Addicted to You

by Renita Pizzitola

  “Not really.”

  His arm went around my shoulder and I leaned into him. “I know.”

  We stood that way for several minutes. He didn’t ask questions and I didn’t offer explanations. I’m sure he’d witnessed the exchange between Luis and me. Everyone probably had.

  “I guess I should head back in.”

  He kissed the top of my head. “Okay.”

  I lifted my chin and stared up at him. He looked adorable. All dressed up, sans ball cap. Though personally, I liked Colby in his trademark hat. It was part of what made him him. But I definitely appreciated this look as well.

  Then his arm shifted as he turned me to fully face him and leaned down. And for the first time ever, he made the first move. He kissed me. And it would be a lie to say it wasn’t one of the best moments of my life.

  It was a sweet kiss too. Unlike most of the other heated ones we’d shared. He wasn’t drunk. He wasn’t looking for sex. It was just a kiss. Then it was over.

  His smile graced only one side of his mouth, making it seem like he couldn’t decide if he was happy or sad. Then he tucked my hair behind my ear and said, “You should get back to your grandma. It’s time for dinner.”

  I nodded, at a surprising loss for words.

  “I’ll meet you inside.”

  “Okay.” Then I slipped out of his arms and walked away, because what else was I supposed to do, considering I’d forgotten how to talk?

  I made my way back into the room and smiled when I discovered Landon already seated and surrounded by a few elderly ladies. I had no idea what it was about him, but women over seventy adored him. He was kind of adorable and charismatic, though. I guess it made sense.

  Still grinning, I looked to each side of him and raised an eyebrow.

  He smirked. “Great party.” He winked and I knew he was referring to his senior entourage.

  “Well, I guess I’ll just find a seat way down there…somewhere,” I teased, pointing to the other side of the room.

  “What? I saved you and Colby seats right here.” He pointed to the now vacant spots at his table. At the announcement of dinner, the ladies had finally gotten up and said their goodbyes.

  I settled in next to him and whispered, “Wow. I feel popular by association.”

  He chuckled, then leaned in and raised one eyebrow. “To be honest, I only came for the ego boost.”

  A laugh that sounded way more like a snort than anything else burst out of me. I slammed my hand over my mouth. “Sorry. That was funny though.”

  “You’re a great audience, Isla.” He took a sip of his water and shook his head like I was crazy. “Always make me feel like I’m actually kind of funny.”

  “You are funny.”

  He glanced at me, his smile fading. “So Luis…I didn’t know he’d be here.”

  “Yeah, it was kind of a surprise to me too until about two weeks ago.” Considering Luis and Landon had been friends back in high school, I doubted he cared about the visit like I had. “Did you get a chance to talk to him?”

  He shrugged. “Said hi. But, you know, Colby was with me so—”

  I waited for more but Landon’s words stopped as someone stepped up to our table. I expected it to be Colby but was surprised to see it was Luis.

  “Can we talk?”

  I stared at him, my mouth probably hanging open. And once again tonight, I was actually speechless. “Uh, sure?”

  Luis stared down at me like I was the stuff you scrape off of shoes. “Outside.”

  “Yeah. Of course.” I jumped up like some ridiculously obedient dog and followed him to the patio where I’d just been with Colby. Way to ruin the memory.

  But just as we got to the patio doors they opened and Colby stepped through. Everything suddenly felt off. Colby’s shoulders tensed. Luis’s posture went rigid. The two stared at each other.

  Colby’s gaze swung to me. His jaw ticked. He turned back to Luis, gave him a once-over, then marched away. And I thought Luis had nailed the look of disgust.

  I glanced over my shoulder and watched Colby walk away, looking like he was ready to punch a wall, or Luis….

  Luis pushed open the door and spun to face me, practically towering over me.

  “So I’m to assume you invited him?”

  “What? Y’all did. He had an invitation.”

  “No. We invited Landon. Not Colby.”

  “That’s just stupid.”

  He glared.

