Page 194 of Heresy

Fuck the servers.

And fuck this shit with our fathers.

As far as I’m concerned, we should move away and let our families die of old age, be dropped in a hole where they will rot and be forgotten.

He steps closer to me, his green eyes filled with rage.

“What was worth risking your lives?”

I push to my feet and get in his face.

“I got Brinley back, didn’t I? And nobody died. So what’s your fucking problem? You would have done the same if it were Luca.”

Hands are on both of us before we can throw the first swing, Damon and Sawyer holding me back while Tanner is held in place by Ezra and Jase.

From behind us, Gabe attempts to smooth things over.

“Nobody is hurt or dead. Those women aren’t pressing charges—”

“As far as we know!” Tanner yells.

Unperturbed, Gabe continues. “We should all sit down before there’s another fight between you two like that night at Yale.”

“Because he won’t listen to anybody. Just like that night. I told him to keep his distance from Luca, not try to fuck her.”

We’re nose to nose, Tanner’s eyes tangled with mine.

Neither of us is backing down.

Gabe clears his throat. “That was probably my fault, Tanner. If you need to punch somebody for it, punch me.”

Tanner spins to face him. “Care to explain?”

I’d taken Tanner’s punch that night to protect the real reason I approached Luca in the first place. It’s like I’ve said… we all have our secrets from one another, some worse than others.

“I told him to approach Luca and dance with her. You needed a little push in the right direction.”

“Gabriel,” Luca scolds. “Why would you do that?”

Gabe smiles. “Because while you were busy trying to win a bet against me and drinking more than your body weight, Tanner was too scared to get off his ass and dance with you himself. You two have absolutely no idea how much you should be thanking me for the fact that you’re together at all. Seriously, I expect an ice statue in my honor at your wedding.”

Confusion is evident on Tanner’s face. “Why do you think that one night had anything to do with us getting together? A lot happened after that. And you had nothing to do with it.”

Suddenly, Gabe’s drink is a hell of a lot more interesting to him than the conversation.

When it’s apparent that he’s not going to elaborate, Tanner says, “We’ll be discussing this later, Gabe. Don’t think you’re getting out of it,” then he redirects us back to the original topic.

I take a seat now that the aggressive energy in the room has calmed down. Brinley places her hand in mine, and damn if that doesn’t somehow make me feel better.

Turning to her, I catch her eyes in silent thanks.

“Okay, what’s done is done,” Tanner finally acquiesces. “Moving on, what more do we know?”

Not this again. I fight to keep from grabbing Brinley, tossing her over my shoulder and leaving Tanner’s to go for a drive to the lake.

“I may have some information,” Brinley offers, her voice hesitant as she casts a glance my way.

She has everybody’s full attention, and she fidgets in her seat. I can’t blame her. Having sat in the hot seat with this group more than I can count, I know exactly what it feels like to have all eyes on me.

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