Page 119 of Sinful Skulls
Her husband appears seemingly out of nowhere and follows her back to their cabin.
Jesse sighs. “My sister has a hard time with death.”
“Don’t we all,” Billie Rose agrees, standing up and stretching. “I’m going to go upstairs and cuddle my babies.”
One by one everyone walks away, the weight of the day finally catching up to them.
Elizabeth glances at Lexie and me when we’re the only three who remain. “We’re going to need to step up for the club soon.”
Both Lex and I nod in agreement.
Lexie places a marshmallow on a stick and hands it to me. “I’ll do anything for these people.”
“Me too,” I say, staring into the flames.
“I’ve been freezing food for weeks, because Jesse and Mrs. Maggie shouldn’t be expected to feed everyone when they are grieving,” Elizabeth tells us.
“That’s a good idea. I can help, but I don’t have the freezer space.”
“I’ll help too, but I have even less room than her.” She nods at me.
“Just bring everything to the junkyard, and I’ll find a freezer to put it in somewhere.”
We’re all quiet.
Lexie finally breaks the silence. “I’ve been helping Rachel with some things for after …”
Her voice trails off, and Elizabeth walks over and pulls her from her chair into a hug. She waves for me to join them.
“We might be the new kids on the block around here, but we’re going to carry this fucking club as long as we need to. I know we all look up to Jesse and Katie. We can be like them. We can be strong.” She looks at Lex. “If Rachel tasked you with this, she trusts you, but if it becomes too heavy, we’re here for you.”
Lexie nods, wiping her eyes.
“If I have to get on the table and dance like a fool to make them laugh again, then that’s what I’ll do,” Elizabeth says, half-laughing, half-crying.
“Yeah, and if I have to take over Brody’s pranks for a while, I’ll do it. Even though it gives me anxiety.”
They both laugh sadly.
“We’ve got this,” Elizabeth assures us.
“You’re right. We have each other to lean on, but …” Lex pauses to wipe her eyes on the bottom of her shirt.
“But we stand strong for the Skulls,” I finish for her as the three of us intertwine our pinkies.
Chapter Forty-Five
Brody
Someone knocks on the door. I roll over, looking at the alarm clock. Fuck, it’s three in the morning. Daisy sits up next to me, rubbing her eyes.
The knocking becomes frantic, but I can’t move.
It feels like the entire world stopped spinning while we were asleep.
Daisy rubs her hand over my arm. “I’ll get it,” she whispers against my cheek as she gives me a kiss.
She grabs her robe, sliding her arms into the sleeves as she leaves the room.
