Page 24 of True Honey (The Hornets Nest #4)

SHORE

T he wrench slipped and pinched my skin hard enough to make me swear and hurl it across the garage, earning me a dirty look from Arlo.

“What is wrong with you?” He grumbled from behind the hood of Josh's car.

The one thing that usually calms me down was only pissing me off and I can’t get the look of disappointment and fear on Drew’s face out of my head.

“Nothing.”

Arlo leaned out around the hood further and narrowed his eyes on me. He was covered in grease up to the forearms from working all morning to get the damn thing running again.

“I told you I’d just buy him a new one,” I said to him with a sigh.

“Did you tell him that?” Arlo chuckled and continued to work.

The thing needed just about new everything and by the time we were done working on it, it would basically be brand new anyways.

But it was slow moving because Josh was determined to pay for every part on his own. “It’s fine, I like being out here.”

“Yeah me too,” I said, continuing to hammer on the bike.

We’d spent countless hours here over the last fifteen years.

It was the only place where nothing was expected from us.

We could work in silence or spill our guts and neither of us bore any harsh judgement toward the other.

The garage had heard every little secret and every difficult conversation we had ever had. It was a sanctuary.

“Alright, stop ,” Arlo said, coming around the car.

“You’re going to break something yanking on it like that,” he warned.

“I know something's wrong because you’re never reckless with that bike. You drive that thing like someone’s grandma.

What’s going on?” He demanded, cleaning his fingers on the rag, his dark eyes watching me carefully for any twitch that might give me away.

Don’t think about Drew. I pressed my tongue to the roof of my mouth, but her laughter was already echoing in my skull. I remembered how soft her skin was and how good she smelled tangled in my sheets, tipsy off whiskey. The ghost of her laughter and moans were making it hard to keep it together.

He started to laugh, a knowing smile pressing across his hard face slowly.

“You like her.”

“Who?”

“Don’t play dumb,” he warned. “You know who.”

I shrugged and Arlo lunged at me with his fist in the air. He playfully shoved me sideways making me lose my balance and tip back into the concrete, “stop fucking around, you like the red head don’t you?”

“Drew?” I played dumb, laying back against the floor and inhaled one long deep breath as a smile formed on my face.

“No, it’s not like that,” I said, pushing up onto my elbows to face him.

“You’re so full of shit,” Arlo snapped, crouching down in front of me.

“It’s a business arrangement, Ar,” I muttered, forcing myself to meet his eyes. I knew the second I let my eyes leave his he would figure it out. It was such a stupid mistake.

“You fucking slept with her,” he accused and it took everything in me not to flinch. “You did, didn't you?!”

“Keep your voice down,” I said, kicking my foot out and catching his shin hard enough to make him lose his balance.

“Why? Afraid the entire Nest will know about your slutty side activities?” Arlo laughed but his eyes were vicious and locked on mine. “Si, you’re too smart to be that fucking dumb,” he said with a shake of his head and sat back on the ground to stare at me.

“It was just once, and she pretended it didn’t happen the next morning. We’re fine,” I said, mostly trying to convince myself.

Arlo stared at me like I was losing my mind and maybe I was .

“You’re an idiot,” he responded. “You have a pool of women that would jump at the chance to spend one night with you. Why the hell did you sleep with the one that you have a contract with?”

“It just happened, it was my birthday and we were drunk…” I led off.

“You were drunk?” Arlo scoffed. “Even better, you had drunk sex with the single mom who you’re parading around like your fiancé.”

“Alright hey, enough of the judgement please,” I said, waving a dirty rag in surrender before chucking it at him.

“Do you like her?” He asked and I opened my mouth to deny it. “Don’t fucking lie to me, asshole, or I’ll go get Ella and you can deal with her judgement.”

“Mercy,” I sighed, “I can’t take another scolding from her this week,” I said.

Arlo smirked, “I warned you not to involve them.”

“I tried not to, but you know them…” I felt cornered and frustrated, so far from my usual confidence. “Besides, I know about your little binder. You prick.”

