Page 28 of (Un)Spoken

Adam shoved his shoulder. “Cole, stop.”

“No,” he said as he leaped to his feet, moving quickly to stand in front of me, his whiskey-laced breath turning my stomach. “Do you think I asked to take care of you? To have to spend my days with some brat following me around, begging for attention?” His face contorted into a sneer. “I never fucking asked for you, baby sister, and I sure as shit don’t want you around now. You’re pathetic, weak, begging for any scrap of attention. You disgust me.”

Adam’s arm came around his waist, pulling him away from me, but he couldn’t stop Cole’s words from piercing through my skin. “Get the fuck out of my life.”

My body woke with a jolt, unable to escape that horrible look in Cole’s eyes, the one that spoke of years of unearthed anger and resentment, all because I wanted to be close to him. That was the night I started to close the door on our relationship, refusing to answer his cries for help, cutting off the money for his bar tabs and benders. I’d even let the cops take him away a couple of times, forcing him to sleep it off in a cell. He said he wanted me gone, so I faded away. I was done fighting for a brother who didn’t want anything to do with me. Even now, I felt like I was waiting for the moment he’d push me away, spewing those hateful words again.

A familiar ring echoed in my cabin, and I instantly reached out to grab my phone. My heart rate spiked when I saw the time and Cam’s name on the screen. My hands trembled when I answered the call, terrified of what he was going to say.

“Before you even ask, Emilia is okay.”

“Thank goodness,” I cried out. “Are you okay? Why are you calling so late?”

“Yeah, we’re all fine. But I thought you’d want to know that we’re at the ER. Emilia was throwing up and spiked a high fever, so we’re here now. They’re going to give her some fluids and let her rest, then send us home.” He paused, and I could hear a shaky rattle in his voice. “The doctors said she’s going to be fine, and I knew you’d want to know.”

Even with his attempt at a calming tone, guilt ripped through me. My baby was sick, likely looking for me, and here I was, pretending my life was the same as any other 23-year-old with no worries in the world.

Especially last night with Adam.

I refused to even consider that option. It had been hard enough to fall asleep last night. It was so tempting to go next door to his cabin, demanding another taste of his lips. Shame and my tattered pride were all that kept me in my bed, unwilling to face rejection twice in one day.

But now, all my focus was on my little girl, the person who held my heart outside my chest. The image of her in a hospital bed was all I could think about, hating that I was so far away when she needed me.

I climbed out of bed and grabbed my suitcase, putting the phone on speaker as I threw my clothes inside. “Okay, Cam, I’m coming home. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“Vic, you don’t have to. We have everything covered, I promise.”

“Don’t,” I snapped, taking out my frustrations on him. I stood up straighter, running my fingers across my exhausted eyes. “I’m sorry. I know you’re doing everything you can, but I want to be there. I need to see her.”

Cam let out a long sigh. “Text me when you have your flight times, and I’ll come to pick you up from the airport.”

“Thanks, Cam. Tell Em I love her and I’ll be there to hug her soon.”

“Will do.”

SIXTEEN

A pounding on the door echoed the pounding in my head. With a groan, I reached over, grabbing the alarm clock. Okay, way too fucking early. But the urgent knocks never stopped, continuing to ruin my already limited sleep.

Last night, I stood outside Victoria’s cabin for almost an hour, debating whether I should go inside. I practiced the words in my mind, trying to convey the emotions coursing through my fucked up brain. But no matter how I wanted to phrase it, they sounded like a pathetic excuse, nothing more than lip service. She deserved more than that. More than me.

It took hearing her laughter to know I would be an unwelcome visitor. Plus, some space was probably wise. I’d almost fucked my best friend’s little sister in the middle of the lake, and that would have been…

I almost said mistake, but I couldn’t bring myself to describe what happened last night as that. Was it smart? Not at all. But I’d never claimed to make wise decisions. And yes, developing feelings for the one woman I shouldn’t be thinking about was inadvisable, but I couldn’t bringmyself to regret it. In fact, as my eyes opened, I was more determined to clear the air with Victoria, to get another taste of her—maybe more, if she was interested.

The knocking continued, so I threw the comforter off and stumbled to the front door. I’d barely turned the handle when Cole barged inside, his whole body radiating with anger.

“Did something happen last night with Tori?”

Oh, fuck. I racked my brain for something, anything to say to Cole.Well, yeah, I skinny-dipped with your baby sister last night, and she thought I rejected her, so she ran off.But those words, even the rated PG version, refused to leave my mouth, especially with so much still unsaid between Victoria and myself.

“I don’t know,” I forced out the words. “What’s going on?”

“She left.” Cole dropped down into one of the chairs in the kitchenette. “She called my dad in the middle of the night to take her to the airport, and no one will tell me why. She left me a note saying that she’ll call me when she gets home. A goddamn note, Adam.” I placed my hand on his shoulder, and he shook it off. He paced the kitchen, more mumbling to himself than to me. “There was a moment last night when I thought, shit, I can really fix this. We can start over, and I can make amends for all the pain I’ve caused her. But now…” He slammed the note down on the table. “I don’t have the first fucking clue how to handle this.”

“What does Alex think?”

Cole chuckled. “She wants me to follow her, to go to Texas and confront her.”

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