Page 36

KEENE

I was still miffed with all the residents of Archer House the next evening for not catching Mystery Girl after she’d apparently just strolled into our house while one of them was home, so I was hanging out alone in my room, trying to concentrate on homework, when someone tapped timidly on my door.

Needing a break from trying to memorize medical terms, I glanced up, only to groan, ready to go right back to remembering what the cytopathic effect meant.

Hope stepped across the threshold, sending me a hesitant smile. “Hey.”

Narrowing my eyes, I huffed. “I can’t believe he sent his woman to come talk to me. Lame.” And I dropped my gaze back to my notes, even though there was no way I was going to be able to memorize anything now. Not with her in my room.

“He didn’t send me,” Hope promised as she neared the bed without an invitation to stay. “Actually, I believe Parker’s exact words to me were, ‘Leave him alone, or I’ll throttle you.’”

That got a reluctant grin from me. “So, of course, you definitely had to come pester me after that,” I surmised.

“Of course.” Smiling, she plopped onto the opposite end of the mattress as me to make herself at home. And smoothing her hands over her lap—the only tell that she was in any way nervous—she let out a big sigh. “So. I saw your posters floating around campus yesterday.”

I scoffed and glanced away, knowing posters were not what she’d come to talk about.

With my bed pushed into the corner, she was able to use the wall as a back prop while she bent her knees up toward her chest and hugged them.

From the headboard, where I was sitting with my legs sprawling, I nudged her hip with my toe and sighed. “Enough small talk, Langston. Let’s get this over with already. Just go ahead and say it.”

She nodded and swallowed thickly. “Okay then.” Except instead of saying anything, she exhaled heavily and watched me for a moment, shaking her head slowly until tears sprouted in her eyes. “Jesus, Keene.”

“No,” I warned, pointing a stern finger at her. “That’s cheating. You’re not allowed to cry , dammit.”

“But this is all my fault,” she sobbed, wiping her cheeks and crying harder.

“I’m the one who pushed him into hooking up behind Alec’s back.

I’m the one who—dammit. Just don’t hate him because of me, okay?

Don’t hate him at all. Please. You’re one of the most important people in his life, and this is killing him.

He tells me he’s okay, but he’s not. He cannot handle losing you. ”

I scoffed and rolled my eyes, not believing her for a minute. Ohrley didn’t need shit from me.

But Hope insisted, “He can’t. You’re his family . The reason he keeps going. Don’t turn on him now.” Her bottom lip trembled on the last word, and her crying picked up intensity.

Dammit. Tears were my kryptonite, I swear. And feminine tears… She might as well have strolled in the door, claiming, “ I win .”

“Don’t,” I begged. “Just—stop it already. My issues with him don’t even really have anything to do with you. I promise.”

Hope blinked, sniffing at her tears, and frowned in confusion. “But?—”

“Look,” I cut in softly. “I’m not even saying the two of you did anything wrong.

Alec’s clearly fine with it, which is all that matters.

And I honestly don’t give a shit who either of you screw.

So no, I have no beef with you. But…” Making a face, I shook my head. “The way he fucking went about it.”

“Because I asked him?—”

I lifted a hand, silently begging her to let me talk.

Respecting my wishes, she shut her mouth and fell back against the wall.

“By not even giving Alec the courtesy of a heads-up that he might even be remotely interested in you, he basically just shouted it aloud to all of us that he doesn’t respect what we think. He doesn’t care?—”

“Yes, he does.”

“No,” I started, but she wouldn’t let me continue.

“He didn’t want to even like me,” she insisted.

“But I put him into an impossible situation. I threw the dying card in his face and promised him it would only be one time and no one would ever know about it because I’d be gone and he’d just be granting me my dying wish.

It would’ve been no different than if I’d asked him for a million dollars before I died. How could he have said no to that?”

I squinted, thinking it through before I shrugged. “I mean, he could’ve been like, ‘Yo, Younger. I’m granting your sister a quick dying wish. No big deal.’”

“Except I wasn’t ready for Alec to know I was dying yet.

And then feelings got involved, and one time turned into two, and I ended up not dying at all; everything just kind of blew up in our faces.

We totally fucked up how we should’ve handled it; I know that.

He knows that. And trust me, he regrets it.

But this one situation should not be a precedent for you to review your entire friendship with him.

I mean, tell me honestly. Has there ever been another time he’s dropped the ball as your friend? ”

There were plenty of occasions he’d been a supreme dick, but that was just Parker’s sunny personality. When it had mattered, shit yes, he’d always been there. He’d always come through.

Except when he’d refused to tell me who Mystery Girl was, which was kind of a sticking point for me.

So I snorted, saying, “Yeah. When he wouldn’t give me a name that I frankly deserve to know.”

Hope winced. “That’s not because he doesn’t want to tell you,” she promised. “It’s just— he can’t . He’s protecting someone else, and besides, it’s not his secret to tell.”

My mind whirled, trying to puzzle through that explanation. But who the fuck else would be under Ohrley’s protection? What girl who was roughly in our age range but wasn’t one of the girlfriends would he even remotely care about?

I had no idea, so I hopefully hedged, “Can you tell me?”

She shook her head. “No, sorry. But if it makes you feel better, you did a good thing that night. Whatever you and your mystery girl shared out there in the dark, she needed it.” As I sat up straighter, shocked to hear that , Hope kept talking.

“It helped her with confidence issues and other things in a way nothing else could. You should be proud of yourself.”

Lips parting, I shook my head, really intrigued now, only to blurt, “If I did such a great thing, why the fuck is she hiding from me?”

