by Ava Harrison
“Are you paying?”
He chuckles. “We’re friends. Friends split the bill.”
It’s my turn to laugh. “Touché.”
“Okay, my turn.”
He narrows his eyes. “Are you trying to cheat me out of my ten questions?”
“No. You have more than exceeded your limit.”
He grins. “All right then. Proceed.”
I tap my finger to my chin, seriously considering thinking hard about what I want to ask Pierce Lancaster. “Why were you really arrested? What exactly did you do?”
His smile falls. “It’s not really something I like to talk about, but since all is fair in ten questions, I will answer.” He takes a deep breath. “I was driving a car full of people who had all been drinking and doing other drugs and a female passenger was getting”—his eyes shift away from me—“handsy.”
My mouth drops open in mock shock.
“I told her to stop and she didn’t. I swerved, and a cop was sitting in a parking lot right in time to see it.”
I scrunch my nose, almost disappointed because the reason is so . . . boring. A woman getting playful in a car full of drunk and high party boys seems tame for that crowd.
“I’m surprised all she was getting was handsy.”
He rolls his eyes, clearly not amused by my jab. “There were other people in the car. I’m not big into voyeurism.”
“You’re disgusting.” I cringe, which gets a chuckle from him.
“Next question,” he demands.
“What’s the deal with you and your brothers?”
His face pales, not that I expect anything different. This question won’t be easy for Pierce, but if this is my only time to glean the details, I’m going for it.
“Not going easy on me, I guess.”
I shrug. “Like you said, all’s fair in ten questions.”
He takes a deep breath. “Since I was never expected to run Lancaster Holdings, I was basically ignored. My father didn’t have time for me, and neither did my brothers. As a child, I harbored a lot of resentment and eventually turned to lashing out, which included alcohol and drugs.”
“Did you like that lifestyle?” I ask, genuinely curious.
He purses his lips and his eyes narrow to slits. “No. If I’m being honest, I never liked it. It’s a very lonely life. You’re surrounded by people all night, but in the morning when you wake up, you’re all alone again. When you need someone the most, there’s no one.”
I watch his face for any tell that he’s putting me on. I don’t find any. All I see is truth, and for the first time in a long time, the walls I’ve erected to keep Pierce out start to crumble.
“Why did you come to work here?” I go for an easier question, deciding to take it easy on him just this once.
“I had to do community service, and Carson reached out to me. It appears he has a very similar story to mine, and he’s been able to reform. He believes I can, too, so he offered me the chance to fulfill my obligation while working to rebuild my life. I owe him a lot.”
“Why are you being so honest with me?”
“I’ve nothing to hide, Lindsey. You of all people should know what it’s like.” He runs his hand through his hair, pulling at the root. “I can’t explain it, but I guess I don’t feel uncomfortable admitting my faults or showing you my weaknesses because I guess we’re the same.”
“What does that mean?” I say defensively.
“From what I gathered that night we got drunk—”
I cringe at his words. He gives me a tight, timid smile, a smile I can assume is saying sorry before he continues. “I have a feeling our childhoods were much the same, which is exactly why you found yourself in the same rut I was in.”
He isn’t wrong. My father was too busy running an oil empire to care much about what I was doing. My nightly soirées and run-ins with the law were all a cry for attention. Attention I never received. It left me a shell of a girl and bitter as hell. When Pierce compares his life to mine, I get it. Doesn’t mean I like it, but I understand him a little better.
“Time is up,” Carson yells through the room. “On to your next station.”
“That’s not fair,” I grumble. “I didn’t get in all my questions.”
Pierce laughs.
“I suppose at that friend’s dinner, I’ll give you a couple more.”
I roll my eyes. “Doubtful,” I whine. “Where do we go next?”
Pierce looks over a sheet of paper.
“We have to build a fort with only the materials we can find in this room.”
“A fort. Seriously?”
“So it says.” He points to the paper as though it’s the Bible.
We make our way to the station to get the full details of our task. On the desk are the directions outlining what we need to do. I read them out loud. “Each partner shall have three minutes to collect everything they can find around the room to help construct a fort. After three minutes you’ll work as a team to construct the fort before time is called.”
“So, a fort. All right then. Set the timer and let’s start searching.”
I set a timer on my phone and call out, “Go!” Pierce races off in a separate direction than me, letting me go to the station close by to limit my walking. I grab items I think make sense and head back to home base to drop them off before darting back out to search for more.
“One minute,” Pierce calls across the room.
I watch as he jogs off for last-minute stuff, too. Finding a blanket, I grab it from him when he returns and then place it on the desk with all the other items.
“Time,” I call.
A winded Pierce comes back carrying an umbrella.
“What do we have to work with?” I ask.
Pierce sifts through the pile and calls out what we have gathered. Three blankets, an umbrella, two large boxes, duct tape, four large blocks that look like oversized Lego, a packet of glow-in-the-dark stars, and a pad of stickers.
“What the hell, Pierce?” I snap, not entirely mad but a little confused. “In three minutes, I managed to get vital pieces to create a fort. You contributed an umbrella, a packet of stars and stickers, and one blanket?”
