Fighting Solitude (On The Ropes #3)(22)

My head was still spinning as he stepped into my face and barked words I couldn’t make out without my hearing aids. Focused on the woman charging toward me, I didn’t even entertain the idea of reading his lips. Rolling my eyes, I waved him off as Liv close the distance between us.

“You!” She accusingly pointed her finger at me.

“Me?” I replied, tugging my gloves off.

Her mouth was moving a million miles a minute with obviously angry words, but I had no clue what they were or why they were aimed at me.

“Sign,” I said, interrupting her.

In mid-thought, her hands lifted, forming the words even as her mouth kept going. “It was about you! Just f*cking you!”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“Mia’s letter!”

The air between us suddenly became toxic to my lungs. My eyes grew wide as I took a menacing step forward. Liv held her ground, but out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Slate inching closer.

“You read her letter?”

“Yes. And I don’t give a damn what you have to say about it. You’re still pissed. Fantastic. But I woke up this morning needing her more than ever before. So yeah. I called her mom and went and got my letter.”

A war raged inside me. I didn’t want to give one single f*ck about what Mia had written as her goodbye to Liv, but despite my best efforts, I was dying to know exactly what it said.

Word for word.

Thought for thought.

Every single noun, verb, and adjective.

Hell, I was even desperate for the inkblots her pen might have left behind.

I’d never considered actually getting my letter from her parents, partly because I knew they hated me for the way I’d acted when she’d died. Another part of me didn’t want it because I’d spent the last year holding on to my bitterness against her ghost. But, deep down, I knew the main reason was those words were the only remaining bit of Mia left. As soon as I read whatever message she’d left me, she’d really be gone.

Forever.

In the words on those pages, she was alive. Just knowing they existed made waking up each morning slightly less agonizing.

However, judging by Liv’s face and attitude, I’m not sure she felt the same.

“What’d it say?” I finally asked.

She shook her head. “I’ll tell you what it didn’t say. It didn’t say, ‘I’m sorry.’ It didn’t say, ‘I love you.’ It didn’t say, ‘You were the best friend I ever had.’ It didn’t even say, ‘I’ll miss you.’” Her chest shook as I watched a silent sob ravage her. “One sentence is all I f*cking got. One sentence from my best friend in the entire world. And you know what? It wasn’t even about me.”

I didn’t move a muscle as her angry fists flew toward me, slamming into my chest while she screamed, “It was all about you!”

I had no need for my hearing aids or even sign language to know what she’d said. I’d read every excruciating word as she’d forced them through her lips.

Slate stepped forward, looping an arm around her waist and pulling her into a hug, but she fought ravenously, attempting to claw her way back at me.

“You! Quarry! You!”

I was dazed, watching her unravel, unable to process what the hell she was talking about. What was about me? It wasn’t until the fight had left her and she’d sagged in Slate’s arms that I became unstuck. Taking two giant steps forward, I was ready to pry her from his grasp if I had to. That was rendered unnecessary when she dove into my arms.

Till caught my attention from the ropes, signing, Take her to my office. She doesn’t need the whole gym watching this.

I nodded and moved through the opening he’d created by stepping on the bottom rope.

Liv dangled in my arms as I carried her. She wasn’t crying anymore, but her hands had begun to tremble as if the emotions were attempting to find a breach.

Once in Till’s office, I sat her in his chair then squatted in front of her.

“Tell me what’s going on,” I demanded.

“Why did Mia start texting me after we first met?” she spoke and signed with shaky hands.

“Uh…I don’t know.” I scratched the back of my head, confused.

Her sad eyes lifted to mine. “She didn’t say a single word to me at dinner that night we all went out, but when I left, she wouldn’t stop texting me until I finally gave in and responded. Why? She obviously thought I was after you. Why would she want to be my friend? I’ve never understood that.”

I laughed without humor. “I don’t know why Mia did half the shit she did. She was insane, Liv. Hell, the first time I met her, she walked up to me and declared that she was my new girlfriend. I laughed, but she only stood there confidently smiling. It was my first day at that private school for the hearing impaired Till forced me to attend. I didn’t want to even be there, much less date some girl who may or may not have a few screws loose. But she was so f*cking funny and wouldn’t let up until she got her way. Needless to say, our first date was that Friday night.” I shrugged. “I don’t know why she wanted to be your friend, but I didn’t question it because it made her smile and it meant I got you back.”

“I don’t have a lot of girlfriends, Quarry. All the gossip and pretending to be someone you’re not is exhausting. I can’t handle the drama of it all.”