Broken Series (16 page)

“Gabby, if you want a relationship to work, you have to be willing to put in the effort it takes to keep it going,” Mallory said softly.

Gabby nodded but didn’t reply. She kept her head down when Luke came back to the table with Baker trailing behind him.

“I think we’re going to take off,” Luke said. He looked at Gabby. “Want us to give you a ride home?”

Gabby looked up and gave him a quick nod. Her eyes were red and her skin blotchy, but none of us said a word. I would have to text Mallory tomorrow and see if we could put together a girl’s night to figure out what was going on with Gabby.

“You want a ride too, Rainey?” Mallory asked me.

I glanced at Baker. “I think I’ll just hang out here until Baker gets out of work. You don’t mind giving me a ride, do you, Baker?” I asked him.

“Of course not. I’ve got a few things to do and then I’ll take you. You want to move to the bar so we can get some more people at this table?” Baker asked. I got up with Mallory and Luke and pulled Gabby into a hug.

“We really need a girls’ night,” I told her. She smiled and then left with Mallory and Luke. I grabbed a stool at the end of the bar and silently watched Baker wait on customers and then head into the back to do some paperwork.

It was another hour before he was able to leave the bar. I was exhausted.

Four

Baker

I watched Rainey’s head sway forward as she slept where she sat. It was hilarious.

I stood at the far end of the bar, smiling like an idiot as I watched her nod off. I knew it was late, but I couldn’t change my work schedule. Besides, she knew I would make it worth her while when we got back to my place.

When her head tipped up and back, though, my heart stopped. She fell backward off the barstool and fell flat on her back. I was at her side in an instant.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

Her eyes fluttered open and she looked confused. “Baker? What happened?”

“You fell asleep at the bar,” I told her. I put my hand gently under her neck and she winced. “Where does it hurt?”

“Ugh. Everywhere,” she said with a groan. “I think I broke my ass.”

I laughed, as did the small crowd that gathered around her.

“I’m going to take you home, okay?”

“Sounds good,” she said, but made no move to get up.

I eased my arm under her shoulders and moved my other hand underneath her knees. I lifted her as carefully as I could and told Jimmy I was leaving now. He tipped his head in acknowledgement and went back to making drinks.

The crowd dispersed as soon as Rainey was off the floor. I carried her out to my truck and set her in the passenger seat, glancing at her as she rested her head back against the head rest. She looked tired. Rundown.

“I should take you to the emergency room,” I suggested. Her eyes flew open in protest.

“No!”

“Alright, but you’re going to stay at my place tonight, in case you have a concussion,” I insisted. She didn’t argue.

When we got to my apartment, I carried her in, despite her protests. Eventually she let me have my way. I set her on the couch and swung her legs up onto the cushions. When I reached for a blanket, she stopped me.

“I’m not a child,” she grumbled.

“Well, you must be sick. It’s only ten o’clock and you fell asleep at the bar.” I wasn’t letting her off the hook this time.

“I was also on a plane for most of this morning and I was up around four to catch that plane. Not to mention I hate flying.” She rolled her eyes at me.

I sighed audibly and didn’t hide my frustration. She was using whatever excuse she could cling to keep the truth a secret. I didn’t like it, but I guessed she was safe for the time being, so I didn’t push.

“Are you going to make me sleep out here or am I allowed to come to bed?” she asked. Her eyes were pure green fire; I’d upset her.

“Of course you can come to bed,” I said as I moved to lift her off the couch.

“Hold it.” She waved a hand at me. “I’m perfectly capable of going to the bedroom myself.” She managed to get to her feet just fine, but I kept close to her as she walked to my room in case she fell. She sat on the edge of my bed and pulled off her shoes, wiggling out of her jeans and tossing my sweatshirt and her tank top on the floor. Her bra slipped off and she chucked it across the room.

She finally laid her head down on the pillow and I went into the bathroom. By the time I came back out, she was fast asleep with just a hint of a smile on her face, her hand curled underneath her chin and her body on display. She hadn’t pulled the covers over herself and the sight of her took my breath away.

My eyes were drawn to her stomach, which was so flat it indented beneath her ribcage and gave her a sickly look. I frowned at her as I watched her ribcage move. There was something going on with her. And if it killed me, I would find out what it was.

