The front door opened and closed again. A rock settled in my stomach. It really was a big platter. Maybe some meat? I took the cheese back to the fridge and pulled open the lunch meat drawer. Miles usually kept several kinds on hand. Turkey, chicken, oh salami… Isaac’s favorite. I took everything back to the cutting board and started putting meat on the platter. Cutting some to the right size, while just fanning out the salami. When that was done, I started putting stuff away.
The front door opened and closed again. My heart jumped into my throat. Olives. We needed olives. I searched the fridge. Miles had a favorite… there. Garlic stuffed olives. I looked through the cupboards and tried to breathe as I found a small ramekin. Hell, that’ll work. Voices came from the long hallway, I focused on putting olives in the container while my hands shook. I set that in the last free spot on the platter. I took several deep breaths as I tried to calm down. Was Asher here? Did I fuck everything up beyond fixing?
Yeah, I thought this would be easy. Get the guys together, talk shit out… I closed my eyes and took slow deep breaths. Yeah. Simple. Until someone loses their shit or doesn’t show.
“Ally?”
I went still. The boulder left my stomach and I started to breathe again.
Asher moved next to me. “You made a platter?”
I took deep breaths as the weight in my chest eased. “I was stalling. Hoping you’d show up.”
Asher’s hand moved to my lower back. “I’m here.”
I nodded, relief leaving me clutching the counter.
“Everyone is waiting for us.” He kept his voice soft and low.
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Asher picked up the platter and led me out of the kitchen. The guys were spread out around the living room. Zeke was standing behind the furthest couch with his arms crossed. Ethan was sitting on the arm of that couch while Isaac sat on the raised hearth of the fire place. Miles was standing at the head of the coffee table. The glass coffee table. Why did we pick this room?
Asher set down the tray and took a seat at one end of the couch closest to the hallway. Everyone’s eyes were on me as I sat down in the other corner.
“Family meeting.” Miles straightened to his full height. Everyone turned to him. “Some of us saw each other last night at the fair.” Miles turned to Zeke. “Other’s wouldn’t even answer my calls.”
Zeke didn’t offer an explanation, his blank expression didn’t even twitch.
Miles seemed like he wasn’t expecting one either as he continued. “Right now, we need to get everything out in the open.”
Asher frowned. “What? You want her to make a decision today?”
Miles shook his head. “No. Today isn’t about that. Today is about our friendships with each other. More specifically, between us guys.”
Most of the boys shifted in their seats.
“We’re not just going to fucking be okay overnight.” Asher scowled at Miles. “What do you want us to do?”
“Talk to each other.” My voice was firm and slightly sharp. “Tell each other why you're pissed at them.”
“We need to work on our communication, and we need to start now.” Miles turned to Zeke. “Zeke, you haven’t talked to me in a month. Why?”
Zeke’s face didn’t change as he lifted his eyes to Miles. “Not now.”
Miles began to tap his thigh. “Zeke.”
“You don’t want this now.” Zeke made it clear, his voice deep.
I looked around at the guys. Not one of them were talking. My stomach churned as my heart sank. “Guys?” No one budged. My throat grew tight as I turned to Miles.
His eyes were growing colder by the minute. “Isaac? How do you feel?”
“This might be too soon.” Ethan’s gaze stayed on the toe of his shoe as he tapped the leg of the coffee table.
“It’s been a month.” Miles’ voice grew colder. “Now, I know I had to stop myself every day from calling each of you. I know it was the same for you guys.”
Silence.
“Would it help to talk if I wasn’t in here?” I asked, hoping that was what was holding them back.
Ethan shook his head. “That’s not it, Beautiful.”
“Yeah, it’s just not easy to just tell someone what’s pissing you off.” Isaac leaned forward to rest his elbows on his legs. “We’re guys, we usually throw a few punches and ignore each other until we get over it.”
“Fine.” I pointed at the front door. “Go outside and beat the shit out of each other. Get it out of your systems.”
