Page 41 of Petals of Blue, Part One (Wilted Duet #1)

Thirty-Six

ROMAN

No response, only a read receipt. I would give anything to know what Blue thinks about the total ass-reaming Jared's dad gave us. Mr. Jones has always been the kindest man. I knew we would be in some deep shit when he found out about Blue, but I didn't expect that.

Derrick acted as if his own daughter, his flesh and blood, was the one so viscerally betrayed by us. Jared didn't seem surprised, neither did Declan, which makes me wonder what I missed after moving away.

"Roman, are you okay?" Declan murmurs. The other two left the kitchen a little while ago, but Dec stayed and seems to be watching over me. Sometimes I forget I'm the big brother.

That's what depression will do to a man.

I sigh, not at my brother but because of my negative thoughts. After checking the banana bread, I close the oven and lean against the counter. "I'm fine, D. Are you?"

He grunts and takes a swig of his beer. "He was right." I hate seeing him so troubled, but we deserved everything we got tonight.

"Obviously. But which part are you talking about?"

I would laugh at my brother's contemplative expression, but I'm feeling the same. There were a lot of truth bombs that exploded in our faces tonight. I think we're all struggling to see clearly again.

Declan fiddles with the rim of his can, seemingly getting his thoughts in order. "Erica, well Blue, really did make us strive to be the best we could possibly be."

Very true.

He continues. "I was always thinking about the best way to communicate without triggering her and learning how to make her smile. Our friendship taught me to be thoughtful and think of someone other than myself, you know?"

"I know."

Rage twists his features, not surprising me. "But that's so fucking stupid because while I thought I was far beyond my years with my thoughtfulness, I hurt her. I started only thinking about myself again!"

My big brother role perks up. "And what did you learn?"

Declan snorts a humorless laugh and finishes off his beer. "That loyalty shouldn't be blind. It's fucking earned. Not the result of blood relations. And Erica Bennett earned our loyalty. Not those pricks who created our sorry asses."

Amen. I open my mouth to agree when the back sliding glass door slams open, then a flash of Blue speeds past the kitchen and plants herself between us, the living room and the stairs.

"FELIX MOREL! Get out here right the fuck now!!"

Declan and I stand frozen, not wanting to draw attention to ourselves when there's a pissed off woman in our home. And not just any pissed off woman, but one who has every fucking right to rip our balls from our dicks.

"Jesus..." Declan whispers, sounding shocked and slightly terrified.

"FELIX!"

"Damn it, Blue!" Felix bellows, his stomps echoing from the back hallway. "My eardrums are going to bleed if you keep that up. What's your problem?!"

"YOU!" She stomps her foot, making her messy blue waves jump around her shoulders. "How could you say you want to cherish me and love me, when you never gave me an ounce of your loyalty?!"

Shit on sticks. Felix's frown is funny for half a second before he questions how the hell she heard him say that not three hours ago. Fuck, it's getting late.

"Roman called me, so I heard the whole thing."

Blue crosses her arms, looking sassy and ready to fight. The baggy shirt she's wearing over leggings does nothing to take away from her sexiness right now. Her bare feet are a little concerning considering I'm pretty sure it's illegal to drive barefoot.

Declan makes a strangled noise and turns to me at the same time Felix's glare moves from Blue to me with scary precision. Blue saves me from having to explain myself.

"Don't look at him, look at me!"

"Believe me, sweetheart, I'll gladly look at you all day long." Why is Felix teasing her right now? She's pissed.

"Damn," Declan groans quietly and adjusts himself. I roll my eyes but tune back in to the heated scene on the other side of the dining room table.

"Stop, Felix. Just stop," Blue grinds out. "I don't want that. I can't give you any more than I already have. There's nothing left!"

Felix frowns and steps toward her. "What does that mean?"

Blue steps back and stiffens. "That means I can't be in a relationship with you because you broke my trust!"

Felix explodes, his hands yanking on his hair as he faces off with the girl from our past. The woman we want to be our future.

"I'm sorry! So fucking sorry! We hate ourselves when we wake up each day.

We despise the choices we made every night.

Our parents took advantage of young minds who grew up with so much money all we knew was privilege!

Day in and day out we were told we had to succeed to be loved.

Once they planted that fucking seed, they told us all the ways we could ruin our lives!

Approval was everything. Approval was survival.

Loving a girl with a different upbringing and wanting to pursue an unconventional relationship with her was a surefire way to lose everything we grew up striving for! "

"What about loyalty?!" Blue fires back.

Felix steps forward again. "What about craving approval and love that seems just out of reach?!"

"Your friends approved of you. The people who spent their free time with you loved you. I loved you, dumbass."

I inch forward when I notice Felix's jaw clenching. She triggered him. Pride and relief make me a little lightheaded when Felix handles the situation maturely.

"Blue," he warns, taking a shuddering deep breath, but his chest keeps heaving. "Watch the way you talk to me. Be pissed, swear, yell, whatever, but under no circumstances will I let you stand there and call us names in our home after ten at night."

Blue sucks in a small breath and Felix adds, "I've hit my quota for patience today. Don't push me on this one fucking thing. Please."

"He said please," Declan gasps way too fucking loud, so I elbow him in the ribs. My heart is pounding, and I feel sick watching their pain bleed out of their mouths in remembrance of our poor decisions. Blue glances back at us, but she refocuses on Felix.

"I'm sorry," she offers softly to which Felix nods.

"A relationship with you guys won't work," she reiterates, sounding sad and a little cautious now.

"I have Violet to think about and a career I'm working toward.

Plus," she fidgets, breaking eye contact, "there's just way too much hurt.

I won't get past everything that happened. "

My gut clenches uncomfortably as if her words triggered my fight, flight, or freeze response.

Does she really believe we caused her too much hurt to consider anything beyond this shallow friendship we've built?

Sometimes I feel like she's holding back intentionally, so maybe if we keep pushing her. ..

"We won't give up," Jared declares, standing from the couch.

My brother jumps a little. Has he always been this annoying? "Was he there the whole time?"

"Yeah," I mutter. "Did you not see him peeking over the cushions?" Fucker looked like a scared child about to get yelled at for not doing the dishes before his mom got home.

Declan shushes me, and I have to hold back from shoving him. What the hell?

Blue crosses her arms, but her stance is different this time. Instead of guarding her chest, her forearms wrap around her waist. "I can't make you stop trying, but please hear me when I tell you that you broke me. I'm not that same girl. I'm not Erica anymore."

Yet, she's still my petal.

"And I don't do relationships," she adds hastily.

Like the manic idiot he is, Declan claps his hands to gain her attention. "What about pizza?" he asks with a grin wiggling our box of takeout.

Almost immediately, Blue brightens. "Oh! Yes, please. I'm starving."

Everyone seems to relax, and I question how smart my brother really is. He just diffused the situation with one suggestion. Maybe he's not as immature as I thought he was.

My timer for the banana bread dings, lighting a fire in my veins as Blue takes a slice of meat lover’s pizza. Fight activated. I won't stop fighting for the girl.