Page 22 of Ace of Spades
The arena lights shine through her curtains, just enough to give her eyes a soft amber glow in the dim lighting.
“Sure,” I tell her, pulling my phone out and shooting a text to Rafe and Chance in our group message to keep an eye on things until I get back.
“Sometimes, I don’t like him either,” she admits, her voice barely a whisper.
I look up from my phone, caught off guard by the pain lacing her tone. It sounded so raw and genuine, like this was something she had never admitted out loud.
Had something happened today?
“Hey Weston?” she cuts my train of thought, sounding half asleep.
“Yes, Sorrels?” I ask.
There’s a pause before she answers next.
“I think I’m gonna be sick,” she says, stumbling off of the bed and onto the floor.
“Shit,” I mutter, throwing my arm around her waist and rushing her to the en-suite bathroom, throwing the toilet seat open just in time for her to spill her guts into it, her small hands grabbing onto the bowl for dear life.
I run my hands through her dark hair, pulling it out of her face and into a makeshift ponytail, making sure to get any stray hairs before transferring all of it to one hand and using the other to rub circles along her back.
“That’s it, get it all out,” I tell her, flushing a few times in between. Once I was confident she was done, I let her sit back against the bathtub, leaving her there for a minute to find my way to the kitchen and grab a few things.
“Throwing up sucks,” she whines.
“Well, I could’ve told you that,” I chuckle. “Come on, let’s get you to bed.”
Once I have her sitting up against her headboard and tuck the comforter over her, I use the hair tie on her wrist to tie her hair into a messy bun on the top of her head before passing her the makeup wipes.
“Do you want to take off your makeup or do you want me to do it for you?” I ask.
She looks at me as if she’s seeing me for the first time, a questioning look in her eyes. That, or she’s seeing double.
“Why are you so good at this?” she asks, the words slightly slurred.
“I have a little sister,” I chuckle. “She’s the same age as you,” I explain, sitting on the edge of the bed. Hailey’s eyes close as she allows me to rub her face with the makeup wipe.
“Aw, I wish I had a sister,” she makes a pouty face that only makes me smile wider. “Tell me about her.”
“Her name is Kota. She’s the most positive person I’ve ever met, with the biggest heart. She loves everyone.”
Hailey smiles at that, but it looks almost bittersweet.
“She sounds great,” she admits. “So you guys are close?”
“Yeah,” I admit. “We are. It’s always just been the three of us. They’re the most important people to me.”
She offers me a soft smile, opening her eyes as I finish up and throw away the wipe.
“What happened with your dad?”
“He was never in the picture,” I confess. “From what Mom tells us, he stuck around for a few years after he had me. She said he had a bad gambling addiction and tons of debt, and that whatever he didn’t spend on gambling, he used on booze. She said he left right after Kota was born, leaving mom with two young kids, no money, and a shit ton of bills adding up. My mom was never able to get her feet back under her until I went pro a few years back and started helping with all of the bills, but between all of the debt that needed to be paid back, the constantly raising bills,and paying for Kota to go to college on top of it, we’re still not out of the water.”
I watch as she processes all of this, letting it all sink in. I had no idea why I was being so open with her. Maybe it was the fact that she was drunk, and I wasn’t even certain she would remember any of this in the morning. That, or maybe it was the fact that her guards seemed lowered, and I wanted to take advantage of this brief glimpse I was getting of the real her.
“And my dad… he’s making it harder for you guys? He’s the one raising the rent?” she asks, almost cautiously.
“Yes,” I tell her, careful not to lace any accusation in my tone.