No one budged. My heart took a hard kick. I turned and met Miles’ eyes, which were glacial at this point. They weren’t talking. They weren’t trying. This wasn’t going to work. Eyes filling, I got to my feet, walked out of the living room and into the long hall. Tears fell down my face as I opened my bedroom door. I had to get my clothes…
Taking deep breaths against the weight growing in my chest, I started to empty out the drawers and fill the duffle bag that Miles had left on my bed. When my dresser was empty, I moved into the bathroom to get my shampoo and conditioner. Only to find that Miles had replaced them again with better brands. The tightness grew in my chest making it hard to breathe. I sat down on the rim of the tub and covered my mouth while tears poured down my face. I had to leave. Come on, Lexie. I wiped my face, sniffed and struggled for control again. I had to walk out the door. Get it together! Breathe and move!
Asher
Ally’s crying caught my ear. I turned and looked at the hallway. The sound bounced off the walls and up the hall. It put me on edge. I looked around the room as no one said anything. She was upset. It had been a month... Her crying started to echo. She must be in the bathroom. She began to cry even harder; her breathing grew ragged as she tried to stay quiet. That, and only that made me say something.
“I’m angry.” I turned to each of them. “I’m angry at Zeke for not fucking telling anyone how he felt about her. I’m angry at Miles because I’m pretty sure he’s going to ask us all to step aside for Zeke to be with Ally. I’m angry.”
“I would never ask anyone to do that.” Miles’ voice was cold and hard. “Not to mention I’d never make that decision for Lexie.”
“She’d rip his head off if he tried.” Isaac shook his head. Hell, Isaac had a point. I didn’t even think of Ally in that…
Her crying intensified to practically sobbing. I turned my head to follow it with my ear. Wondering where she was, I stared at the doors to the hallway. “Talk, guys.”
“Why?” Zeke started pacing on the other side of the room in front of the large windows.
Isaac shook his head. Ethan sighed.
I turned back to the others. “Because I can hear her crying her heart out in the bathroom.” Suddenly everyone was paying attention.
“She’s packing her things.” Miles announced. Everyone turned to him with mouths gaping and wide eyes.
“What?” Ethan scowled.
“What do you mean, she’s packing her shit?” Zeke’s voice was hard and sharp along the edges.
Miles looked at each of us. “Since the beginning, Lexie has made it clear to me that if our friendships with each other are negatively affected, she’ll stop hanging out with us.”
Everyone but Zeke still had their jaws on the floor. Though the blood did drain from his face.
“She can’t do that.” Zeke crossed his arms over his chest. “She needs anchors.”
“She’d be hurting herself.” I shook my head. It didn’t make sense…
Miles narrowed his eyes at me. “She doesn’t care if she hurts herself. She doesn’t care if her heart breaks. At this moment, she’s terrified that she ruined our relationships. And if she sees that, she’ll remove herself to try to correct it.”
The blood drained from Zeke’s face.
Ethan clenched a fist.
Isaac got to his feet and started moving. He dug his hands into his hair and paced in front of the fire place.
“So, unless we want that to ha
ppen. Talk.” I started to rub my knuckle along my jeans as I concentrated on listening to Ally get it together in the bathroom.
Zeke began to pace again. As the silence went on he began dragging his hands through his hair every few steps as he cursed under his breath. The room stayed silent.
“Fuck.” Zeke turned to us. “I hate this shit.”
“We know.” Everyone chimed in unison.
“Fine.” Zeke clenched his jaw as he looked down at the coffee table. “I didn’t say anything because of Ordin.”
Everyone grew still and turned to him.
Zeke’s eyes unfocused as he clenched and unclenched his fists. “That night, I was supposed to go over after work to talk about everything. But instead I let her go home alone and get taken.” His voice was rough and raw as he refused to look at anyone. “After… She had shit she had to get through. Some serious shit.”
“I know.” I said without thinking.
Zeke’s gaze snapped to mine. “You know? How?”
I nodded. “I overheard something in New Orleans. No details, just that something happened.”