“This family needs a new hobby,” Arlo said with a laugh. “If we collect any more strays we will be the Brady Bunch and Josh will never let anyone live it down.”

“I’m not collecting strays, and neither is Ella. Drew is just—”

“Yeah, that’s what I said… what Cael said… what Dean said…” Arlo’s list would be endless.

“Okay, okay, I hear you but I’m positive. It’s not serious, it was just a one-time thing,” I said to him.

Arlo tipped his head back and a throaty, wild laugh exploded from his chest, “shut the fuck up Silas,” he said after he calmed down.

“I’m over you, go get me Ella. At least she’ll call me handsome when she insults me,” I groaned.

“If she calls you handsome, I’m making her get her eyes checked…” Arlo teased. “It is serious and you’re trying to pretend it’s not to spare yourself the shame if it blows up.”

”What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked.

“It means you’re an idiot,” Arlo said again.

“Stop calling me that,” I warned and he raised an eyebrow at me.

“Stop acting like one,” he countered. “I once had a man tell me to take a chance on something that I thought was ridiculous. A feeling that I was dismissing because I was afraid to make a fool of myself.”

“There’s more at stake in this situation than just being rejected for a Gala date, Ar.” I scratched my fingers into my beard and sighed.

“Do you ever listen to yourself?” Arlo asked. “You walk around here like you’re the only person that can save Harbor. It doesn’t need saving Silas, this town will survive without one ultra rich asshole running it.”

“You know that’s not true. We have hands on everything in this town, in the university… If that money goes to my father, we have nothing,” I said but I could hear the bullshit coming out of my mouth.

Arlo cocked his head. “Since when did your father’s money mean more than our family?” he asked, a final blow to the argument I was never going to win.

“Without that money we don’t have a home, Arlo… A team, a stadium.”

“I don’t need any of that shit and neither do you,” he shrugged like none of it mattered and maybe it didn’t but it felt too big and too important. “So tell me what you do need,” he said, softer than before. “And if it’s the redhead then we make a game plan and you stop being a pussy.”

“Fuck, Arlo, you’re mean today,” I grumbled. “You’re asking me to make a choice between what I know I should do and what my dick wants… the answer seems kind of obvious.”

“Your dick, or your heart?” He poked me in the check with two fingers. “You have one of those, I know you do… it even works sometimes.” Arlo offered me a sympathetic smile.

“Either way, I have to be responsible.”

“You can have both,” he said after a beat. “You really can.”

“It feels selfish,” I confessed.

“That’s because you’re the most selfless person I know, brushing your teeth before saving the world probably feels selfish…” Arlo laughed. “You also don’t know when to ask for help…”

“I’m slightly over this garage therapy session, I’m not going to lie,” I said.

“Why not? You’re lying about everything else…” Arlo said. “Do you like her, Si?” He asked me, the conversation somehow getting even more serious.

Did I?

Her smile flashed across my mind and her laughter filled my chest thinking about that night we had, drenched in whiskey and how easy it had been to talk to her. I could talk to her… I looked up from my greasy covered hand and met Arlo’s glare.

I didn’t have to answer him out loud, he already knew.

“So ask her out,” he said.

“You want me to ask out my fake fiancé on a date…” I scoffed, I never realized just how stupid it all sounded until it rolled off my own lips.

“Take time to get to know her properly, not because of some business arrangement.” Arlo pushed off the ground back to his feet and held out his hand to me.

“Wow, sage advice.” I took his hand and brushed myself off.

“Try; I’m sorry I’m a stuck up ass, please rip up that idiotic paper contract and…” Arlo smiled. “I think you’re really fucking pretty.”

“I mean if it worked on Ella,” I laughed.

“It didn’t, I never said that to her because I have tact and know how to flirt.” Arlo walked away from me before I could argue and left me alone with my thoughts.

“You gave her a fancy book and lurked around for a month.”

“Yeah,” he scowled at me like I was fucking clueless, “ flirting .”

Ask her out.

Easier said than done.