“Well, yeah. Oh, and this,” he says, pulling a large Sharpie marker out of his back pocket.
I throw my hands in the air. Glad to see he went for the important stuff.
“Now what?” he asks, all boyish, disarming me and forcing my attitude to drop.
“We need to build this thing.” My eyes scan the items. “We need to start with the floor. I suggest we use the blocks.”
“The blocks? No way. That would be the most uncomfortable fort ever.”
My eyes narrow on him. “What would you know about forts?”
His eyes lower, hands going into his pockets while he rocks on his heels. “One of my nannies and I used to make forts when I was younger. It was one of my best memories.”
The way his sad eyes tell the recollection guts me. A familiar empty feeling spreads within me. Memories of waking up to find that my parents were out of the country haunt me. The memories feel real, like I’m living through them all over again as tears well in my eyes, for the pain I felt, for the pain it appears he too has felt.
Was he really that neglected?
If so, we have so much more in common than I ever thought. My dad loved me, and he tried to spend time with me, but the busier work got, the less time he actually did. Through the years it became less and less.
“No blocks for the floor then. Got it. What would you suggest?”
Pierce chews on his lip, looking over our things.
“Let’s use the blankets for the floor, and then those two boxes for the walls.”
I try to envision what he’s suggesting and finally decide to let him lead this and I’ll gladly take orders. “Lead the way, captain.”
He gets busy placing the blankets, creating a makeshift bed for a floor.
“What can I do?”
; He thinks about it for a second and then directs me to hand him the cardboard boxes. “Can you break down the boxes so they are two large flat flaps?”
I try to picture where he’s going with this, but so far, I’m coming up blank.
“Hand me the tape, please.”
Grabbing the tape, I watch as he tries to hold both pieces of cardboard up into a tent-like shape. It keeps collapsing on him and I can’t help but laugh.
“What’s so funny?”
“That’s never going to work, just saying.”
“You think you can do better?” His hands are on his hips and his eyes are slanted in question. I think he’s going to prove me wrong when I can’t come up with anything. Then brilliance hits. Our materials are in piles on desks. We can use anything in the room, and we have desks.
“Quick, help me with these. We’re running out of time.”
He quirks a brow but comes to my aid, positioning the desks to allow space for two bodies.
Overtop we lay one of the cardboard boxes. We use the other to drape down the back, leaving the front open. Crawling into the makeshift tent, we both get inside and tape the stars to the ceiling and then place the stickers on the walls for decoration. When it’s all done, we both lie back.
“Not too shabby, Lucky.”
“I’ve got to say, you were pretty quick on your feet, too. I have no idea how we could’ve done this without the stickers and stars.”
Pierce laughs, turning toward me. “Seriously, I think if I didn’t have you, I would’ve frozen out in the wilderness.”
“Yes, this center is very wasteland-esque.”
We both laugh at that, my stomach tightening from the exertion. It feels good. Better than I expected to be hanging with Pierce like this.
Staring up at the stars, I dare another question. “Pierce?”
“Yeah?”
“Would you give up all the money for a normal family?”
His hand brushes mine and tingles glide up my arm.
“Every time.”
Blowing out a deep breath, I close my eyes and dream up what a normal family would even look like.
“A gauntlet?” Lindsey practically screeches the question.
“Yep. It looks like we have to run a gauntlet against another team.”
“Is he trying to kill us?”
Lindsey’s dramatics have me covering my mouth to shield my grin. Today has been a test of wills, for sure. I didn’t think I’d survive Lindsey’s ten questions. She was a bulldog, and for some strange reason, I couldn’t bring myself to lie to her.
Watching her over the past few days, I see how much she’s hurting. The physical limitations her accident caused weigh on her, but she refuses to admit it. She’d rather suffer in silence than show any sort of weakness and it’s admirable but crazy. Everyone has limitations and knowing them can help you surpass them. The harder she pushes, the longer it’ll take her to be at her best. She’s overdoing it.
“I’ll be right back,” I call to Lindsey, making my way over to Carson. Once Lindsey is preoccupied grabbing a glass of water in the fridge, I clear my throat to grab his attention.
“Hey, Pierce. How’s it going?” Carson narrows his eyes as if he expects me to complain about my current situation.
“I’m concerned about the gauntlet for Lindsey.”
“Did she send you over here?”
I shake my head. “Hell no. She’d cut off my balls if she knew I was saying something.”
He chuckles, knowing damn well that my words are accurate. Lindsey doesn’t mess around, and she’s too proud to suggest such a thing.
“It’s just that I’ve seen her struggle with her leg the past couple of days, and I don’t want her getting hurt.”
“I’ll talk to her and make sure she’s up for it,” Carson says. I can imagine he’s counting the many ways Lindsey will kill him for even suggesting she sit out, but someone has to try. I can’t watch her get hurt. Not when I could have stopped it.
“Just . . . please don’t bring me into it. We’re finally at an understanding of sorts, and I don’t want to go backward with her.”
Carson’s knowing smile tells me he planned this all along. I’ve got to hand it to the guy. He’s a smooth criminal. “Noted. You better head back before she catches you talking to me.”