Zeke nodded that he got it.
“What happened?” Isaac stopped pacing as he looked between us. “Someone better fucking spill.”
“We can’t.” I met Isaac’s eyes.
Isaac clearly didn’t like it but he understood.
“I wasn’t going to bring it up until she got through it.” Zeke crossed his arms over his chest as his posture grew rigid. “No point in bringing it up to you guys when she might not have felt the same way still.”
Shit, I could understand that. My anger at Zeke fizzled a bit. It didn’t disappear but it lessened.
Isaac cursed. “I didn’t say anything because…” Isaac shook his head. “I thought there was no way in hell she’d feel the same way.”
Ethan huffed. “I just figured I’d fuck it up.”
“I was going to after I spoke to her if she felt the same way.” Miles sat down on the arm of the couch.
“We’re all pissed,” Isaac sat back down on the hearth.
“We’re all on edge.” Ethan rubbed his eyes with one hand.
“This is going to be a disaster.” Zeke summed it up for us.
Everyone chuckled. I shook my head. We were still friends, we always would be. This was just going to take time.
A door quietly closed in the hallway.
I turned to Miles. “She’s on her way out.”
Miles waited until she reached the foyer. “Lexie?”
She stopped with her hand on the door knob and a large bag over her shoulder.
“We’re talking.” Miles shifted on the arm of the couch.
Her shoulders sagged. She sniffed and took a deep breath before she wiped her face. Ally stepped back from the door and dropped her bag by the stairs on her way back in. Refusing to look at anyone, she went back to her spot. Miles shifted more so he’d face us. Her eyes were bright red, her nose almost raw. Shit…
“I think we need to start nightly family meetings to touch base with everyone at least for a while.” Miles got to his feet. “And really try to communicate effectively during the day.”
Everyone agreed. Ally even nodded.
“Now, it’s Lexie’s birthday.” Miles’ voice lightened.
Ally rubbed her eyes with one hand. “Forget about it.”
Isaac straightened. “Hell no. It’s your birthday. What do you want to do?”
She looked at each of us. “Well, if you guys can not kill each other...”
“We’ll put it on the back burner for tonight.” I promised.
She smiled the first real smile I’d seen today.
* * *
Hours later, I was laughing as Ethan went on and on about the glow-in-the-dark henna tattoo that Ally had put on him. Isaac had given her a kit for her birthday and none of us had escaped unmarked. Though Ethan was the only one who got a flower on the back of his hand.
“Really, Beautiful?” he groaned. “A flower?”
The others chuckled.
“It’s a lotus blossom.” I tried my best to keep my face straight.
“You gave Zeke a skull and crossbones on his arm.” Ethan gestured at Zeke across the family room. “Why did I get the flower?”
“Because you’re a sweetie.” I smiled.
Ethan grumbled.
“Red?” Isaac picked up the box that Zeke had given her. “Can I play with your present from Zeke?”
She snagged it out of his hand. “No! If anyone gets to use the stun gun, it’s gonna be me.”
“Feel free to use it on Isaac,” Zeke shot across the coffee table.
Isaac flipped him off.
She pulled it out of the box and eyed Zeke. “I don’t know... you were an ass yesterday...”
Zeke’s eyes narrowed at her. “Don’t even think about it.”
She chuckled and set it down.
“So, are you going to start a necro instruction book?” Miles asked as he picked up the brown leather-bound journal I had given her.
“I think so.” She shrugged one shoulder. “I mean, it wouldn’t hurt to have one around for Luca’s kids maybe.”
Not her own? Did she really not want kids? Huh. I took a drink of my soda as Isaac picked up the framed print that Miles had given her. “Where did you get this?”
“New Orleans.” Miles shared a look with Ally. Something bristled inside me as she smiled back.
Isaac turned back to her. “When are you going to open Ethan’s?”
“After you all go home.” She smiled. Ethan had asked her to wait until we were gone to open it. A big part of me didn’t want to know, another part didn’t want to wait.
