Page 10 of Bring You Back

I’ve been there, and I’ve done that, but unlike my parents and uncle, who ended up doing us a favor, I’m trying to mend.

If Caleb had a choice in his leaving, he would be here to mend, too. My brother and I never would have left each other. Which is why I left Bellsby in the first place: to be by his side.

Tommy and Grumbles jolt when I slam the carrier shut and latch the door.

“Camille?”

A small smile tugs my lips at the sound of Naomi’s voice, but when I turn to her, it slips. She’s wrapped in a beige robe, her dark hair unbrushed, her face bare—no makeup to hide the dark circles under her eyes. I hear breathing, heavy—hers, mine, ours. I recognize the grief on her, and now, as I think back to the look I glimpsed in Julian’s eyes right before the shock and anger of seeing me set in, I see it on him, too. They’re going through something, him and his parents.

She isn’t surprised to see me, like she expected me to come. When she hugs me, I hear why.

“I’m so sorry about Caleb.”

They know.I, however, don’t know. I don’t know why Naomi feels the same, yet she is different. I’m not a hugger, but I accept her warmth, giving her a squeeze. “I’m sorry, too.”

Her lilac scent has faded. It makes me want to squeeze her tighter while also wanting to let her go.

“Well,” she breathes through a laugh as we pull back, her eyes now red-rimmed. She grips my elbows. “What can you do?” She’s flippant with her sadness. “I just hope you don’t hate me as much as my son does.” I lock stares with Tommy, mine questioning, his giving nothing away. “Do you need some breakfast?”

Naomi is already heading to the fridge, her movements slow and tired. I almost tell her she doesn’t have to be false with me, but that’s not what she’s being exactly. She’s trying to move forward. Some days that requires believing a lie.

“I’ll make some for you,” Tommy says, dividing a look between us both, as Naomi turns to us again.

“You’ve done enough of that,” she chides softly, and opens the fridge. Her face falls at what’s inside—or, rather, what isn’t.

I feel a pang for what I’ve missed by being gone, for what I’m now immersing myself in by being back. These are people I care about. I don’t like to say things happen for a reason—my brother is dead, so fuck that now—but I feel more at home than I ever have. Which seems impossible. I’ve felt nothingbutat home here. There’s a fresh relief, though, a deeper understanding that I can see in Naomi as her eyes find mine. She feels it, too.

Tommy tries to speak up again as she grabs her purse from the island, but I warn him against it with a shake of my head, mentally relaying her words through my stare.You’ve done enough. Let her go.

“Do you still eat the same foods?” Naomi pauses at the door.

“Yeah,” I say, and she nods to head off. “Could you get some grapefruit?”

A range of thoughts pass over her face as her eyes hold mine: remembrance, realization, sympathy. She nods.

“With honey,” I add.

“Are you staying?” she asks, the hope in her voice a confirmation for my answer.

“Yes.”

“All right.” She points toward the hall behind me. “The guest room is available. I’ll be right back.” She leaves with her dulled appearance, without ever acknowledging Grumbles. I should’ve said something. She’ll need cat food.

Tommy blows a breath through his lips. “That’s the mostupshe’s been in … a while.”

I cross my arms. “What happened to them?”

“Don’t look at me,” he proclaims with attempted innocence.

I look at him—jaw set, brow cocked. He sighs. “It’s not my place to tell. So don’t look at me. Talk to Julian.” He stalks to the kitchen cupboards and I flick my brows in doubt. Easier said than done. Julian went AWOL as soon as I appeared, clearly in no hurry to talk to me. If I had to guess, I’d say he’s at the skate park. A place I always avoided thanks to Banks.

“I’m sorry, too,” Tommy says in a low voice when he’s back at my side, setting a bowl of water on the table for Grumbles. She laps it up eagerly. “About Caleb.”

My voice is just as low. “When’d you find out?”

“This morning.”

I could laugh.Check out the timing on this one.

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