Page 44 of The Deals We Make

Vex puts his hands on my shoulders. “That’s why you threatened to kill me.”

“Would you have stayed away if I’d done any less? You would have tried to find me.”

I can see the muscles twitch in his jaw. He’s angry, but not with me. “Get your mom settled, get her some dinner, make sure she’s okay, then, you’re coming with me.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you.”

“Calista. We got shit we need to discuss, and we ain’t discussing it here. I’ll fucking carry your stubborn ass out of here if I have to, because both of us have been riding on half a story most of our adult lives, and we need to clear the fucking air and learn the full truth.”

I’m not sure what makes me decide to do as he says. And I’m still wondering why I did as we drive away from Mom’s house and head towards the shore. We pull up to a pretty seashore bungalow painted a soothing pale blue. It sits on a large corner lot with a new garage next to it.

Once we’re in the drive, Vex jumps out of his truck and comes around my side to open the door.

I take a deep breath as I look at the hand he offers, my warring emotions telling me to follow Vex inside and yet, simultaneously, run.

“I’m not gonna bite,” Vex says.

His fingers are warm as they wrap around mine, and I let him lead me into his house. It’s probably inconsiderate to watch as he enters the code to his alarm, but it eases me a little when I see him enter the numbers one, seven, zero, and one. NCC-1701 is the USS Enterprise from Star Trek.

I slip off my shoes in the hall as he removes his boots, and then I take a moment to look around. The open-plan space is beautiful. Like, one of those glossy homes beautiful. A gray sofa, dark green cushions, tan leather armchairs. Everything is set on a large cream rug that sits on highly polished wooden floors.

I remember he was the only kid I knew who had a tidy bedroom. Everything was meticulously in place. There used tobe three large Lego Star Wars models on a shelf, and I swear he used a ruler to position them perfectly spaced out.

The large kitchen has white cabinets and marble with feint slashes of gray. The accessories are copper, and a large pot sits on the stove.

“Your home’s beautiful, Vex,” I say as he hangs his leather cut on the hook by the door. He takes my coat and hangs it too.

“It’s Ti when you’re in my fucking home.”

“I was just getting used to Vex.”

“Well, get unused to it.” He dips his head towards the sofa. “Get comfortable. I’m getting us both a drink. Feeling we’re gonna need it.”

I do as he says as he walks to a large dresser near the dining table and chairs. On top is a small bar. Bottles sit nicely organized on a copper tray. I hear the whiskey pour as I take in some of the framed photographs on the mantelpiece.

They are mostly his family. His brothers and sister, and little kids who I guess are nieces and nephews. There are a couple with the club, and at the very end of the mantel is a picture of me and him.

I lift it off the shelf and smile.

It’s the very first night we camped out in the tents. Mrs. Williams must have taken it, because we’re looking at each other and laughing. It’s too perfect and natural to be staged.

Vex hands me a whiskey, and I place the frame back on the shelf. “Before we start, your reaction to the club today, was that because of what happened back then?”

I take a sip of the whiskey. “Start with the easy questions why don’t you.”

He places his hand around the back of my neck and squeezes gently. It’s an intimate gesture. One he wouldn’t have done when we were kids. “Don’t clam up on me, Calista. Walls are coming down tonight one way or another. Gimme the woman who wasvulnerable enough to tell me the truth in her mom’s living room.”

I slip out of his hold. Not because I don’t like it, but because of the exact opposite. It made me feel things I shouldn’t. “Yes. It was because of what happened the last time a group of bikers arrived at my mom’s house.”

“What name was on their cuts?”

I sit down on the sofa and pull my knees up beneath me. “Cue Ball. And Wrinkle. And I never caught the rest.”

“Fuck,” Vex mutters.

“Your friends?” I say, unable to hold my distaste.

“If Cue Ball weren’t already dead, I’d kill him myself for threatening you. Now. Tell me from the beginning, from your perspective. What the fuck happened?”