  “Grandma loves all the Callahans. It’s her party. They should all be here.” I rolled my eyes, ready to change the subject and find out from Colby what the hell that had been about, since I knew Luis wouldn’t tell me. “So what did we need to talk about?”

  “We’re talking about it. Dad and I didn’t go through all this trouble, create guest lists and whatnot, for you to go over our heads and make arrangements without discussing it with us.”

  “Are you serious right now? It’s one more person. Who, as I said, should have always been included.”

  “He’s not welcome.”

  “He’s my best friend.”

  “It’s not your party.”

  “It’s not yours.”

  Luis finally sighed. “I don’t even know why I’m trying to have an adult conversation with you.”

  “You’re not. You’re reprimanding me like I’m a child and in case you haven’t noticed, I’m not one.” I crossed my arms and firmed my stance. He may have the upper hand when it came to family business, but no way would he drag Colby down for absolutely no good reason.

  “Then quit acting like one.”

  “The only person acting childish right now is you. Like an entitled, overgrown child who didn’t get his way.” I glared and he fumed. “Look, I don’t know what your shit is with Colby, but he’s more a part of Grandma’s life than you have ever been. So do me a favor and fuck off.”

  I spun around, not caring to hear whatever else he had to say.

  “You will never change.” He spat it out like it was an insult.

  So I laughed. “Nope.” Then flipped him off over my shoulder for good measure. “As crazy as this might seem to you, women are born with a backbone. So quit trying to break mine.”

  I heard the start of something he was about to say, but moved inside before I caught enough to let it get under my skin.

  If he wanted to come to town and act like an asshole, so be it. But he’d be gone in the morning and back out of my life.

  I made my way over to my seat, with a forced smile, worried Grandma might see me upset; the last thing I wanted was to ruin her night. But as I got to my table my smile fell. Colby and Landon were hunched together, exchanging words that seemed to have both of them upset.

  “You can’t leave,” Landon whispered.

  “I never would’ve come had I known he’d be here.”

  “I get that, and it’s shit, but stay for Isla and Ms. Diaz.”

  Colby huffed. “Isla’s gonna find out.”

  I came into view. “I’m going to find out what?”

  The boys jumped, putting space between them.

  Landon looked to Colby for direction, like this wasn’t his conversation to have.

  Colby cleared his throat then said, “I shouldn’t be here.”

  “Oh. Luis was just being a jerk.” I slid into my chair. “I know he didn’t invite you and I’m really sorry about it. It’s Grandma’s party and she, of course, wants you here.”

  He and Landon exchanged a look.

  “Luis just wants to control everything. He doesn’t even want me here.” I thought back to the tense moment in the walkway and my conversation with Luis. “But if you don’t mind me asking, what is going on between you two? Did something happen before I got here?”

  Colby slunk back in his chair and shook his head.

  He was hiding something. No denying that. But what?

  “It’s nothing you need to worry about.”

  “Colby.” I couldn’t hide the disappointment in my
tone.

  He expression softened. “It’s a party. Your grandma’s big day. Let’s enjoy it.”

  “But—”

  “I promise, it’s nothing we need to talk about now.”

  I looked to Landon, hoping he’d offer some insight, but he looked away. Like he didn’t want to lie if I questioned him. Reluctantly, I let it go. Whatever was going on was important enough to both these guys to keep quiet on, and I had to respect that. Though I felt like there should be no secrets between Colby and me, I had to accept the fact there would be.

  Food was served and Grandma gave a very sweet thank-you speech. An amazing cake courtesy of Lucy’s was wheeled out and the night went on without any more hiccups. I stayed clear of Luis and he did the same for me. Granted he might have just been avoiding my company, since Luis found Colby a lot more intimidating than me. But either way, whatever kept him far away from me was welcomed.

  As the night wrapped up, Grandma, who always had been quite the social butterfly, finally made her way to our table.

  Colby had just excused himself to the bathroom, so it was only Landon and me.

  “Happy birthday, Ms. Diaz. Is this a new dress?”

  Grandma smiled as she smoothed nonexistent wrinkles from her floral dress.

