Page 30 of Ground Truth

He gave up the fight. Years of familiarity with Scarlett’s bullheaded behavior informed his choice.

The only way to deal with her was to nod and smile and then do whatever the hell he wanted once she drove away.

Which, of course, she was absolutely expecting.

He smiled as he let himself into the house, dragging his weary ass to bed. Where he hoped to sleep for twelve hours straight.

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Chapter 16

Flint felt worse than he’d let on. He’d been experiencing several of the classic concussion symptoms for the past few days. He’d had concussions before. The situation would correct itself in a week or two.

He’d expected to wait out the concussion symptoms while sunbathing on the yacht. Now that he’d returned to Houston, where Scarlett watched him like a hawk, his head injury would be more difficult to conceal.

He took a handful of painkillers and flopped down on his bed fully clothed.

Next thing he heard, sometime the next day, was Drake’s fist pounding on his bedroom door like an amateur drummer practicing a military tattoo. The cadence matched the pounding inside his head.

Flint rolled over and opened one eye. “What do you want?”

Drake’s fit body filled the open doorway. He leaned against the doorjamb. “Thought you might be hungry.”

Flint was hungry, but the mere thought of food made him nauseous. Which reminded him that somewhere over Appalachia on the plane, he’d vomited his breakfast hours ago.

Not something he wanted Drake or Scarlett to know, so he said, “Sure. Can I get a shower first?”

Drake hung around while Flint showered and dressed. They met up in the kitchen, where Drake had plopped a couple of sodas in paper cups and takeout bags from the local barbecue place they both loved.

Flint leaned his back against the kitchen counter across from the table, watching Drake dig into the big bag of sandwiches and fries. The smell of pork fat and spicy sweet sauce roiled his stomach even from a distance.

He reached for the soda and took a couple of sips. “Aside from this half-assed apology, what’s up with you?”

Drake grinned, showing a mouthful of sandwich. “Ain’t nothin’ half-assed about it. This is the best barbecue in Houston right here.”

Flint nodded. “True. But tell me why you ghosted me at the airport and forced me to deal with Scarlett along with the jet lag.”

A troubled look settled itself on Drake’s face. He swallowed the bite of his sandwich and washed it down with soda, then cleared his throat like he was trying to decide what to say and how. Which he probably was.

“Okay, so, while you were gone, I got a call from Hanna Campbell,” Drake began.

“Hanna Campbell? The smokin’-hot wild child you had that massive crush on in college?” Flint teased. “The one who left the country just to avoid you after you graduated? Didn’t fancy herself dating a Marine. That Hanna Campbell?”

“I’m not sure that’s quite fair, but yeah. The very same.” Drake blushed and ducked his head to hide the grin.

“What’s not fair about it?” Flint asked, sipping the soda to calm his queasy stomach before he tried the french fries.

“Her mother died. Killed by a drunk driver. Kinda threw her sideways,” Drake replied, returning to his half-eaten sandwich. “Then she had a big fight with her older sister about the mother’s estate. Lots of family drama. Remember that?”

“I didn’t remember that, actually.” Flint shook his head as he pulled the chair out and sat across from Drake. “It’s been a minute. Lots of water over the dam since then for both of us.”

“You got that right. For Hanna, too.” Drake balled up the waxed paper and traded it for another sandwich from the bag. “She got herself into one of those really bad situations that no kid ever thinks is going to happen. Until it does. And then it’s a thousand times worse than they imagined it could be.”

Drake’s eyes were filled with genuine concern for the girl. Maybe she’d been the one that got away for him.

But that was light-years ago.

There had been a parade of women through Drake’s life since then. Flint’s, too, for that matter. Hell, the only woman Flint could remember from back then was Scarlett.

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