Page 34 of Hold ‘Em Tight (Solidarity Academy #4)

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

I can confidently say that I’ve never been to a wedding like this before. Hopefully, this was the first and only of its kind.

Not to say I didn’t enjoy watching that witch of a woman get what she deserves.

I'm still sick to my stomach after finding out about everything that she’s done to Lennox.

I already despised her for the shit she did to my girl, but now this?

She’s mentally unstable, even though that still doesn’t fully describe it.

We’re at the reception hall now, awkwardly sitting at a table. No one has really said anything since we got here. It’s like they don’t know what to say. I don’t blame them. The whole situation is pretty fucked up.

Lennox looks wrecked, like he’s been to hell and back. And I guess, in a way, he has.

Missi had him believing that he cheated on Rylee and Mateo for months. She put Rylee and the guys through so much, for no reason. All because she’s an evil, vindictive, selfish monster.

Knowing Rylee had to go through so much stress, for no reason, pisses me off.

I hope Missi rots wherever Mateo’s cousin locks her up.

People like her don’t deserve to live. She’s cruel and fucked up in the head.

The same goes for Lennox’s father. That man is a fucking joke.

He’s not even a man. Just a pathetic creep.

Even though so much has happened today, and no one seems to know where to go from here, the fact is, Lennox is free. Rylee and Mateo now know he didn’t cheat.

They want him back, and he wants the same, that much is clear. As for me, I’m more than okay with welcoming him back. After everything he’s been through, he deserves his family by his side.

But something that needs to change is all of these damn secrets. I hate them. They’re eating me alive. Knowing so much, and having to keep my mouth shut about them, isn't fair to me or the guys.

I understand why Rylee kept everything to herself, as she didn’t want to stress the guys out, or add more to their plate. But now, there’s no reason to lie anymore.

Is this the best time to break the news? Probably not, but it’s better late than never, right?

“Rylee, babe, come with me to get another drink?” I ask her, unable to take the awkward energy anymore.

“Sure,” she says, moving to stand.

“Get me a beer,” Mateo grumbles. He's in some sort of stare off with Lennox, who’s sitting on the other side of the table, chewing on his lower lip, looking nervous and unsure. “Or five.”

“I think we need shots,” Donny adds. “Like a lot of them. I don’t think any of us want to be sober tonight.”

“I could use a drink. Or two.” Colton sighs.

“I’ll, ahh, I’ll send someone over.” I laugh awkwardly, grabbing Rylee’s hand and pulling her away from the table.

“Whats going on?” Rylee asks. “You seem so eager to get away.”

“And you aren't?" I ask, raising a brow with a small smile on my face.

“Yeah, okay.” She huffs out a laugh. “Things are pretty tense over there. I don’t think any of us know what to say, or how to approach where we go next, you know? After months of being away from one another, a lot of things have changed.”

“You could start by letting them know about the baby.” I try to lightly toss my suggestion in there.

I know the moment her face drops that it was not the right thing to say. The thing is, it never will be. It seems like if Rylee could have it her way, she would bury this deep down and never tell them about the baby. I don’t understand why though.

She’s due in a few months. She’s had no care. She refuses to even acknowledge the fact she’s pregnant. I don’t know what’s changed from when she first found out to now.

Before, she was excited, but wanted to keep things to herself until the situation got better. By the end of the summer, I thought that would be the right time, since the guys were in better spirits. But as soon as we got back to school, Rylee retreated in on herself, acting as if there was no baby.

I suspected initially that it was due to her depression and stress—better to deny things than accept them, to avoid more stress—but this has gone too far. It’s too much.

“Are you fucking kidding me right now?!” she whisper-shouts. “We just got major bombs dropped on us and you want me to toss in the fact that I’ve been pregnant. Not only that, but I’ve been keeping it from them for months? No.” She shakes her head. “Thats not happening, Trevor.”

“You need to tell them,” I insist, growing frustrated.

“I love you. So fucking much. And I understand where you're coming from. But you see how hard those men love.” I point toward the table. “If they are willing to let Lennox back in, don’t you think they would be over the moon to be having a baby? Yes, you lied and kept things from them, but if you just explained why, I know they would understand.”

“No,” she growls. “I said no. I will tell them when I’m good and ready.”

“When?” I hiss. “When the baby drops out of your vagina and onto the floor? You gonna look down and be like, surprise? Rylee, this isn’t a game.

