Page 48 of Drum Me Away
A string of pearls draped around her neck, complimenting the navy suit with white piping she wore.
Based on what Faith had told me about her family since we’d arrived in Washington, I wanted to step closer, offer my support during this interaction.
Based on the way that bubble of happiness had sprung a leak at Roxanne’s shop and the fact that we hadn’t yet talked about it or fully made up, I should step back instead. But that obsession of mine had only grown stronger over the course of the last decade, and I was pretty much powerless to turn away.
I shifted my stance to stand close enough behind Faith that it was obvious I was making myself part of the conversation but unobtrusive enough that Faith could ignore me if she chose.
“You brought your band to our grandmother’s funeral?” Ava asked, her gaze on me. I tugged at my collar, the action causing my cuff to pull back enough to reveal the edges of my sleeve tattoo. Quickly, I slipped my hand behind my back.
“They’re my friends,” Faith said. “They’ve actually all met Grandma. She’d been to several of our shows.”
Something passed between the two sisters; whatever it was, it wasn’t warm and fuzzy. Ava’s eyes narrowed as she shifted her focus to Maria.
“What’s wrong with you?” Ava asked. I couldn’t say what she noticed to ask that question, because to me, so long as Faith kept her arm around Maria’s waist and Maria kept her mouth shut, she could pass for sober well enough.
But then again, they were siblings, and I knew damn well I’d be able to tell if something were wrong with my sister, too.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Maria said, “maybe the fact that my grandmother died and I’m in mourning?” The sarcasm in her voice was evident even to me.
“Can we not do this, please?” Faith pleaded. “Let’s just go pay our respects and then Maria’s leaving, aren’t you? You need to get home to Riley, right?”
“You aren’t staying for the entire viewing?” Ava asked. “Does Mother know this?”
“No,” Faith said. “And it would be really helpful if you wouldnotpoint it out to her.”
Ava crossed her arms. “Then tell me why she’s leaving.”
Maria waved her hand in Ava’s face, close enough that Ava swatted it away. “I’m drunk,” she announced, loud enough that several nearby couples turned to glance at her. Faith’s cheeks flushed. I placed my hand on the small of her back, and she reached around and pushed it away.
Okay, then.
Ava’s brows shot into her hairline. “Are you serious? Have you ever gotten drunk in your life?”
Maria shook her head. “Nope.”
“Not even in college?” I asked, surprise forcing the words past my lips.
“Hearsys do not lose control,” Maria recited like she was reading something she’d memorized as a kid.
“I imagine that’s why you changed your name to Devempor, right, Faith?” Ava said. I had the urge to point out to her that she had nothing to worry about; Faith was as emotionally stunted as the rest of her family, although she had come a long way in the last few days.
Hopefully, once all this funeral business was over and we were back on tour, away from this place that was obviously toxic as hell, we could regain some of that ground it felt like we’d lost in the last few hours.
Yeah, we had a whole lot of other shit to deal with too. Did we tell Dahlia to cancel the plan to convince the fans we were breaking up? Did we go public with our new, real relationship?
Did we even actually have a real relationship? We hadn’t defined what happened between us, not out loud, not to each other. For Christ’s sake, it just happened twenty-four hours ago.
Man, I wish it had happened at a more opportune time, when we could focus entirely on growing…whatever this was growing between us.
I knew what I wanted to call it. I knew how I felt. But saying those three words to Faith would possibly send her running in the other direction. She needed time to adjust, to accept that she deserved all the love I had to give her.
Holy shit. I swiped my hand over my face because, yeah, even though they were words in my head and not out loud, that was pretty fucking significant.
I was in love with Faith Devempor. Er, Faith Hearsy. Whatever.
I loved her.
This wasn’t a crush. Hell, it wasn’t an obsession. It was deeper than both those sensations.
