Page 162 of Mad Love

“I’d borrow Bex’s razor,” Ash told him flatly, looking disturbed.

Court let out a dark chuckle and lifted his beer to Linc. “I’ve seen your dick enough to know I wouldn’t touch it with Brylee’s vag.”

Curiosity tugged at me, since I remembered it was pretty well-known that Court and Linc had a history of sharing girls. In fact, at one point, I’d kinda thought Bex might’ve been into them both. But then she seemed to be attracted only to Court, and now she was doing her best to ignore him.

“Gross,” I muttered, shuddering at the image Court had dredged up. I’d been so busy worrying about not dying that I’d all but forgotten my high school nemesis. “I wonder if she’s still sitting at the kiddie table.” The guys had punished Brylee and her friends for bullying me by taking away her coveted lunch table and replacing it with shit made for children. They’d humiliated her in a way that still made me laugh.

Ash cracked a smile, as if he was thinking the same thing.

“It feels like a lifetime ago that Brylee was my biggest issue,” I marveled, shaking my head. “I guess she still will be when we go back to PC in a few weeks.” With the campus closed early for the holidays thanks to the earthquake, students weren’t expected back until the middle of January.

Unlike my public high school experience, where we got off a week for the holidays, Pacific Cross ensured students ample time to rest and rejuvenate before coming back to tackle their spring semester. I figured that was code for rich people taking elaborate vacations.

“Welcome to the new normal, baby,” Ryan teased, a glint in his eye.

I gave a fake, dramatic sigh. “You mean all I have to worry about are mean girls and actual schoolwork? How will I ever survive?”

“If it helps,” Ryan teased, “we still have my father to find, Court’s and Linc’s dads to control. An international company to run. Women and children to save… You mentioned wanting a puppy, too, at some point, right?”

“Is that all?” I laughed, shaking my head. Yeah, so much for normal.

Ryan was saved from answering me when his phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and frowned. “It’s Knight.” Flipping it open, he quickly asked, “What’s up?”

Conversation died as we all watched Ryan. Worry twisted my nerves into a jangling knot as his expression went hard and then flat before he gave a slow exhale.

“Got it. Thanks, man. We’ll head right back.” Ryan hung up the phone and tossed it onto the table with a clatter. It knocked over a water glass, but I reached for his leg instead of moving to save the phone.

“What happened?”

He met my gaze, his blue eyes a turbulent riot of emotions as he said one word. “Grandpa.”

CHAPTER 57

RYAN

As I stepped through the front door hours later, Maddie’s fingers were the only thing I could focus on. They were tangled with mine, just as they’d been since we’d left the restaurant. We’d abandoned dinner and all driven straight here. It had taken so long.

Too long.

But the whole time, she’d held my hand. She didn’t speak or try to make me feel better, which I appreciated. All I could think was how I should’ve been there.

Mrs. Beechum opened the front door for us, her eyes rimmed with red and face splotchy as she sobbed. She immediately drew me in for a hug that I had to remind myself to return with the one arm I had free, because I sure as shit wasn’t letting go of Maddie.

She was the only thing that made fucking sense.

“I’m so sorry,” Mrs. Beechum whispered, her ample body shuddering with sobs as she hugged me and then moved on to Maddie before the others.

Knight appeared at the top of the stairs before jogging down and giving me a heavy look. “I’m sorry, man.”

I nodded, not sure what to say. Was there something I was supposed to say? Or do? Shit. What about the…

Fuck, I couldn’t go there.

But Maddie could, and did. She stepped up to my side, right where she belonged, and looked at Knight before asking, “What do we do now?”

“The medical examiner was already here,” Knight murmured. “We left him in his room, in case you wanted to see him.”

I could only nod again. “Uh, yeah. Thanks, man.”

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