This is real life, okay. And there’s a real baby growing inside you, that you haven’t been going to the doctor for. This isn’t good for you, or that baby.”

“Shut up.” Her voice cracks, as tears spill down her face.

I feel like an asshole. I hate making her upset, and I hate when it’s toward me. All I want to do is love her, care for her, keep her safe and happy, but she’s not making it easy. I’m trying to be understanding, but I just don’t know what else I can do.

“You don’t have the right to tell me what to do. This is my body, my choice.”

“I can’t do this anymore.” Tears sting the back of my eyes as I feel my heart start to break. “I can’t keep being around these guys, who think the world of you, knowing there's life changing information that I know and they don’t. They deserve respect. I can’t keep lying to them.”

“You can’t tell them.” Her eyes widen, and there's panic in her voice.

“I wouldn’t do that to you, baby.” I give her a sad smile. “As much as it hurts me, I wouldn't betray you like that.”

“Thank you.” She lets out a breath.

“But I also can’t keep going on like this.”

“What do you mean?” Her brows furrow together.

I step forward and cup her face. “I love you. I don’t want to live without you.

This isn’t me breaking up with you, because I’d never do that.

You're it for me, Rylee. But this is me taking a step back. When you're ready, and you’ve told the guys, let me know and I’ll be right by your side, but for now? I need to go.”

“What?” Her face falls, more tears spilling down her cheeks. “No. Trevor, please don’t.” I hate how much her voice breaks. It causes my chest to open up, and the tears to fall free.

“I’m sorry, baby.” I kiss her forehead, squeezing my eyes shut. I don’t want to do this. It’s killing me inside. I just don’t know what else to do. I pray she wants me when she figures things out, but she’s put me in a hard spot and I don’t know the right way to get out of it.

“I love you. I’ll see you soon.”

As I walk away, leaving Rylee standing there, I feel like the biggest asshole. And I hate myself for it. But I love her more. I can’t force her to get help, and I can’t force her to see a doctor.

I lied to her just now. I told her I wouldn’t tell the guys, but if she doesn’t tell them within the next two weeks, I’m going to. This has gone on for far too long. I just hope she doesn’t hate me if I do.

“I can’t believe I’m free,” Len murmurs and Teo snorts. He’s happy to know the truth about what happened, but now that things have settled down, I can tell he’s still mad. I don’t blame him. I am too, but I wasn’t kidding about just taking tonight to drink and have some fun.

Rylee returns and she looks like she just had her heart ripped from her chest. I quickly stand and move over to her, pulling her into my arms. She sniffles against my chest, and I look over her head for whoever made her cry, but no one is there.

“What’s wrong, Cherry?”

She laughs and wipes her eyes. “Ugh, today has just been a lot. I think everything finally hit me. I'm okay, but I'll take some more cuddles,” she says and I sigh, holding her closer and kissing her head.

“I understand completely, baby. We have had one hell of a year, haven't we?”

“Yeah, but now things will be better,” she mutters and moves away from me, then frowns.

“Shit, we never got the drinks.” I glance around and realize Trev isn't here. That's weird.

“Where's Trevor?” I ask, and she gives me a shaky smile.

“He decided to give us some time alone. Said we should talk and work through things. He didn't want to intrude.”

I huff and pull out my phone. “Well, that's just dumb. He's family too, and I told him that when Len returned, we wouldn't kick him out of the bed.”

Rylee places her hand over my phone, stopping me from calling him. “You really mean that, don't you?”

“Of course, Cherry. He makes you happy, and smile. Plus, he was there for you when we all had our heads up our asses.”

Her tears start up again, and she leans in to kiss me. “I love you so much, Donny,” she mumbles against my lips, then pulls away.

“Soooo… can I call him now and tell him to come back?” I ask, but she shakes her head.

“No, he really did have to leave. You can see him at school on Monday.”

Teo stands and comes closer to us. “Is it just me or is this awkward as fuck? I mean, we are at the reception party for Missi and Len. Even though she's locked up, I feel like she's here, watching me.” He shudders and looks around.

Rylee laughs and he shrugs. “I'm being serious, baby girl. Let's just steal some bottles of wine and go back to the house, then order takeout.”

“Ugh, I thought you would never ask. This onesie is giving me a righteous wedgie,” I mumble, then waddle over to Len and Colt. I tell them the new plan and they agree immediately.