Crave Me (The Good Ol' Boys #4)(126)

“Well…”

I opened my eyes when I heard her voice again, continuing to watch my nightmare unfold before me.

“There’s still a shit-ton of boxes left in the truck. I might run out of rewards for you,” she flirted, twirling her now brown hair around her finger.

“I’m sure I can come up with other ways for you to repay me, baby. One that requires you to get down on your knees.”

She giggled like a f*cking schoolgirl.

I resisted the urge to lay the motherf*cker out right then and there. Fighting back the compelling need to hit something. It took everything in me not to blow my cover and punch a hole in the side of the f*cking truck. My teeth clenched and my fists tightened at my sides. My chest heaved as rage coursed through my body, causing me to see nothing but red.

“Oh, really? Is that all I am to you? A piece of ass?”

She softly smiled as he caressed the side of her cheek like I had done a million times. Nothing could have prepared me for what happened next.

Not one damn thing.

My. Rock. Bottom.

“You know what you mean to me, Daisy.”

And just like that…

“I love you,” he sincerely added.

My. Life. Ended.

When hers was just starting…

With Esteban.





<>Briggs<>


I sat in the emergency room waiting area with my screen-shattered phone clutched tightly in my grasp. My knee nervously bounced with anticipation, unable to sit still. It felt like I’d been sitting there for days, but in reality it was only a few hours. I got out of my chair a few times, pacing the room, looking out in the hallway at the double doors where Austin was taken back.

Nothing.

Waiting.

My mind raced with thoughts, with guilt, with shame from everything that Dylan had just reminded me of. Bringing back everything that I had worked so hard to push to the back of my conscience. Every last feeling made its presence known. I spent the last two and a half years in therapy with Dr. Holden. Having several breakthroughs in my sessions. Finally believing that his addiction wasn’t my fault. When I saw my phone light up with Dylan’s name, I knew if he was calling me after all this time, something bad had happened. I didn’t answer, I was too terrified. I listened to the voicemail he’d left, asking me if I had talked to or seen Austin. The panic in his tone immediately brought up red flags. Then Austin called a few minutes after and all it took was one f*cking phone call to send me spiraling out of control once again.

I hadn’t talked to him since I left Oak Island. I knew if I had, I would have gone back to him and died a little more inside. I needed to heal. I needed to find myself. I needed to learn how to love myself before loving somebody else. He still called me and left voicemails all the time. The text messages were endless. All went unanswered. I started to delete them without hearing or reading a single message. My therapist asked me why I wouldn’t change my phone number and put an end to the problem.

Out of sight, out of mind.

I had yet to give her an honest answer to that question. Deep down, I knew I couldn’t let go. He had a hold on my soul. Something made me answer that particular call tonight. It hit me like a ton of f*cking bricks. I finally realized that all I’d been doing was waiting.

Knowing that eventually I would answer the phone. I would pick up his call, and he would be on the other end…

Dying.

“Briggs!” Dylan called out, making me look up from my chair.

I stood, swallowing hard as everyone came barreling in through the automatic emergency room doors. The boys, Alex, Lily, and Aubrey came toward me while his parents went straight to the nurse’s station.

“Is it true?” Lucas snapped a few feet away from me.

Alex instantly caught his arm, holding him back.

“I… I… I’m sorry…” I nervously breathed out.

“You’re sorry? That’s your f*cking response?” Jacob argued, standing in front of me with an anxious Lily on his arm.

“How long? How long has this been f*cking going on?” Lucas roared, bringing my attention back to him.

I shook my head unable to form words. Overwhelmed by all their questions and accusations that were running wild in their heads.

I was to blame here.

I was the outsider.

The enabler.

“Unbelievable. Are you a junkie too? Did you do this to him? Did you make him this way?” he added.

“No! I swear! I tried. I tried every day! I promise you that! I never wanted this. I never wanted to see him like this!” I sincerely replied, my eyes filling with tears.

“Why didn’t you tell us? We could have helped him. We’re his f*cking family,” Jacob chimed in.

“He didn’t want anyone to know. He was in recovery for four years, I didn’t think he would relapse and when he did, I didn’t know. The day I found out, I left. Okay? He was lying to me too. I haven’t spoken to him in two-and-a-half years. I swear I didn’t know it was this bad.”

They all jerked back, stunned by my revelation.

“He didn’t tell you? That we weren’t together?”

“He works all the time, Briggs. We knew you guys were having problems, and he told us you went back to New York for a while, but we figured you still spoke and were trying to work things out. You never answered or returned any of my calls. Austin never specified and we just figured…” Alex paused, frowning. “Oh my God. How did I not know this?”