Sweet Dreams (Colorado Mountain #2)(146)

I crawled over Tate and out of the bed. I felt his fingers try to grasp hold of my h*ps but I was on the move and on a mission and they slid right off.

“Ace, let me deal with this,” Tate said and I heard him moving but I went right to the closet, my mind buzzing with Brad, with Neeta, with my Dad’s heart attack, with Tonia dead, with Bubba off fishing – I was focused. That focus was on the fact that I could not take one more thing and I was absolutely not going to allow Tate to take anymore.

My hands searched through my clothes in the dark closet, I felt a pair of shorts and I dragged them on then exited the closet buttoning and zipping them.

“Dammit, Lauren,” Tate clipped, I heard him behind me but I was on the move, going faster, darting down the hall.

I stopped at the sliding glass door to switch on the light and I saw Neeta outside by the door. My hand went to the lock on the door and I slid it down.

“I said, let me deal with it,” Tate was right behind me.

I whirled, my shoulder glancing off his bare chest, the deep recesses of my mind noticing he was wearing jeans but I was intent and nothing, not even big, bad Tate was going to stop me.

“You are not going to deal with one more thing from that woman!” I declared rather loudly.

I turned back and threw open the door.

“You want this?” I announced to Neeta the second my foot hit the wood of the deck. “You got it!”

Her upper body listed forward. “Bring it on, bitch,” she slurred and I was pulled up short with taking my second step toward her when Tate’s open hand planted itself in my chest and his other arm came up and hit the advancing Neeta in hers.

She fell back a step then two then hit the railing and stopped. When she did she looked to her left and right with confusion as if she didn’t know where she was.

I stilled and stared.

Tate sensed my stillness, dropped his hand and studied Neeta.

“You blitzed?” he asked in disbelief and her head tilted back but it took it a long time to do this. Once it did, it took even longer for her to focus on him.

Then she said, “Whas it to you?”

Tate’s head turned to look at the drive. I followed the direction of his gaze and noted that Neeta’s car, top still down, headlights still on, driver’s side door open, interior lights on was beeping because she left the keys in the ignition. She also parked with her bumper butting a tree across Tate’s drive.

“Oh my God,” I whispered.

She’d driven there hammered.

My eyes went back to her and before I could speak, Tate did.

“You drove here drunk?” he asked.

“Got things to say to you,” she answered.

“You drove here drunk?” Tate repeated, his voice lowering to a growl.

“Gimme Jonas,” she slurred.

Tate had his side to her but he turned fully to face her and I felt those sparks of fury flash off him.

“Let’s forget for a second you coulda hurt someone else, you coulda hurt you. What’s Jonas gonna do without a Mom?” Tate asked.

She waved a hand in the air and said breezily, “Relax, I’m fine.”

“You’re plastered,” Tate returned.

She dropped her hand, her eyes narrowed, she leaned forward clumsily and stated, “I’m fine.”

Tate leaned forward too. “And I asked a f**kin’ question. You’re not much of a Mom but you’re still his goddamned Mom. He loses you, no matter you’re shit at bein’ a mother, it’d mark him. Fuck,” he hissed. “Neeta, you know that better than anyone.”

She leaned back too far, hitting the railing again and she snapped, “Fuck you!”

I was done and therefore I stepped forward to stand by Tate.

“It’s been too long,” I started.

“Ace, let me f**kin’ –”

I talked over him. “You don’t get that excuse anymore. Your Mom’s been gone too long, you can’t use losing her to behave this way.”

“Wad d’you know ‘bout it?” she sneered.

“Not one thing,” I replied. “My Mom’s still alive so I grew up with her around to teach me how to be a good person. So let me educate you on how to be a good person, Neeta, something I suspect from what people say about her, your mother taught you before she passed but you forgot.”

“Don’t choo talk about my Mom!” she yelled.

I ignored her. “You don’t take your pain out on anyone but especially not the people you love. Never do that. Not ever.”

“Piss off.”

“You lost the world,” I shot back. “I can’t imagine, I don’t want to and I dread they day I will. But she left you with gifts and you squandered every one of them.”

“She left me with shit,” Neeta hissed.

“She left you with your looks, you’re beautiful. She left you with a good Dad, a gentle brother, a kind aunt who stepped up –”

“Lauren the good,” she leaned forward again and spat. “You think you can win them? Take them all away from me? My friends? My family? My man? No f**kin’ way.” She shook her head, suddenly grinning drunkenly. “They’ll be back. They always come back.”

“Not this time, Neet,” Tate stated and she swiveled her head to look up at him.