Page 21 of Where the Stars Heal

Silence takes over the room, and I wait for him to gather his thoughts. I don’t know what to say here. I don’t fully trust her, but there’s a deep sense of protectiveness that washes over me when she’s near. Will Hunter understand that? I have no clue.

He looks at me, his eyes full of worry. “She used to be this little kid who was always so excited to follow me around.” His voice catches. “And now… now she looks at me like I’m a stranger.”

“She’s not that little girl anymore, man.” I shrug, trying to play this off as normal as I can as his best friend, but all I want to do is to run out of here and make sure she made it back inside safely, that she didn’t skip out or lose her shit even more.

“Maybe something happened to her in the years you’ve been apart. People can change. Maybe she’s someone you can’t trust. Who knows what she’s here for?”

Hunter’s eyes flash with stubbornness as he slaps his knees and stands suddenly. “Nah, man. I don’t believe that. She’s my little sister, and she’s still the same person. I know it deep down. She just needs more time. I can’t give up on her.”

“Is she even worth it though, Hunter? Like, seriously, think about it for a second. She sounds like more work than this bar, and that’s a burden you don’t need.” I run my hands through my curls and sigh.

Before Hunter can say anything, I hear the door creak, and I freeze. The blood rushes from my face.Fuckkk.Howmuch of that did she hear? My mind backtracks on me, going over that whole conversation in my head as Halle steps through the door, anger and shock written all over her face. Her gaze pings between Hunter and me as tears start to well in her eyes.

Hunter steps toward her “Halle…” he starts and trails off. He knows she heard the worst of that conversation. She storms toward the back corner of the office, behind the desk, and snatches her bag up, keeping her head down, shielding herself from us.

“Whatever you heard, Halle, we didn’t mean—It was—We just—” Hunter tries again, stumbling over his words. Dude’s gotta stop talking. He’s just making it worse.

After the moment we had outside, I don’t think anything I say right now will make any of this better, so I choose to keep my mouth shut. My heart starts pounding again, and I keep my fists clenched at my sides to stop myself from reaching out and hauling her back into me. To wrap her up in my arms and tell her that I didn’t mean what I said. That I was just trying to protect her brother, too. But right now, my chest feels like it’s being torn in two.

Hunter or Halle.

Her hand lands on the door, and she hesitates, turning her head slightly to peek at us through the hair that’s shielding her face. “Madi said I could take off for the night. I know I’m a burden, so I’ll go pack my stuff and be on my way.” Her voice is quiet, but the words cut through me.

This is what I wanted. For her to pack her shit and leave town, but after last night in the park and tonight, I’m not sure that’s the right move anymore. I can’t explain it. None of this makes sense to me.

The room falls silent. Hunter’s frozen in place, not knowing what to do, and I don’t think either of us wasexpecting tonight to go this way. I know one of us needs to get back out to the bar but instead, all we do is stand there like the two morons we are and watch Halle walk away, her footsteps echoing down the hallway.

The back door slams in the distance, and Madi walks in glaring at both of us.

“What the hell just happened, and why did Halle just run by me with tears in her eyes? I swear to God, if either of you upset her even more after the panic attack she just had, I’ll put you both on vomit duty in the bathrooms for a whole week.”

My nose scrunches at that. There’s no way I’m cleaning those bathrooms after someone who has had one too many shots. I groan and cover my face, my fingers pressing into my temples as I drag my hand down.

“She just overheard the wrong part of our conversation,” I admit, the guilt hitting me harder as I continue, “I may have… said that she’s more work than this bar.” I cringe at my own words, knowing just how bad that sounds.

Hunter looks like he’s just been punched in the gut. He opens his mouth to speak, but Madi cuts in, demanding, “And you’re just standing here?” She points to Hunter aggressively and back out the door. “Go after her, you idiot. Run or take my car, I don’t care. Asher can give me a lift, but Hunter, don’t be stupid. Go stop her from whatever she’s about to do.”

I nod towards the door. “Go, man, we’ve got it here.”

He snatches Madi’s keys off her and, without a word, runs out the door. I need to sort my head out, and tonight needs to end. I look at Madi and shrug helplessly, trying to downplay this whole situation. She’s kind of scary right now with the way she’s glaring at me.

“Asher, you idiot. How did you go from texting me tobring Halle another shirt so she’s comfortable, to calming her down from a panic attack to screwing it all up and saying she’s not worth it?” She shakes her head and turns on her heel, heading back toward the front.

Catching up to her on hurried steps, I follow her behind the bar. “I’m sorry. Fuck. I didn’t know she was listening, and she really did miss the whole conversation.”

Loud laughter coming from the pool tables catches my attention, and I look over to see Jace pulling Tessa to her feet. Damn, she’s wasted and all over the place.

Moving to that end, I yell out, “Jace, man, call it,” and nod to the front door.

Any longer here, and Tessa will wake up with not only a nasty hangover but regret, too.

Madi comes up beside me and starts clearing the dirty glasses left on the counter. She looks at me and sighs. “I don’t care, Asher, just fix it. I like her, okay? And I want her to stay.”

Here’s hoping Hunter convinced her to stay because I sure as hell don’t know what to do here. She has me spiraling, and I haven’t felt this out of control sincethen.

9

I’M A FOOL

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