Page 90 of All for Love

MERCEDES

Having gotten over my decision not to appear needy or clingy, I’d called Kody a dozen times and he still hadn’t answered. Worry had invaded every inch of my being, and trying to fight it wasn’t working anymore.

I was officially worried. Really, really worried. Ignoring a few of my calls or texts would’ve been one thing, but he still hadn’t read a single text or even declined a single call. They’d all rung through to his voicemail.

Chewing the inside of my cheek, I tried to focus on the movie Ellora and I were watching, but my knees were bouncing and the worry was just getting worse as every hour passed. My friend had been noticing my increasing concern, and eventually, she reached for the remote, hit pause, and gave me a stern look.

“Okay. Enough. Call Kaden and find out if he knows where Kody is. Just in case.”

I let out a heavy breath, my heart aching as I shook my head. “I can’t do that. Not today. I doubt he’d take my call even if I tried. They’re really mad at us, Ellora.”

She reached out and took my hand, squeezing it gently between both of hers. “What if something is wrong? Better safe than sorry, right?”

I groaned. The thought of calling Kaden after today made my skin crawl, but Ellora was right. If something had happened to Kody, I needed to know. I wanted to know, and Kaden already would know. Which meant I had to talk to him.

Picking up my phone, I bit the bullet and dialed his number. It rang and rang, but just before I gave up, he answered.

“Mercedes?”

“Yes, it’s me,” I said hesitantly. “I, uh, I was just wondering if you’d heard from Kody today?”

“Not since this morning.” His tone was clipped and harsh. “Why?”

“I, uh, I haven’t been able to get in touch with him.”

Kaden heaved out a sigh. “That’s not my problem.”

“Yeah, I know. It’s just that, uh, with the state he was in when he left his office, I wanted to make sure he was okay. Are you sure you haven’t heard from him?”

“I’m sure, and I’m also sure he’s fine. Kody is like a cat. He always lands on his feet.” He paused for a moment, his voice just the tiniest bit gentler when he spoke again. “Look, Mercedes, I know you think this thing between you two is real, but it’s very possible that he’s blowing you off because he doesn’t feel the same way about you.”

The words sliced at the center of my heart, wedging themselves in and getting comfortable. “I know it’s a possibility, but I just don’t think that’s what’s going on here. He would’ve talked to me.”

“Maybe he still will,” Kaden said. “Just give him time. To be fair, I’m hoping that we finally got through to him and that he realized he shouldn’t be sleeping with his stepsister, but whether or not I’m right, he’ll be okay. He’ll call you when he’s ready to talk.”

With that, he hung up and I sighed, tossing my phone down on the sofa beside me before letting my head drop back and running my hands over my face. “Well, I should’ve expected that.”

“He hasn’t heard from him?” Ellora concluded from what she’d heard of the conversation. “At least that means he’s probably okay. If something had happened to him, Kaden would’ve known by now.”

“Maybe, but maybe not,” I murmured, the words muffled by my palms. “You didn’t see them this morning, Ellora. They were a minute away from getting into a fistfight.”

“Sure, but they’re brothers. Brothers hit each other all the time and they get through it just fine. Boys are stupid sometimes, you know?”

“Don’t I?” I sighed into my hands before lowering them to my sides. I stared at the joints of the ceiling boards above. “It’s just that I don’t know if he’d have called Kaden if he got into trouble today. I doubt it.”

“If something really bad had happened, even if Kody didn’t call his brother, he’s probably his emergency contact. It’s got to be either him or their father, and if his dad had been called, he’d have told Kaden by now. I think it’s safe to assume he’s not in a hospital or something like that.”

Worry churned through my gut. “Where is he, then?”

She shrugged and slid an arm around my shoulders. Then she tucked her feet in underneath her and pulled me into her side and held me. “He’s probably just on a bender, hon. Drinking alone in some dark, dingy bar somewhere and taking some time to think everything over.”

“Maybe,” I agreed softly because that was a logical answer to my question, but my gut told me it wasn’t the right one. “What if he’s hurt, though?”

“If he was hurt, his family would’ve been called by now,” she repeated her earlier reasoning. “Do you think Kaden was lying? Do you think they have been called and he just didn’t want to tell you?”

“No. Unless he’s an excellent liar, he was telling the truth.” That much, I was sure, but on the other hand… “He could be lying for Kody, though. If Kody has moved over to their side, Kaden would do whatever it took to cover for his brother. Even if that meant flawlessly lying to me about his whereabouts.”

“Nah.” She dismissed the thought without any doubts whatsoever. “If that was the case, you’d have been able to tell. If you’re sure he wasn’t lying, his motivation doesn’t matter. The truth is the truth and a lie is a lie, no matter the reason behind it.”