Page 4 of Catch Me

“With Reid. Someone had to keep him there. Concussion or not, he was determined to come.”

My heart breaks all over again. The now familiar selfish feeling hits me, accompanied by a need to hurt myself as much as these guys probably hate me. Just imagining Reid dealing with having a concussion and not knowing what happened to me makes every nerve ending in my body flare in regret. “Why are you here, Lex?”

He pulls away. Hurt darkens his eyes. “To help you.”

“I’ve been so awful.”

“You’re hurting. There’s a difference.”

I shake my head. “Reid hates me.”

“Reid…” His nostrils flare. “Fuck it. Reid loves you, Briar. He’s desperate to hear from you.” He fishes for his phone again, but I pull away. “Don’t do this,” he says. “Haven’t you learned by now that running away isn’t the answer? You feel bad for running away and your answer to that is running even further away?” He shakes his head. “Briar, talk to him. Talk to us. All of us. We’re scared. We’re hurt. We want you back.Iwant you back.”

His hand curls into me, giving me the strength I need. He hands me his phone. The screen lights up. I see missed calls and texts. One comes in while the phone is in my hand.What’s happening??? I swear to God, motherfucker, answer your goddamn phone.

It’s from Reid. Tears fracture my vision. I can picture him saying this, or watching his fingers fly over the on-screen keyboard right before he sends the message. A yearning builds inside me. I don’t have any excuses for these guys. I can’t tell them a reason why I ran away again because it all seems so dumb now that I’m here with Lex. It’s never when I’m with other people that’s the problem. It’s when I’m by myself. It’s when I’m lost in my own head. I can’t even trust myself.

That is a scary ass feeling.

I take the phone from his grip and hit his Contacts button. Scrolling, I stop when I see Reid and press the green phone to connect the call. The phone barely rings when the other end picks up. “Christ, Lex! What the fuck is happening?”

The sound of his voice eats away at me. I try to say, “Hi,” but it comes out as a choked gasp. Then, the sobs come.

“Briar,” he says. My name on his lips is like a promise. “Baby, baby, it’s okay.”

The nicer he is to me, the more I break down. I know I should be asking him a ton of questions. How is he? Is he hurt? Can I do anything for him? But even now, I can’t get my body to cooperate.

“Give the phone to Lex, baby.”

I hand it over, resting my head on Lex’s chest again. His hand rubs up and down my arm. “She’s okay.”

“The hell she is! She’s crying!”

“She’s worried we all hate her.”

A growl rips through the phone. His voice is tinny and low, but I can still hear it, anyway. “Tell her—.”

“I’ve told her, Reid. She just needs a moment, I think. Sasha was here. The police took her. Richards was here too. I can’t get out of her what they were doing.”

“Bring her to me.”

My body locks up, and Lex notices. He pulls away to look in my eyes. He hesitates with his answer, and in that span of time, Reid hangs up on him like it’s already a done deal.

“We can be in Spring Hill in thirty minutes,” Lex says.

“Is that my only option?” I ask, rubbing at my eyes, trying to halt the flow of tears.

We catch each other’s gazes, and there are unspoken words between us. Words I think Lex is trying to convey rather than say. And to me, he’s saying he’ll do whatever I want. He’ll stay here with me, if I want. He’ll drive me to Spring Hill, if I want. Whatever I want, he’ll do.

I also know that staying here will only delay the inevitable now. If I don’t go to Spring Hill, Reid will come for me. I’m only prolonging the difficult conversation that lies ahead. The one where I hate myself more than anyone I’ve ever hated before.

Lex sees when I’ve made my decision, and I swear a little light dies from his eyes. “I’ll take you to him.”

3

Right before we leave the hotel, Lex pays the balance I owe on the room. He forces me to call my parents on the way to Reid’s. Mom sounds relieved, but curt. I guess they’ve already been through this with me. They started to think I was okay, and then bam, I leave again. I can’t get mad at her for her attitude toward me. After she makes sure I’m okay, she asks to talk to whoever’s with me, so I give the phone to Lex. He pulls the car over on the side of the highway to talk to her. I can’t hear everything that’s said, but I get the gist. She wants me home.

After he hangs up, he glances over at me, lips thin, “We’ll have to make this visit short.”

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