Into the Tide (Cottonwood Cove #1)(38)

“Oh, yeah, that’s right. You keep telling me that. What can I say? It’s a habit from buckling in Gracie when I have her, I guess.” It wasn’t. I did it to be close to her and because I knew it annoyed her. I liked seeing her all riled up. It had become part of our daily shtick.

“Whatever.” She yanked at my hair and laughed. “You’re full of it, Bear.”

“Yeah?” I asked. My nose grazed hers, and I fought the urge to nip at her sweet mouth. “Well, whatever it is, you seem more relaxed now, so it worked.”

I closed her door and got in the truck. We drove to the outskirts of town to Havenwood, the treatment facility she’d found for her dad. We talked all the way there. She told me she and the girls were still going to that biker bar tonight, and I wasn’t thrilled about it.

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea,” I said, as we coasted down the highway, the ocean on one side of us and the most beautiful mountains and tree line on the other. I loved growing up here. The mountains, the water, all of it.

“Well, you don’t have to worry about it. Kline’s coming with us,” she said, and my head whipped in her direction, and she raised a brow. “Do you have a problem with that?”

I cleared my throat. “Of course not. I just thought you weren’t that into the dude.”

“Well, unfortunately, Del knew something was up the other night, and she’s sort of the master at knowing when I’m lying. So, long story short, she thinks I had an epic make-out session with Kline, and she invited him to join us.”

“You let her think that you got off to making out with that little fucker? I don’t know how I feel about that,” I hissed.

“Well, I certainly couldn’t tell her the truth. So, there you go. He and I are friends anyway, and he was down to go, so it’ll be fine.”

I didn’t like it.

The dude was getting credit for my magic schlong.

My lips.

My hands.

Fuck me, this is ridiculous.

We pulled up to the facility, and I did my best to shake it off.

Lila pulled out her phone and dialed a number before holding it to her ear. “Hi, this is Lila James.”

She was quiet as she listened.

“Perfect. We’ll meet you out front.”

She ended the call and let out a few quick breaths before turning to me, her eyes wet with emotion.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, my hand grazing hers on the seat between us.

“This could be the beginning of something new. A fresh start, you know? I feel really good about it.”

Fuck. I knew she was putting all her eggs in one basket, and that worried me for her. Her father had been to the restaurant a few times, and Lila stopped by his house every day after work to check on him. She loved him, and I understood her need to help the man.

But I also knew you couldn’t help someone who didn’t want to be helped. I knew he said he did, but I wasn’t certain it was true or if he was just saying what she wanted to hear.

He was completely unpredictable.

“One step at a time, Snow. Let’s go check it out.”

We both got out of the truck, and a woman walked out the front door of the large ranch house set on a couple of acres of property. The trees surrounding the place offered a lot of privacy, and I imagined this was a peaceful place to try to figure out your shit. I glanced over in the distance and saw a man walking near the tree line.

“Lila?” the woman called out and held up her hand.

“Yes, hi. You must be Lauren. It’s so nice to meet you. This is my friend, Hugh.”

I offered her my hand when we got closer. She was probably in her early forties, wearing a T-shirt and jeans, so they clearly kept things casual here.

She shook my hand. “It’s great to meet you both. I’m glad you brought a friend because the process can be overwhelming and—” She paused and guided us to a bench a few feet away. “It’s just good to have support.”

We all sat down on the metal and wood bench, with Lila in the middle. “Yes. I mean, I want support for my father, first and foremost. I’m not worried about myself. And I feel like you could really help him, you know?”

Lauren’s eyes softened, and she nodded. “You’d be surprised, Lila. This can be just as hard on the families as it is on the addict. So, I know you aren’t worried about yourself, but I am. And I have a hunch Hugh is, as well, or he wouldn’t be here.”

I smiled the slightest bit because she was right, and Lila was so used to being stoic and strong that she’d forgotten that she needed support sometimes, too. Maybe she should add that to her fucking list.

“I get that. And yes, I’m lucky to have Hugh’s support. I told you via email that my brother is not on the same page as I am with all of this.”

“You did. And I know how that goes. Everyone deals with this in their own way. There is no right or wrong way to do it. Loving an addict is not an easy journey.”

Lila swiped at the single tear rolling down her cheek, and I moved my hand closer to where hers rested between us, my pinky finger wrapping around hers. I wanted her to know I was here.

Lauren spent the next hour going over the paperwork and telling us how the program worked. Lila listened intently, and I spent most of my time watching her. Making sure she was okay. I knew the percentage of success stories with addiction was not as high as she wanted to believe. But I also believed people were capable of change, and everyone deserved a second chance.