’t go alone. I don’t trust myself around him anymore.”

  “Take Steph. She’ll kick all of your asses at once.”

  Laughter pours from my chest. “No.”

  “Why not? Levi’s going camping anyway. And you’re right, Zayn is never going to leave Ella with this reporter lurking around. Now that I think about it, Steph getting the hell out of here would be amazing right now. It would give me one less thing to worry about. She’s going to end up putting that guy on the ground, and talk about a story.” Jaxon rolls his eyes as I make my way around the chair to take off his cape.

  “I just don’t think it would be a good idea. I doubt she’d even want to go.”

  Jaxon gets out of the chair, and we walk up to the front door while he taps his fingers quickly on his phone. My phone plays the cha-ching tune from his payment, and he pauses by the door.

  “I’ll talk to her. I’ve got the shop covered between me and Eckerd. It would give him a good opportunity to take the reins over there without her double- and triple-checking all of his work.”

  “This is all unnecessary. I should just be a man and go. Why the fuck is this so hard?”

  “Because you’ve got a good heart that’s been bruised by someone you should have been able to trust with it. And that is bullshit.”

  He walks out without saying another word, and I pick up my phone to call Steph. I need to tell her not to let Jaxon pressure her into going to Wyoming with me. I didn’t even say I was going to go.

  “Hello,” she answers.

  “Listen, Jaxon is probably on his way back to work, and he’s going to tell you that you should go with me to Wyoming.”

  “What?” she shrieks.

  “Just tell him no.”

  “Umm…” Papers rustle in the background. “I would, but I have so much work to do here. Plus, I can’t leave Levi, and with Jaxon and Holly’s wedding so close…there’s just too much going on for me to go. I’m sorry.”

  “I never asked you to go. Jaxon suggested it, and he’s dead set on it.”

  “Why?” The confusion in her voice is thick.

  “I made the mistake of telling him I don’t want to go alone. Just say no, and it’s over. Okay? No big deal. I’ll talk to you later.”

  I hear her call my name through the speaker as I hang up. My next client is walking in, and I still have to clean up, so I don’t have time to keep up this argument. I’ll be glad when this party is over so I don’t have to think about it anymore.

  I let Jaxon’s words marinate in my brain for the rest of the afternoon. Steph going with me is the worst idea I’ve ever heard. I’m sure that’s the last thing she wants to do. I drive home only to find Freddy has unrolled an entire roll of paper towels in the kitchen. He’s lying in the middle of the kitchen table he’s not supposed to be on, squinting his eyes at me as if to say, “what about it.” I reach down to pick it up when my phone rings, and I see Steph is calling.

  “When do we leave?”

  “What?” I ask.

  “You’re going. And I’m going too. When do we leave?”

  “I can’t leave Freddy,” I say.

  “Zayn, Ella, and Saige already agreed to take care of him. We’re going.”

  The shock makes me an idiot long enough to agree. “We leave Friday.”

 

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