Page 12 of Unraveled

Tucker eyed me, his beer just an inch from his lips, and then he shook his head with an irritated huff before lowering the bottle. “How do you always do that?”

“Do what?” I smirked, already knowing.

He gave me another look.

I took a drink and lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “Like I’ve said before, I know you. So, what’s up?”

He sighed, glancing at our dads first, but they were so wrapped up in their own convo they weren’t listening to ours. Still, he grabbed the remote to turn on somemusic, covering our conversation. “Izzy wants me to talk to Micah.”

“What?” I couldn’t have heard that right.

“Yeah.” Tucker tipped his beer at me before taking a long pull. “Exactly my reaction.”

“Did she say why?”

“You mean besides the fact that he asked her to?Afterhe saved her from Zane.”

“What?” My tone nearly growled, matching the frustration I could read in Tucker.

“Yeah, at some gas station. Zane came up and had her feeling cornered as usual, and Micah apparently swooped in and forced him to back off and leave.”

“Let me guess, she was alone when he did it.”

He slid me a look before tipping his beer back again, the gesture enough.

Fuck.I shook my head. How Zane always managed to find her when we weren’t there… “So, Micah helped her one time, and now, she wants you to talk to him?” I asked, trying to make it make sense.

“She pointed out that he pulled Ryder off of her when they grabbed her that time, but fuck that. He participated in that shit that timeandthe other shit Ryder’s pulled. Ugh… Fuck. What am I gonna do?”

“Nottalk to him…” I gave Tucker a look like he was crazy for even considering it, and he gave me a pained one back. “What?”

“Izzy said to at least unblock him. See what he’s had to say. He’s been trying to apologize. And now that he’s about to be her family, too, she wants fences mended if they can be.”

I blew out a long breath, almost jumping as the balls broke with the start of another game of pool. “That’s a tough one. She has a point.”

“Fuck. You’re not supposed to say that.”

Yeah, it surprised me, too.But for some reason it made me think of my family back in Greece. Something had driven my family apart back there, and it bothered my grandma enough for it to be her dying wish that we connected again. “Just…she has a point. Micahdidhelp her, and I’m not saying you need to forgive him or anything. Because if someone had done to Annie what your cousins did to Izzy, I’d want to blacklist them forever. But Izzyisgoing to be your wife.”

Holy shit, that’s weird to say.Just a year ago, they weren’t even together yet. Tucker still didn’t even know he had feelings for Izzy. It was crazy how much people could change.Fuck.That was my answer right there.

“At least, unblock him, man. See what he has to say like she said. Maybe something’s happened and he’s different now.”

Tucker scoffed.

“Well, hey, you don’t want to focus on your problem, help me focus on mine.”

“What’s that?”

I slid from my seat at the bar and set down my bottle, the glass making a hollow, clanking thud against the granite. “Gotta find Nic and figure out what’s gone up his ass today.”

“Shit, good luck with that,” Tucker grumbled, following my lead.

TUCKER

I sat back in one of the front porch chairs later that night, darkness surrounding me as I waited. Most of our families had already gone to bed. Our parents hadn’t loved it when they found out that Izzy and I were sharing the master, but she had rented the place and declared final say. Eventually, they’d gotten over it. Now, all our families were tucked in beds back under one roof, and Jet, Annie, Izzy, and even Nic were waiting upstairs for me in the game room.

I just had to do something first.

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