  “Yes. Isla picked it out.” She smiled at me.

  “She has good taste. You look beautiful.”

  She placed her hand on his cheek and tilted her head to the side. “Tan cortés. I wish I had two granddaughters. One for each of you.”

  “Grandma.” My face warmed.

  She just smiled her innocent little smile while I died on the inside.

  “What a night.” She sighed. “I’m going to say goodbye to a few more friends and then we can go, mijita.”

  “What’s cortés mean?” Landon asked.

  “Polite, she said you’re so polite. Grandma loves you guys.”

  “Clearly, she’s ready to marry her grandchildren off to us.”

  I rolled my eyes. “She’s from a different generation. You know how it is. She probably thinks I’m going to die alone because I’m not married with kids yet.”

  He laughed. “I doubt that. For one, she’s way too proud of your education. I think she values that above anything as silly as marriage,” he teased. At least, I thought his marriage comment was a joke. “But, on top of that, she knows you’re beautiful. Any guy would be lucky to have you and she knows full and well that once you’re ready, you’ll have too many to choose from.”

  I glanced at him as he pulled out his car keys. Did he know about Colby? Or was that an offhand comment? Nothing about his expression implied there was more to what he’d said.

  It was becoming more and more apparent that Landon really just seemed to be in his own little happy place. He went with the flow, lived in the moment, but didn’t pay attention to details. An entire soap opera was playing out before him and he somehow had no clue. I envied that. How easy life must be if you never let anything get you down and only chose to see the parts that made you happy. He chose happiness, and it was kind of contagious.

  Wait? Had that been what Colby was getting at that night in the texts? Choose happiness. Did he want me to choose his brother because he was guaranteed to make me happy…unlike brooding Colby? I loved the guy, but really he’d been quite the downer lately with all his back-and-forth. And considering he knew his brother better than everyone else, it only made sense that he’d know how oblivious Landon could be. Yet Landon still knew tiny details about things I loved.

  Maybe I really hadn’t given Landon a fair chance. I stared at him as he watched the people moving around the room. He smiled and waved at one of his senior fan club members, and I couldn’t help but grin. Landon was…easy.

  We got along. He made me happy. He always made me laugh. He respected me, he was nice to me, he cared about me…It was hard to figure out why I hadn’t ever seen him as boyfriend material. But really it wasn’t that hard. I just hadn’t seen him, or any other guy for that matter, because I’d been closed off to the idea of anyone but Colby. What I felt for Colby started so young, it was as if I’d conditioned myself to believe no one could be him. Then my mind drifted back to the kiss on the patio, and once again I was reminded why no one could be him. That kind of chemistry didn’t happen with just anyone. It was hopeless. Until Colby himself told me he’d never see me as a girlfriend, I’d probably keep pining for him.

  “Oh shit,” Landon muttered. His spine stiffened and I followed his gaze to the back corner where Luis and Colby stood, looking ready to kill one another.

  I shot up and so did Landon.

  Calmly but quickly, we made our way over, trying not to attract any more attention than necessary.

  “Hey, time to go.” Landon placed his hand on Colby’s shoulder.

  Colby didn’t move. He and Luis were now in some sort of epic stare-down.

  Not sure if it’d help, but I moved in. I stood next to Colby and gently touched his arm. “Hey, let’s take off. The party is over.”

  Luis shifted his focus onto me. “This is your fault. Just like everything else,” he spat.

  “Don’t talk to her like that.”

  “This is a family matter.”

  “I don’t give a shit what you think it is. You won’t talk to her like that.”

  “Yeah, what are you going to do about it? Hit me again?”

  Both of Colby’s hands balled into fists and I was pretty sure we had our answer, but before I could diffuse the situation, Landon stepped in.

  “Damn straight, he’ll beat your ass. And I’ll help him if you disrespect Isla or any other girl for that matter. Now do us all a favor and fuck off.” Landon eyed him like Luis didn’t even deserve the energy a punch would waste. “C’mon, Colby, let’s go.”

