Page 161 of Just This Once

“Yeah. I told him I was going to run out and get us some breakfast.”

Thane sat back in his booth and drummed his fingers momentarily before saying, “I should confess something to you too.”

I tipped my head in question. “About what?”

“You,” he admitted, glancing up to send me a regretful smile. “About why I’ve always had a chip on my shoulder against you.”

I scoffed. “I already know why. Because I was so horrible to Alec, and then I had the gall to ask him for a liver.”

But Thane only shook his head. “No,” he murmured softly. “It had nothing to do with Alec. It was because of Parker.”

“Parker?”

Thane nodded. “Iwas his best friend. I was there for him every day after his parents died. And for eight entire months, he wouldn’t say a single word. Not even to me. Thenyouappeared, and suddenly he’s spilling out an entire novel’s worth of words.” Lifting his gaze to me, he shrugged helplessly. “No one else can reach him the way you do. It’s always been that way. And—” Wincing, he admitted, “I’ve been jealous.”

“I’m sorry,” I started. One thing I never wanted to do was come between any of the seven.

But Thane only waved a hand. “No,” he assured. “Don’t be sorry. I’m happy for him. Just—” He hissed out a breath before shaking his head. “Just make sure he enjoys it while he has it, will you? I’ve always wanted him to experience love the way I got to. Even if it’s fleeting, I want him to get the whole shebang. It’s the reason why life’s worth living.”

I nodded, starting to cry all over again. “Okay,” I promised. “I’ll make sure he enjoys it.”

37

PARKER

Hope was gone for over an hour and a half.

When I stepped from the bathroom, freshly showered and still rubbing a towel over my damp hair, I sensed her absence immediately. The pool house just felt…abandoned.

It felt wrong.

That alone filled me with enough unease. But then half an hour passed, and I started to wonder where the hell she was. When I reached for my phone to check the location ofLucy, I paused, deciding I should stop stalking her. But with my phone in my hand, I caught the notification from Raina’s messages.

Reading that she’d found my parents in the afterlife—and that they actually wanted to meet up—made my nerves twist uneasily. I sat down on the edge of the bed and stared sightlessly across the room.

I didn’t feel ready for this. But I’d been searching for them for over ten years; I couldn’t let an opportunity to see them just pass by.

So Raina and I scheduled the attempt for Tuesday evening since Foster wouldn’t return from his away game until tomorrow, and we wanted to give him some time to recuperate before having to play chaperone all night.

And from there, I paced, even antsier for Langston to get her ass back home.

When she finally did blow through the door, toting two carryout bags from different places, plus a drink carrier full of what smelled like coffee, she wouldn’t look at me.

“Sorry it took so long, but I stopped for Froyo first, then got the works.” She went straight to the table to set everything down. “Drinks, waffles, muffins, fruits, breakfast burritos, ham and eggs, bacon. We’re not going to need to eat again for at least another week.”

As she busied herself with opening the first bag and pulling out various containers, I strode over to capture her chin and force her to look at me.

She blinked in surprise. “Wha?—?”

I narrowed my eyes. “You’ve been crying.”

Her lips parted. But then she waved a dismissive hand. “Oh yeah. And then there was that.”

“That?” I repeated, stepping closer. “What’sthat? Did someone fuck with you?”

“No.” She shook her head jerkily. “Of course not. Nothing like that.” She tried to turn away from me to continue setting out the food.

But I wasn’t having it. Grasping her arm, I turned her back. “Then what happened?”

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