Page 54 of The Hardest Hit

“You broke my arm, Leona.”

“It was an equipment malfunction that wouldn’t have happened if you’d done what you were told,” snapped Leona.

“Funny how you always want to be the dom, but you never want to take responsibility,” said Evan. “Get it through your head: I don’t want to talk to you anymore, so fuck off.”

He hung up the phone and took a deep breath. Then he texted his therapist to report the conversation. He got back a congratulatory text and an inquiry into how he was feeling about it. He sat back in the chair, considering. Truth be told, he felt pretty damn good about it. The rest of the day might suck, but for once he’d expressed his feelings at the appropriate time. He wished he’d been able to have a little of the same honesty with Jackson. He considered that and wondered just how much of his mistrust of Jackson was warranted. Jackson had been there for him and the others a lot these last few years. Was he clinging to old non-functional and abusive patterns? And if so, why?

Evan avoided leaving the office for the rest of the morning and ordered lunch in. He was halfway through a disappointing chicken salad when Olivia called.

“Hey,” he said, picking up with a smile.

“Hey,” she said with a sniff.

“Are you crying?”

“I’ve mostly stopped,” she said, and he felt a wave of gut-churning anger.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, taking a deep breath.

“I got in a fight with my grandpa and my sister. Um, I think I won’t be coming back for Christmas. So, at least that will save on my Christmas budget.”

“I don’t like your family.”

“You haven’t met them.”

“I don’t have to. I hate everyone who makes you cry.”

She half-laughed and sniffed again. “Anyway, I just called to say I got my flight bumped up to an earlier time and I’ll be in around seven. I’ll text you when I have an exact time. I’m still arguing with the ticket girl.”

“No problem.”

She sighed. “Christmas is going to suck this year.”

“Want to go to Tokyo?”

“What?”

“I might have to go for work. I can bring someone. I’d have to work, and there’d be some after-work stuff you’d have to dress up for, but at least you wouldn’t be at home moping.”

“I was going to stay in bed and eat ice cream.”

“We can do that too. We could also do that in Tokyo.”

She giggled. “But won’t you miss your family?” she asked, switching back to serious.

He thought about the Deveraux Christmas party with half the city packed into the ballroom. He wouldnotmiss that. He might miss actual Christmas morning with Aiden and Dominique and Jackson. They usually just gave each other dopey gifts and lolled around in their pajamas like they were still twelve. On the other hand, Dominique might be celebrating with Max this year and that would make it less fun.

“Not really,” he said. “I think they’ll be OK without me for one year.”

“Well, OK, then. Let’s go to Tokyo.”

20

Jackson – Riley

Jackson handed over a wad of cash to the CNA, who instantly made it disappear inside his baggie scrubs.

“OK,” he said holding out a stack of print-outs, “this is everything. But it’s nothing too cray. Couple of broken noses and chipped teeth. Scrapes, bruises, etc. Main dude got his jaw broke.”