Hope laughed. “Really?” Eyebrows arching, she shook her head. “Because she’s mortified. Hello . She tricked you into thinking she was someone else. Trust me when I say that is not something she does. I think she’s as horrified with herself as she is thrilled that she got the chance to be with you.”

That comment made me furrow my brow in confusion.

But thrilled for a chance to be with me, huh?

What the hell did that even mean? I wasn’t exactly a hard guy to catch.

Honestly, I couldn’t remember a single time I’d turned a female down when she’d hit on me.

If Mystery Girl had been interested, all she’d had to do was tell me.

Unless she truly, honestly believed she didn’t stand a chance. Which made me remember what Alec had surmised.

“Your brother thinks she’s got to be…” But even thinking about mentioning Alec’s guess aloud sounded shitty to me. Except I’d already started talking, and Hope was watching me with an expectant look, so I just sighed and mumbled, “Homely.”

Hope huffed out an amused sound and rolled her eyes. “Of course he does.” When her gaze strayed back to me, she winked. “Don’t worry, Sneezy. She’s beautiful. Inside and out.”

I released a breath I hadn’t even realized I’d been holding, and excitement poured through me. “I’m going to find her,” I promised aloud.

She grinned. “I’m counting on it. Things are going to turn very…interesting when you do.”

Eager restlessness nipped at the heels of my excitement. “You’ve definitely piqued my curiosity.”

With a laugh, she pointed. “I think that’s another reason why Parker didn’t want to come right out and tell you. You’re a clever little ass. He knew you’d figure it out on your own, and with as much as you like solving mysteries, you’d have more fun sniffing her out this way, anyhow.”

I scoffed grumpily, even as I admitted to myself that she was probably right. I ended up tipping my head to reluctantly agree with her. “Yeah, maybe.”

She watched me a moment longer before murmuring, “So? Are you going to forgive him or not?”

Groaning, I let my head fall back on the headboard because of course she was still on that issue. “Let’s just say I’m not going to be the one who goes to him,” I said. “But if he comes to me, I won’t be a dick to him anymore.”

Bobbing her head once, Hope seemed satisfied with my answer. “Thank you,” she said.

I studied her for a moment before admitting, “Being with him has changed you.”

A sudden glow took over her face as she smiled. “For the better, I hope.”

I snorted. “Oh, hell yes.”

“Yeah,” she murmured, looking so demure and…content, compared to the mischievous hellion who used to torment me to no end. “It’s strange how much being in a good, strong, healthy relationship centers you and just…heals your soul.”

“Hmm,” I murmured, deciding not to bash the whole being in love thing for the first time in my life.

I could be solicitous enough to admit there might possibly be one or two perks to all that falling business.

I mean, I wasn’t going to admit it was for me , but for some people… maybe it wasn’t so bad.

“Well,” Hope spoke up, putting her hands on the bed as if preparing to stand. But before she could continue, Alec passed by the door to my room, only to do a double-take and back up enough to grab onto either side of the door frame when he saw who was in here with me.

Leaning in to gape at us, he said, “Um…” His gaze darted between me and his sister suspiciously, his eyebrows lifting to silently question why the two of us were alone together in my bedroom.

Hope rolled her eyes and explained, “Just trying to clear the air between me and him and Parker,” she assured.

“Ah.” Alec nodded, finally understanding. “And?”

She gave him two thumbs-up. “All good again.”

“Aww.” Grinning, her brother stepped fully into the room and threw his arms open wide.

“Would you look at that? My two favorite people in the world just made up. Come here,” he demanded, flopping down onto the bed between us and looping an arm around Hope’s shoulders to drag her across the mattress to his side. “Family hug.”

When he turned to me next, I scowled. “Don’t even try it, fucker.”

But Alec ignored the request and leaped at me with a laugh, his overly long, giant arm catching me before I could escape. And the next thing I knew, I was squished into a hug sandwich with him and Hope.

“We…are…family,” he started to sing Sister Sledge. “I got all my sisters with me.”

“Oh, Jesus,” I groaned. “Make it stop.”

Hope threw back her head and laughed, loving it.

Punching Younger lightly in the side, I ducked through his arm and managed to squirm free. All the while, Hope joined in singing, and the two siblings began a mini concert on my bed.

“For the love of God,” I mumbled, glancing toward the ceiling for deliverance.

Laughing again, Hope stopped singing and stood up. “Fine, fine. I’ll go. Probably should get home before Parker realizes I’ve been meddling in his life again.”

“Yeah, I’m sure he’d never forgive you for that,” Alec returned with a sarcastic scoff because as stupid in love as Parker was with Hope these days, he’d forgive her for anything.

Grinning, Hope winked back. “I do seem to have a special talent for getting out of whatever trouble I get into with him, don’t I? I mean, usually, all I gotta do is?—”

“No,” Alec begged, plugging his ears with his fingers. “Nah-nah-nah-nah. I don’t want to know. Not listening. Nah-nah-nah-nah.”

She rolled her eyes and glanced my way. “Thanks again, Duggie.” And waving her fingers at the two of us, she called, “Good luck finding that girl,” as she strolled from the room.

Alec jerked his fingers from his ears. “Ooh! Speaking of Mystery Girl,” he said, turning to me, his interest already diverted from whatever private things his sister might do with one of our best friends. “I’ve got a new idea of how we might locate her.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Is this going to be another instance where you help me one hundred percent of the way with scheming and executing the plan, only to immediately distance yourself from it and throw me under the bus as the only person involved as soon as everyone else calls it dumb?”

Nodding, my best friend openly admitted, “Yeah, probably.”

I squinted at him for half a second before shrugging. “Fair enough. I’m in.”