Ally pushed her plate away. “Ash, that cake was amazing.”
Something eased inside me. “I’m glad you liked it.”
Ally yawned and rested her head on the back of the couch. It was obvious that she was going to fall asleep. And after the crying she did earlier, no one was going to stop her.
Miles shifted forward on the couch. “Everyone is going camping tomorrow?”
There was a round of yes and yeahs.
“Then we’ll see everyone here early in the morning.” Miles dismissed us. Everyone got to their feet and headed for the door. Except Ally, she stayed on the couch already half asleep as we headed out. I reached down and squeezed her shoulder before heading for the doorway.
“Zeke?” Ally barely opened her eyes enough to catch him before he left. “Did you bring my painting back?”
His face was deadpan when he turned back to her. “No. You threw it at my head. I’m keeping it.”
“Zeke…”
“Anything thrown at me, I get to keep. Remember that for the future,” he called over his shoulder as we left the family room.
Ally gave a snort as she slipped under.
Miles’ shoulders were rigid as he held the front door for us. No one bothered to say anything as we walked out into the driveway. A cool breeze moved over the grounds as Miles closed the door behind him and joined us in a circle.
“We can’t let this get between us.” Miles started tapping his leg.
“She really was walking out the door.” Isaac shook his head as if he still couldn’t believe it.
Ethan reached over and put his hand on his brother’s shoulder.
“What do you expect?” Miles’ eyebrows pulled together. “She has a big heart.”
“Why didn’t you tell us earlier?” It would have made things run smoother.
“She said it would have been emotional blackmail. She wasn’t willing to do that.” Miles shook his head. “I, on the other hand, don’t give a damn what I have to do to make you understand what’s at stake. I’m not willing to lose her just because all of you are being stubborn.”
“You can’t keep shit like that to yourself.” Zeke’s voice rumbled. “If she’s going to leave, we have the right to fucking know.”
“That’s the only thing that she would leave over.
” Miles’ shoulders relaxed. “It meant the most to her.”
Ethan raised an eyebrow. “More than who she’s going to end up dating?”
Miles met his gaze and nodded. “She said she could deal with anything else.”
Resentment bubbled in me. She shared everything with Miles. Again. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Deal with it later, Asher.
“Everyone, meet here around seven?” I wanted to go home. To get away from them for some quiet.
Everyone agreed and broke up the circle. Miles headed back to the house and went inside. I forced myself to get into my truck and start it. I needed to get home to pack. Maybe go for a run…
Miles
My mind running in circles, I closed the door and locked it. Then leaned my back against it. She was staying. Tension drained from me, leaving me shaking. The guys understand what’s at stake if they don’t work on their issues with each other. Lexie leaving was the only thing I could think of that would make them understand how upset she was.
I took a deep breath and straightened from the door and set the alarm before heading back into the family room. After leaving the living room earlier, everyone had acted as if no one had ever kissed Lexie. That nothing had been said. It was what she needed tonight. What we all needed to be honest. Time to remember who we were with her...
Lexie’s eyes were closed, her head starting to hang. The relief had to have been enormous.
I smiled. Poor Angel, she hadn’t slept much in the last month. She had been looking almost ragged lately. I’d never tell her but I had been worried. I knelt down on the floor in front of the couch and ran my fingers over her cheek.
She made a sleepy content sound.
“Angel, do you want to sleep in your room or mine?” I kept my voice low and soft.
She shifted to lean against my chest. I smiled. She always answered me when she was sleeping deeply. Slipping my arms around her back and under her knees, I lifted her against my chest. She slipped her arm around my neck and snuggled against the base of my throat.
I headed upstairs and down the hallway to my room. Her breathing was deep and even as I nudged the door open then laid her gently down on my bed. She curled up on her side. Carefully, I undid her sandals and slipped them off her feet. I turned on the lamp on my bedside table while watching her face. She didn’t even twitch. She really was exhausted.
When the Dead Have It Easy Page 6