  Colby caved and let Landon lead him off. We didn’t even make it but a few steps when Luis said, “Your whole family is nothing more than trash. I see why Isla hangs out with you.”

  Landon spun around, and while I’d expected Colby to take the first swing it was clear it’d be Landon. But to my surprise, Colby stopped him.

  With an icy stare, and in the coldest tone I’d ever heard come out of him, Colby said, “No amount of money can hide what you really are. Remember that. Because I’ll never forget. You can’t silence everyone.”

  Luis forced a laugh that almost seemed a means to cover some other emotion. Like maybe fear or worry? Considering it was one I hadn’t seen before, I wasn’t sure. Then he shook his head. “I have no clue what you’re even talking about.” He laughed again, mumbled “pathetic,” then walked away.

  Landon looked like sheer will was the only thing holding him back from following Luis and pummeling him. “That—”

  Colby held up his hand. “It’s fine. He’s trying to instigate something. He’d love for one of us to throw a punch so he could slap assault charges on us.”

  “He should know—”

  Colby shook his head. “Not worth our time. C’mon, let’s go.”

  “I’ll walk you out.” When we got into the parking lot I turned to Colby. “I’m sorry tonight kind of went to shit. My brother can be a real asshole.”

  Colby nodded. “Don’t let him treat you like that, okay? He has no respect for women, so just, you know, stand your ground.”

  “I know. Honestly he doesn’t have respect for anyone. But I’m done trying to please him. He’s, I don’t know, just never going to forgive me, and I’m done trying to prove myself.”

  “Forgive you?”

  I glanced at Landon then back at Colby and shrugged. “Family stuff.”

  The guys exchanged one of those looks again, but just then the door to the restaurant opened and Grandma stepped out. “Oh, there you are. Luis said you left, but I just couldn’t believe you’d leave without me so I came to check for your car and—”

  “Grandma, I’d never leave you. Luis was confused. I’m just saying bye to Colby and Landon.”

  “Good night, Ms. Di
az. Happy birthday again.” Landon lifted a hand and waved.

  “Thank you. I’m so happy you all made it. I wish the rest of your family could have.”

  “They were sorry to miss it,” Colby said, then turned to me. “We’re going to go. Sorry about all this.” He motioned toward the building. “But we can talk more later.”

  I nodded. “Yeah, of course. Thank you both for coming and be careful getting home.” With a quick wave, I headed over to Grandma, who waved goodbye as they walked away.

  “Such great boys.”

  I nodded in agreement.

  “Unlike your brother.”

  My jaw dropped. I knew how much of an asshole Luis could be, but was surprised that Grandma mentioned it.

  “I’m old. Not oblivious.”

  And then I laughed. “I love you.”

  She smiled back. “Yo tambien.”

  —

  After getting home that night I showered, changed into pajamas, and plopped into bed. It had been an exhausting day. Physically and mentally. To no one’s surprise, Luis didn’t stay at Grandma’s, claiming he was staying at a friend’s, but considering I couldn’t think of one person he hadn’t alienated over the last few years, he was probably actually staying in a hotel. Hell, for all I cared, he could be sleeping in his expensive little car.

  I buried myself under the blankets, then finally acknowledged the memory that Luis had stirred and that now refused to be silenced.

  It was my sixteenth birthday. Mom had told me I could drive us to dinner. Dad wasn’t happy. He said I wasn’t yet responsible enough to drive. I got upset and, in classic sixteen-year-old fashion, threw what Luis referred to as a fit about it. In my mind, I’d just been upset. It’s hard to know how it looked from the outside though.

  As we drove to dinner the whole car was tense and nobody said a word.

  Silence in our family wasn’t that uncommon, but that particular day, things were worse than usual. Mostly because I could sense the resentment directed at me; after all, it was my birthday forcing my parents to spend time together. Something they hardly did anymore.

  The streets of Port Lucia were never very busy, so even though I wasn’t an experienced driver I wasn’t usually nervous, but all the added tension had me on edge that night.