Girl Crush(34)

I’d heard this argument before, and it hadn’t gone well the last time. I didn’t expect any better this time.

“Oh, lighten up, West. It was just dinner. It was less than a hundred bucks.” She waved him off in dismissal, which only served to rile him further.

“If it’s only a hundred dollars, then why don’t you get off your lazy ass and make the money you so freely spend and stop blowing mine? Wasn’t that your deal with Stella? You were going to get a job and start acting like an adult. When does that adult part happen?”

Beck’s feelings were hurt, and she was embarrassed. Stella turned all shades of red, and the others didn’t have a clue what to do as West, Brutus, whoever he currently was, stood there brooding. When his sister started to cry, he threw his hands in the air. Stella tended to her girlfriend, and the others hadn’t moved. I was taking a chance by trying to soothe the beast, but I’d been just as much a part of this as Beck—we all had. Every one of us had sat here and eaten the food she ordered and drank the beer she took from his fridge…well, I didn’t drink the beer.

I glanced at Ronnie who tilted her head in West’s direction, approving of my thought to try to talk to him. He stormed into the house just as I stood to go after him.

When I was feet from the door, Ronnie called out, “Good choice not to cover the goods. Entice him—better yet, distract him with the selection of desserts.”

I flipped her the middle finger and stuck my tongue out before crossing through the French doors. I’d expected to find him in his usual spot on the couch, but when he wasn’t there, I set off to locate him. Other than the living room and kitchen, I’d only been down the one hall that led to Beck’s part of the house. I glanced in that direction but didn’t see him. I felt like an intruder walking the halls of his home uninvited.

“Hey, Collier?” My voice carried over the sterile space. The marble amplified my words. I realized I started to whisper like I was in a library instead of someone’s home. “West?”

After several failed attempts, I reached what I believed to be the final unchartered hallway; although, I couldn’t be sure since I’d never been given a tour. I glanced out the window and saw his car still parked in the driveway, so he hadn’t gone far, but each room I passed turned up empty.

With one final call, he finally responded. “Yeah. I’m in here.”

I didn’t know where here was, but it didn’t take me long to find him sitting on the edge of a king-sized bed in the middle of a vast room. His head was in his hands, obviously frustrated. Collier didn’t look up when I approached, so I took it upon myself to take a seat next to him. When I sat on the comforter, the cool fabric reminded me of just how skimpy my swimsuit was. Chills ran up my body, and I wanted to ask to borrow a shirt, suddenly feeling exposed in his presence, even though he’d yet to glance up.

“Wanna talk about it?” I sucked at this kind of thing. I didn’t know how to be subtle or ease into conversations.

“What’s the point? Nothing’s going to change with her. She’s never going to grow up, and I’m going to be stuck dealing with her immature bullshit for the rest of my life.”

I wanted to play devil’s advocate, but Beck was immature, and she did take advantage of West. “It may come down to tough love.” Like I knew a damn thing about it.

“I can’t kick her out, Giselle.”

“No, but you could enforce some rules.”

He snickered with discontent. “Have you met my sister?”

I crossed my arms over my stomach when he finally dared to set eyes on me. I was far from self-conscious, but West put me on alert. His glance was fleeting, and he lay back on the mattress, covering his eyes with his forearm. Unsure of what to do, I lay back with him, still covering my stomach, and turned my head toward his.

“She’s a good person, Collier.” And that was true. Beck had a heart of gold. She would give anyone the shirt off her back and the last five dollars in her wallet. But with that, I had to acknowledge, she was able to do that because she used Collier to fund her generosity.

He moved his arm but didn’t face me. Instead, he stared at the ceiling as though it might have an answer. “She reminds me so much of my mom. Part of me wants to strangle her, and another part wants to hold her because she’s all I have left. All the good that was in my mom runs rampant through Beck, but her carefree, nonchalant attitude is hard to handle.”

Neither sibling talked about their parents. Beck told me they passed away when they were in their twenties but hadn’t elaborated. I didn’t know if I should broach the subject or let it go, but thankfully, he answered that question for me.

“Ever since my parents died, Beck has been my responsibility. I grew up, took over my father’s business, and tried to be an adult, but she’s hovered at the age they passed away. She’s still twenty living in a thirty-nine-year-old body. If something happens to me, Beck will be lost.”

“Maybe you should try to help her grow up instead of just catering to her whims?” I was the last person to give advice. I sucked at this type of thing, but I felt useless lying next to him listening to him unload.

He turned his sad eyes toward me. “I don’t know how to do that.”

“Have you thought about giving her a job at the company you own? Something she’d be good at and enjoy that might give her a sense of purpose? I don’t know this to be true, but I get the impression she lives this carefree lifestyle because she doesn’t have a clue what else to be.”