Page 89 of Deceptive Games

I spent a few hours napping once the guys decided I’d eaten enough, and I was more than happy to head home to my own bed when Caden offered to take me.

He surprisingly didn’t bring up Slash or the fact I’d almost killed myself with coke and alcohol last night, being content to curl up in bed with me while I napped some more.

The nausea was gone by dinnertime, and apart from feeling dehydrated, I was much better.

“You need to drink more water,” Caden scolded when I went to make a coffee, my nose scrunching in disagreement.

“I’ve drank water all day.”

“Drink some more. You need an IV or something,” he grumbled, nudging me out of the way with his hip to make my coffee for me.

“I’m fine.”

“There’s more water in dry sand than your body right now,” he tsked, grabbing a second cup for himself.

I patiently waited for my coffee, moaning when I had the first sip. “Thank you. I’ll bounce back once I get this into me.”

He eyed me for a second before motioning for me to follow him outside, the cool evening air feeling good on my warm skin.

We sat beside the pool in silence for a few minutes until he spoke, his voice soft. “Was last night because of us?”

I frowned, glancing at him. “What do you mean?”

“Did you write yourself off because we pushed you? Luke warned us you’d hate a big party and the whole cake thing. I just thought maybe it was because you haven’t had a big party like that before and you’d like it once you experienced it. I’m sorry if it made you uncomfortable.”

“Trust me, I had the best time. The ending sucked though,” I chuckled, sipping my coffee.

“You honestly just got drunk for the sake of it? Nothing was bothering you?”

“I promise, I’m fine. I got free expensive whiskey and drugs, what did you expect? I wasn’t going to say no to that,” I grinned, hoping he believed me.

“Next year we’ll keep it small. Did you have a good day though? Before almost dying in the bathroom?” he asked dryly, making me smile.

“Yeah, I did. No offense, but I’m kind of hoping next year I’ll be able to spend my birthday with Mom. She used to make a big deal out of my birthday, and a girl’s day would be nice.”

“Still no luck finding where she could be?” he asked carefully, and I shook my head.

“No. I don’t know where to go next. Your mom got me her last known address and said medical records stated she was pregnant, but that's the end of the trail. I could go to Rosevalewhere she was last seen, but then what?” I sighed, a thoughtful look coming over his face.

“Ask Skeet. He has connections everywhere, so surely someone could help track her down. If he has a private investigator, I’ll pay for it.”

“You’d do that?” I asked quietly, and he reached out to take my hand, giving it a squeeze.

“I said I’d do anything for you. Someone has to know where she is, so we’ll find her.”

The thought of finding her and leaving Ashburn Valley made my chest ache.

Could I convince Mom to stay here? Josie would let her have a room until we could get our own place. For all I knew, Mom had a good job, so maybe she even had a nice place close by?

What about my sibling? Was it a boy or a girl? Did she have more kids after that?

Maybe she was even married and that’s why I couldn't find her? Max never said she divorced him, but that didn’t mean it hadn’t happened and I was just in the dark about it.

“Talk to Skeet,” he repeated when I didn’t say anything, moving back to finish his coffee.

We sat outside for over an hour, and I told him stories about Mom that I could remember, joking that she and Josie could bond over their experiences with Max.

It was nice to talk about her, and it ignited my motivation to find her. Sitting around waiting wasn’t going to change things, so Caden was right. I needed to ask Skeeter for help.