Page 38 of The Fault Next Door

Nolan shrugged. “Yeah, I don’t think I’m up for it.”

"How about I make some burgers for us, and we can hang out and watch TV?"

“Sure. That sounds good.”

“Hey, I know that was the last thing you wanted to happen, but now the police know she’s trouble and hopefully she’ll get some warning or punishment and stop.”

Nolan nodded, but Ryder could tell Nolan was still obsessing over what had happened. He had a bad feeling that this might come back to bite them in the butt, but what was the worst that could happen?

Chapter 27

Ryder stayedthe night at Nolan's house. They didn't have sex, but it was nice waking up beside Nolan. He was developing feelings for Nolan that went beyond swapping body fluids. It worried him. If Amy was still around—heck, if Amy was still here, he'd be in Atlanta, and this wouldn't be an issue.

Anger surfaced, and he had to work to tamp it down. Though the cops had ruled it an accident, he still held anger for the jerk who had killed her. He’d been wrapped up in crap at the ICU and praying she lived, so he’d not really paid attention to the news around that time. He really didn’t know what had happened. He could go back and look at the articles, but a part of him didn’t want to. If he opened that terrible time in his life up again, he might not survive. Besides, he was finally moving on, and no amount of obsessing about what had happened would bring Amy back.

Nolan's soft snores filled the room. He needed to take better care of his animals. After the accident, he'd left too much up to Nolan. The work Nolan had done for him was great, but it should be his responsibility.

After grabbing a cup of coffee, Ryder headed outside to work in the barn. Thankfully, Nolan shared his alarm code with him, so he didn't have to wake up his man to get outside. A chuckle escaped his lips as he headed out. It was odd but comforting to think of Nolan as his.

He had his coffee mug in his hand and was maybe two steps out the door when he was hit in the side of the head with something that broke on impact.

“What the?—”

His mother stood about ten feet away, hate shining in her eyes. “You’re fucking him, aren’t you?” She threw another wad of dirt at him.

He glanced down, seeing dirt floating on the top of his coffee. Anger whipped through him. “I don’t see how that’s any of your business.”

The anger on his mother’s face morphed into rage. “I always knew you were gay. Amy was weak and failed you.”

Hot rage built inside. “Amy didn’t fail me, she died.”

“She was weak! And now you’re fucking that-that-that thing!” his mother screeched.

Anger and pain twisted through him. The emotional rollercoaster had his stomach pitching. He had never measured up and never would. No matter what he accomplished in life or how he behaved, he would never be enough for them. The anger simmered in the background, but the sadness pumping through him overrode it. "I knew moving back here was a mistake."

“You should have married Cindy. At least then you wouldn’t be an embarrassment to the whole city.”

Ryder blew out a breath. Yelling at his mother wouldn’t fix anything. “You’re the embarrassment, not me.”

The door slid open behind him, and Nolan stepped out, worry making his forehead wrinkle.

“Him! He’s the reason she’s dead.”

His mother wasn’t making any sense. “Amy died in a car accident. It wasn’t Nolan’s fault.”

“You’re so stupid. You didn’t even look him up. But I did. That man he lived with, the one before you, he died in a car accident. I bet you didn’t even know that.” His mother turned to Nolan, hate shining in her eyes. “Did you come here to take advantage of him after that filthy man you were with killed his Amy?”

Heat washed over Ryder. He’d had enough of his mother’s crazy accusations. “Get out of here!” Ryder bellowed.

His mother gasped, acting like he’d slapped her or something. “How dare you yell at me?”

“Get the fuck out of here and don’t come back. I never want to see you again.” Ryder stalked forward and towered over his mother. He didn’t want to call the police, but he would. He was sick and tired of people pushing him around. His mother making up lies to piss him off wasn’t helping.

Nolan's hand on his arm made him flinch. He glanced down. Anger and pain ran so hot through his veins that he wanted to destroy something.

“Her words can’t hurt you if you don’t let them. Don’t listen.”

Deep in his soul, he knew that Nolan was right. His mother was just screwing with him, and he hated it. Hated that she could affect him so much. Hated that he'd come back here and been forced to put up with her manipulations and resentment. His parents had never been good to him. They might have done a few good things, but they weren't for him.

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