I nod, heeding his words and jogging off while she’s still preoccupied.
“You’re back. Where were you?” Lindsey says offhandedly.
“Restroom,” I lie. White lies are not the same as out-and-out lying, especially when used to not hurt someone—or in this case, piss someone off.
“While I was stretching, I read over the rules. It looks like I start first and then tag you in for the final lap. It’s an obstacle course of sorts. We have to go to the gym.”
“Should we head there now?” I ask.
“Yeah, the other team is probably waiting for us.”
When we reach the gym, my concerns about Lindsey participating skyrocket. This place is set up in a very intricate obstacle course. Climbing, jumping, swinging—it will all be necessary.
“Do you think it’s a good idea for you to do this?” I ask, not overthinking my words.
It was a mistake.
“What the hell does that mean?” she seethes. “First Carson, now you. I’m perfectly capable of doing this, Pierce. I’m not broken.”
I wince, feeling the burn of her words to my bones. “I’m not saying that. I was just trying to help.”
“Well, stop. I don’t want your help.”
With that she storms off, leaving me feeling like the world’s biggest asshole. Was I wrong? Should I have left well enough alone?
No. It felt right. At the end of the day, she’ll come around. If she can forgive me for fucking her and leaving her at one of her lowest points, she’ll forgive me for having a heart and fucking caring.
And I do. God help me, but I care for Lindsey. The night of the engagement party it was as if a light switch went on. I always thought she was a cool girl, but she came across as self-centered. That night, however, I saw another side. She put my needs before her pride. If that wasn’t enough, seeing her at the center, with these kids, that was the icing on the cake for me. I care about Lindsey Walker.
“Are you guys ready?” a guy named Trent asks. He’s one of our competitors and sizing him up, I have to admit he might be the worst person to square off with. He’s athletically built and I’ve seen him play basketball. White boy gets air. If that isn’t bad enough She-ra, aka Marcie, strolls up beside him. We’re fucked. It’s team ex-partiers vs. team ballers.
“Yeah, man. Just give me a minute. I need to find Lindsey.”
I round the corner and find her stretching.
“You ready? We’re up against Trent and Marcie.”
Her eyes widen. “Shit. That’s some bad luck on our end.”
I chuckle because it’s accurate and kind of turning into our M.O. “We’ve got this.” I extend my hand, helping her to her feet. “Let’s smash it.”
Lindsey lines up next to Marcie, looking stone-faced and ready to slay. She’s always been a hard-ass, and although the only competition I’ve ever witnessed her partake in included chugging expensive alcohol, she always went balls to the wall. If there’s one thing you can say about Lindsey, it’s that she’s no quitter.
“On your mark, get set, go,” Trent calls out, and the girls are off. My mouth drops open with surprise at Lindsey jogging over to the course. It’s not more than a few steps before she reaches it, but I’m still impressed.
They’ve made it over the wall of mats and around the large balls. Lindsey is killing it. Pride swells in my chest watching her. Not a year ago she couldn’t even walk, and here she is competing in a gauntlet and holding her own.
Lindsey has always been attractive, with long brown hair and crystal blue eyes, but never more so than now. Her strength and courage are a force, and I have to admit she’s driving me crazy in the best way. I’ve n
ever wanted a relationship, and I typically run from anything close to it, but here in this moment, I want one.
With her.
You’re not good enough.
I’m not, but I will be. I have work to do to prove it to her, but I’ll do whatever it takes to be everything she deserves.
The women round the last corner for their final lap. It’s a straight sprint. I yell her name, cheering her on. Her arms are pumping, and she has the lead on Marcie.
And that’s when everything goes to hell.
I see it first in her face. The grimace can’t be missed. Following that, I watch in horror as her leg buckles and she flies forward, slamming face first into the floor.
“Fuck,” I yell, running toward her. “Are you okay?”
She doesn’t say anything, but I can hear her sobs.
“Linds.” My hand darts out to her shoulder.
“Don’t touch me,” she snaps, and I jerk back as though I’ve been slapped in the face. “Just leave me the fuck alone.”
I know that right now not only is her leg hurting, but so is her pride. I won’t leave her here like this.
“Pierce. What happened?” Carson says, running up behind me.
I turn around, looking at him. “I’ve got her. Can you please clear the room? Get everyone out of here.”
His eyes narrow, and my back tenses. He better not give me a hard time. Lindsey is a proud person, and this has got to be killing her. The blood pumping through my veins speeds up as I wait for him to make his move. I’m ready to go to bat for her, just like she did for me once. If kicking everyone out is what needs to be done, so be it.
Time seems to stand still, but eventually he goes about emptying the gym.
A tight breath escapes me. The look on her face pains me. The anger she portrayed was nothing but a shield for wounded pride. Time will help, so I give Lindsey a few minutes to compose herself before I’ll talk again.
When it’s obvious that she’s calmed down, I lower myself to be on eye level with her. She’s not looking at me, though. Instead, she’s focused on her leg, staring at it with distaste, hatred, and sadness. It breaks me. I can feel her pain in each ragged breath she takes.