Page 44 of The Final Straw

I head out to the living room and start packaging up the food. I carefully return each item to its original container and place them in the refrigerator, alongside the case of Pepsi.

After locking the door, I turn off the lights and make my way back to her room.

Slipping out of my clothes, I crawl into bed beside her, feeling the soft sheets against my skin. She’s in the middle, between me and Kipp. I pull her into my side, feeling the warmth of her body against mine as I run my hand up and down her arm.

“It’s gonna be okay, Ollie. We’re here for you, and we’ll help you fix this. Whatever you want from us, we’re here.”

We stay like that, just holding her, until she finally falls asleep. Once I’m sure she’s out, Kipp slides out of the bed and strips down to his boxer briefs. He gets back in beside her, wrapping an arm around her protectively.

“What are we gonna do, Grady?” Kipp whispers, his voice heavy with concern.

“I don’t know,” I admit. “But we’re going to follow her lead and stay and help her until she kicks us out of her life.”

Kipp nods, his eyes never leaving Olivia’s sleeping face. We stay silent, the room filled with her soft, uneven breathing. The night stretches on, but I feel a resolve settle over us.

We’ll be her support, her strength, and her shoulders to cry on. And somehow, we’ll help her navigate through this darkness.

“We’re here for you, Ollie,” I whisper, more to myself than to her. “We’re not going anywhere.”

Chapter 23

Olivia

I wake up the next morning, sandwiched between Kipp and Grady. My head is throbbing, and my heart feels heavy as the memories of last night come flooding back. I can’t believe what they told me.

Carefully, I wiggle out from between them and tiptoe to the bathroom. I look in the mirror and puffy eyes and a blotchy face stare back at me. After peeing and washing my hands, I head out to the kitchen to make coffee.

I'm relieved they stayed last night because I was a wreck. I was also glad they called and decided to come over, as I had some news to share with them, too. I had planned to tell them that I’d taken a few days to think and, although I’m not ready for a whole relationship yet, I want to see them and take things slow. Date, not just fuck and brunch afterward. But their news had overshadowed mine in the worst way possible. Van… my Van had been raped by Barbi.

I grab a mug and pour myself a cup, adding white chocolate syrup and some almond creamer. Taking a seat on the couch, I pull my legs under me and just stare out the window, trying to process everything that’s happened. Footsteps come down the hall, and I turn to see it’s Grady.

“Good morning,” he says, bending down to kiss my temple, causing me to smile. Then he heads to the kitchen. “Oh, thank God there’s coffee.” He joins me in the living room, and we sip our brew in silence.

A while later, Kipp exits the bedroom and heads straight to the kitchen for a mug. I’m glad I keep my mugs on the counter, or they’d have been rooting around in the disarray that is my cabinets.

“How are you?” Kipp asks, sitting next to Grady.

“It’s a lot, but I’m okay. Mostly, I just feel guilty that Van was alone during this time. I didn’t take his calls, let him explain, and he was all alone dealing with this. Fuck! How could I do something like that? How could Barbi do something like that? Sleeping with your best friend’s man is one thing, but assault? That’s terrible. Disgusting. She should rot in jail.”

My eyes widen as I realize what I just said. Although I mean every word, the person I’m talking about has a loved one in this room.

I lock my eyes on Kipp. “Oh my god, how are you? She’s your daughter! I’m so sorry.”

“I’m fine. Jessica called, wanting me to bail Barbi out and hire her an attorney, but I refused. I want nothing to do with her.”

“This is such a mess. Just when I thought I had everything figured out, I’m hit with another curveball.”

“What are you gonna do, Ollie?” Kipp asks.

“I don’t know yet. I know I need to see Van, but I don’t know how to make that happen. It seems... I don’t know, wrong to just call and say hey, I’m sorry.”

“I get that,” Kipp replies.

“Maybe you should invite him over for a chat and just start at the beginning?” Grady suggests.

“Yeah, I could. You know, it’s kinda weird that you two are giving me advice about my ex-boyfriend, who I still have feelings for.”

Grady winces. “We care about you, Ollie. We know it’s only been a few weeks, but we are fond of you and just want you to be happy.”

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