Page 115 of My Temptation

Beating the hell out of the bag, I paused to wipe the sweat from my brow and then started up again. I was angry almost all the time, and I couldn’t shake it. It was beginning to affect my life and the people around me, including everyone at work. Hell, I wasn’t even being the brother and uncle I needed to be for Everly and Riley. I was ignoring everyone. I got up, came to the office, got everything I’d need for the day and left. I didn’t socialize with anyone, and I only came to the gym when I knew it would be empty. I was lost, and I couldn’t seem to find my way back to who I was before that fucking trip to Devil’s Lake.

With music playing loudly in my ears, I didn’t hear anyone come into the gym until he was standing in front of me. He surprised me, considering it was Friday night. I thought everyone was already gone. With a jerk, I grabbed the bag before it swung back and hit Brody, who stood behind it with an expression I couldn’t read.

I tapped my earbud to stop the music before pulling them out, but I didn’t have time to say anything before Brody spoke. “Let’s go.”

He sounded pissed, and if I was being honest with myself, I’d been waiting for this. He gave me two weeks to get my shit together, and in those two weeks, I’d only gotten worse. I tossed my earbuds in my gym bag, shoved my phone in my pocket, and grabbed my T-shirt. Tugging it on, I followed him from the room, leaving everything else behind, assuming we were only going to his office.

I realized I was wrong when he led me out of the building and to his truck. We both got in, but after a minute of driving, I was confused enough to finally speak. “We got a job?”

“Nope.”

I turned to stare at the side of his face, panic filling me. “Did something happen to Everly?”

“Nope.”

“Then where the hell are we going?”

He didn’t answer, but he didn’t really have to because we’d already pulled into the parking lot attached to the apartment building where Mila lived.

He shut off the truck and gestured to the building. “Go talk to her.”

“We already talked, Brody.” That wasn’t true. I hadn’t talked to her since our conversation in the parking garage. She texted me before the meeting on Monday, but I was short when I replied. Honestly, I didn’t know what was left to say. We both took a stance, and neither was prepared to budge.

He shook his head. “Yeah, well, whatever the fuck you decided isn’t working, and now it’s affecting everyone.”

“I’ll fix it.”

He turned slightly so he could look at me. “We gave you time, Ethan, and it’s only getting worse. You’re not fixing it.”

I sighed. “It’s not that easy.”

“Life’s not easy, Ethan. It’s fucking hard, and it’s even harder when you’re fighting yourself as much as you are. This isn’t all on you. Told Mila pretty much the same thing.”

“It’s not her fault.” I stared at the building in front of me. “She wanted to talk about it, but I shut it down.”

“Why?”

“Because I already knew how she wanted to handle it, and I wasn’t capable of that.”

“She wanted to hide it,” he surmised.

I met his stare. “How did you know that?”

“She’s afraid.” Brody ran his hand around the back of his neck.

“Of what?”

“Of being judged by the team.” He shook his head. “Her father’s a piece of shit, Ethan. He got in her head, convinced her she wasn’t valuable, and she’ll do whatever it takes to prove herself. If that means hiding who she really is or what she likes, she’ll do it. She’ll become whatever people need her to be to prove she belongs.” He glanced at her building before meeting my stare again. “She do that shit while you were in Devil’s Lake?”

I thought about that but then shook my head. “No, not really.”

Brody inhaled deeply. “She trusts you. So that means the problem lies with the rest of us. And that’s something we’ll fix.”

“That doesn’t really change anything,” I admitted.

“No, not for the two of you.” He laid his head against the headrest, stared straight ahead, and exhaled loudly. “I’m no good at this.”

“At what?”

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