Page 34 of Fourth Wheel

I side-eye him as we walk, noting how his brow furrows and forms that stupid-adorable wrinkle above his nose, just like his brother.

Balancing my shoes in one hand, I pull my phone out of my wristlet and quickly send Dempsey a pin of our location before Fielding has a chance to notice that I have his brother’s number.

“Who are you texting?” Fielding asks.

“My friend Paige,” I reply without hesitation as I open up a new message.

Maddie: Lucky Lucy for me, too. Call me tomorrow.

I blow out a sigh of relief and stash my phone as we reach the end of the driveway. I scan the street in front of us, desperate for any sign of Dempsey.

“He drives a Range Rover,” Fielding murmurs, peering past the row of cars.

Fuck. Right.

Fielding thinks I’ve never met his brother. Dempsey’s about to pick us up, and I’m going to have to pretend that I wasn’t five seconds away from riding his cock in an alley three nights ago. How the hell am I going to play this?

Chapter 16

Dempsey

Ispotthemnearthe end of the driveway. They’re tucked between a huge planter and a bank of mailboxes, hiding from view well enough that I wouldn’t have seen them had I not been looking.

My brother’s face is jacked up, and he’s standing at an awkward angle.

Maddie has mud and grass caked all over her pants, and she’s got her arms wrapped around herself in a way that makes my stomach bottom out.

Goddamnit.

I leave the car running and sprint to get to them. I whip my head from side to side, unsure who to focus on first.

“Are you okay? Is he okay? What’s he on?” I demand, hitting them with a flurry of questions. “You said he snorted something?” I ask Maddie, turning to Fielding to assess the damage.

I smack his cheek to get him to focus on me. I know this game. He’s not going to tell me shit. I grip his chin and try to force him to look at me. Trouble is, one eye is swollen shut, and the other is frantically darting around like he’s a kid who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

“I don’t know. He seems okay now. Can you give me a ride?”

Fielding’s mouth turns up in a sly smile before he speaks.

“You already know Little Wheeler, bro?”

I purse my lips and suck in a long breath.

Right. My brother has no idea that I know Maddie Wheeler. And he can never fucking know just how intimately we’re acquainted.

“What did you take?” I try one more time.

He never admits when he fucks up, which is a dangerous game we’ve been playing for the last year. He’s upright and conscious, so that’s a good sign. My nerves settle a little as I palm the outline of the single-use Narcan nasal spray in the front pocket of my jeans.

“Relax, Dumpy. I only used my own stash. You know Benny Bennett doesn’t play games.”

Maddie snorts. “You have a drug dealer named Benny Bennett?”

“They breed ’em different in Cascade Falls, Fourth Wheel.”

I study my brother for another moment and decide he’s fine. Well, not fine. But he’s not overdosing, and even though he looks like someone beat the shit out of him, he’s not worse for wear.

Maddie, on the other hand… Fuck. Her hair is wild, and her white pants have so much dirt on them they’ll never come clean. She’s shifting uncomfortably from side to side, and she keeps wrapping her arms across her chest like she’s trying to hold it together.