* * * * *

The following morning, I woke first. I had to get to the bar and do paperwork. I stumbled into the bathroom and jumped in the shower to wash away my sleepiness. I figured Rainey would be up by the time I got out, but she was still fast asleep. I walked out into my bedroom naked, the light from the bathroom illuminating the room I’d drawn the curtains in. I walked by the bed and glanced at Rainey, who was sprawled out, face down and uncovered.

I did a double-take.

Her back was covered in big, ugly bruises that turned her skin nearly purple. I walked over to her and gently trailed my hand down her back.
What the hell?
Are these from her fall last night? What is going on?

I didn’t wake her; instead, I went to my closet and pulled out clean clothes to wear.

Why was she hiding something from me? I wasn’t judgmental or overprotective, so it didn’t make sense why she wouldn’t tell me. But then again, her thought processes were a far cry from mine. Where I was mellow and laid back, she was just a bit uptight and reserved.

She hated the small town life where everyone knows everyone else’s business. Although I wasn’t a fan of the whole town knowing what I was up to, I accepted it as a part of my life in Casper.

Rainey rolled over and stretched just I pulled my jeans up. I left the button undone and smiled at her. Bruises or not, she was gorgeous. Her blonde hair was wild and unruly across the pillow and she shyly pulled the sheet over herself while smiling seductively at me.

“You should come back to bed,” she mumbled, still half-asleep.

I almost followed her beckoning but remembered the bruises. I didn’t want to hurt her any more. I shook my head at her.

“I’ve got to get to work,” I said as I pulled on my favorite blue T-shirt. It was thin and faded because I wore it so much.

Rainey sat up, letting the sheet fall to her waist. She leaned back on her hands, her pert breasts thrust out and taunting me. She was something else.

I walked over to the edge of the bed and leaned down to kiss her gently. She was having none of it. She curled her hand around my neck and pulled me down onto the bed. I was careful to hold my weight above her so I didn’t cause any more bruises, but I couldn’t resist when her tongue probed my mouth. I tipped her head back and kissed her throat. Her moans distracted me and I was just about to yank my jeans down when my mouth skimmed over the discolored skin on her shoulder.

I put that mark on her. I wasn’t about to do it again. I pulled away.

“I really need to get to work. You’ve got your mom’s minivan, right?” I asked as I stood up and stepped away from the bed. I needed to get away from her before I hurt her again.

She fell back onto the pillow. “Yeah, I’ll take the minivan. I think we’re going to do a girls’ night tonight, so don’t wait up,” she explained as she hiked the sheet up to her neck. She gave me the evil eye and I knew she was pissed. It wasn’t very often I refused to have sex.

“I won’t,” I promised and then went to fill a to-go mug with coffee. Having a self-brew coffee pot really made things easier. I skipped cream and sugar and just carried the black coffee to my truck.

I refused to feel guilty about not wanting to hurt Rainey. She was sick, and I wasn’t about to add to that. I knew she’d been hiding something from me. Her whole demeanor since she’d been back was different. She was almost aloof. She wanted sex without any emotions or feelings.

Which was fine. I wasn’t exactly interested in a real relationship; I was too busy for one. But I cared about Rainey, as a friend, at least. And if she was sick, I wanted her to get well, not push her limits and walk around covered in bruises. And if that meant I pissed her off, I didn’t care. Her well-being came first.

I drove to the jobsite Luke was working at and hopped out of the truck, to-go mug in hand. He was on the roof of an old church in town. He spotted me and waved, making his way toward the ladder at the far end of the church. He climbed down and came over.

“Hey, man, you need work today?” he asked. On occasion, I worked for his employer, JP. I wasn’t in the mood to work today, though.

“No, just needed to vent about Rainey,” I muttered.

Luke looked at his watch. “It’s almost ten. I can break for fifteen,” he said and yelled to one of the other guys that he was taking a break. He turned back to me and motioned me to follow him to the ten-by-ten canopy that housed a picnic table.

He grabbed a couple of sodas out of the cooler and tossed one to me as we sat at the table.

“So what’s up?” he asked, popping the top of his can.

“Do you know what’s wrong with Rainey?” I asked. No point trying to sugar-coat it.

