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“Of course, I called him,” she said as if it was obvious. “Now, I know a girl needs her best friend throughout the tough times in her life, and I’ll always be here for you. But I know that there are also jobs better suited for a tall, very attractive biker who looks like he might just burn down this bar if you told him you were cold.” She winked before her eyes went to Elden. “You got this?” she asked.
His response was a quick dip of his chin.
“Good,” she walked forward, kissing my cheek. “I’m here for you, babe. Whenever. Wherever. Just like Shakira said.” Her eyes turned more serious. Sadder. “But right now you need to go home.”
Home. She didn’t mean to the house we shared together.
She meant Garnett, New Mexico.
Not Carver Springs.
Maybe that had been my home when I believed the lies that had made up my childhood.
But Garnett was my home.
“What about you?” I asked with concern.
“Well, I’ve got a date with a hot blond,” she grinned wickedly, motioning to a pretty girl sitting with her friends two tables over. She was staring at Sariah.
“As long as you’ll be safe,” I told her, already worried about my friend who was finally beginning to heal. To date.
Something sparked in her eyes, but it was gone as quickly as it arrived. “Of course, I will. Call me when you get home.”
And then she was gone.
Once again, it was just me and Elden.
I didn’t say anything more about that future, the one where I was with another man. I didn’t say anything, I just let him walk me out of the bar. Despite how drunk people were, the crowds parted for him effortlessly. It was impressive.
“Don’t want you to freak out,” he said when we made it outside. I had been expecting it to be bright, but night had long fallen. We’d been in that bar for hours.
I was a mix between drunk and hungover. My head was throbbing. “I’m already freaking out by you telling me not to freak out.”
“Your Mom went into labor not long after you got off the phone with her,” he told me calmly.
“What!” I shrieked.
“Told you not to freak out,” he commented.
I scowled, fumbling for my phone which was buzzing with notifications. I had a bunch of missed calls from Mom, Swiss, Freya, Macy, Caroline … pretty much everyone at the club.
“Are they okay?” I demanded, thinking of all of the things that could’ve gone wrong. Thinking of Swiss losing his first little baby.
“They’re fine,” Elden replied firmly. “Both your mom and your brother.”
I sagged in relief. But that only lasted a moment.
“We’ve got to go,” I snapped. “Like, right now.”
Elden put his hands on my shoulders to stop me running off into the night. “No,” he said gently. “You’re gonna go back to your place. Have a shower. Some coffee. Sleep. Then we’ll take the first flight out in the morning.”
I gaped at him. “Are you crazy? I have to be there for my mom.”
He nodded. “First, you need to be there for yourself.”
I froze at his words, sat with the knowledge of what they meant. I was only half sober. Which meant I was half drunk. I’d barely slept eight hours in the past five days. I was a mess. And I did not want to meet my baby brother smelling like a dive bar and looking a mess.
Nor did I want my mom to be worrying about me on the day she gave birth and was likely exhausted and ecstatic. Surely, she was already worrying about me since no one had been able to get hold of me.