“I wish I did, dude. I’m almost positive Mallory knows, but she refuses to mention anything, telling me that Rainey’s privacy is what’s most important. But her saying that just makes me believe whatever she’s hiding is kind of a big deal,” he said.

His words confirmed my fears. “That’s what I was afraid of. Do you think Mallory would tell me?”

Luke’s head went back as he howled with laughter. “Yeah, right,” he said after he finished. “Mallory is dedicated to Rainey and there’s no way she’ll reveal anything Rainey asked her to keep a secret. You can try, though.”

I blew out a breath. “I bet you’re right. But I can’t help but worry about Rainey. She’s acting odd and bruising easily,” I said, more to myself than him.

“Bruising? How easily?” Luke turned serious and I had an inkling he might know what was going on.

“Pretty easily. She fell off her stool at the bar last night after you guys left and this morning, her whole back side was black and blue,” I explained.

Luke sucked in a breath, but said nothing.

“What is it?” I asked, panicked.

“I – I can’t say for sure, man, but let me talk to Rainey, okay? Maybe I can convince her to tell you whatever it is that’s ailing her. You deserve to know,” he commented. He closed his eyes for a minute and when he opened them, he looked almost angry, but he didn’t say anything.

“Thanks, dude. I’ll let you get back to work. I’ve got to head over to the bar, anyway. Let me know what she says when you talk to her,” I said. I stood up, left my unopened can of cola at the table, and made my way back to my truck.

I worried Luke might know more than he was letting on, but if he did, I knew him well enough to know he would want to confirm his suspicions before he said anything to me. As much as I might hate that about him, I also appreciated the part where he didn’t get me worked up over a possibility.

An hour later, I sat in my office at the bar, rubbing my temples. Even though business was picking up, I was still low on funds and couldn’t pull a paycheck for two more weeks. And that was only if the summer crowd flooded the bar for the next ten days. I sighed, trying to figure out how I was going to make rent. I would have to work for JP on Monday and Tuesday in order to pay my household bills. I sent out a text to Luke and asked if he could use someone at the beginning of the week.

His reply came quickly, assuring me that JP could use another guy anytime I wanted. I breathed a sigh of relief and called Jimmy into my office.

“Hey, boss, what’s up?” he asked from the doorway.

“Can you cover the full dayshift on Monday and Tuesday? I’m going to work for JP,” I explained.

“Sure thing. I was planning on being here for most of the day, anyway. Will you work the nightshift, or do you want me to work doubles?”

“No, you can go home around five-thirty. I just need the dayshifts covered,” I said. As much as I didn’t want to put in two sixteen-hour days back-to-back, I couldn’t afford to pay Jimmy to work doubles those days, either. So I would have to suck it up and just work. I was already tired just thinking about it.

“I wanted to ask you about time off,” Jimmy said after standing there, staring at me for a full minute. I looked up at him and raised my brow in question. “My brother’s wedding is the Saturday before the Fourth of July. I’d like to take that weekend off. I’m in the wedding, so I need that Friday night and Saturday, at least.” He looked afraid of my answer.

“That’s not a problem. I’ll plan on bartending those nights so we don’t get backed up. Has your brother picked a place to do his rehearsal dinner?”

“No, not yet,” he replied.

“Well, tell him to give me a call and I’ll give him a good deal if he comes here. And I promise you won’t be required to work,” I laughed.

Jimmy smiled and then took off to clean up the bar and set up the stools so they weren’t still on the tabletops. In an effort to clean more efficiently, I recently dictated that the floors had to be washed thoroughly every night and then mopped with fresh-scented wood cleaner every morning. It gave the wood floors a stunning glow and the cleaner was enhanced to help protect the wood against spills and damage, which was most important.

I was just about to give up on the spreadsheet I was working on when my cell rang.

“Hello?”

“Hey, man. It’s Wolfe. What’s the plan for tonight? The girls are having a girls’ night, apparently.”

“How do you know? I only found out this morning,” I wondered.

“I ran into Mallory and Rainey at the grocery store. Rainey suggested I give you a call and we hang out,” he explained.

“Sounds good. Why don’t you call Luke and you guys meet me at my apartment around seven?”

“Can do. See you tonight.” He clicked off.

I tossed my cell on the desk and mentally dreaded the night ahead.