Page 72 of When You're Gone
The remorse in Jake’s tone was clear. But there was no way any of this was Jake’s fault. They had all been deceived.
Rhett gave him another tormented look. He hated thinking about that night. He hated reliving the pain he had caused so many people, including his best friend. To find out that there was more to the story—and a hell of a lot more at that—made him nauseous and furious all at once. It wasn’t about what Fielding had or hadn’t done. It was about realizing that he let himself spiral so far out of control that he didn’t remember what happened that night.
Never again.
“I wish I remembered some of it. Any of it,” Rhett lamented.
“The craziest part of this whole ordeal is that none of us would have ever known a thing if Fielding hadn’t ratted himself out last night. That’s the silver lining to this whole shitshow.”
He cocked his head in question.
“Tori completely shut down as soon as Fielding let his confession slip. He might not realize it—but you and I both know how she gets when she’s done. There will be no redemption arc for Fielding Haas.”
To Rhett, that silver lining almost made things worse. He had insisted that Tori figure out what she wanted—whoshe wanted—and that she had to make her choice abundantly clear. He recoiled at the thought of falling back into their relationship by default. He wanted to be chosen, dammit. He wanted her to fight for it and prove that she wanted him as much as he wanted her.
But he wouldn’t force that conversation today. Regardless of the status of their relationship, she was his best friend first. She had been betrayed by someone she trusted, and she was hurting. Today would only be about taking care of her and making sure she felt safe after what she had endured.
He chanced another glance at her sleeping form. He ached to take away her pain. It didn’t matter that she was right in front of him, cradled in his best friend’s lap. He needed to see the life force in her eyes—to know she hadn’t been broken at the hands of someone she trusted—before he would feel any sense of peace.
“Just wake her up, bro,” Jake urged in a whisper.
Rhett shot him a pointed glare. “You said she just fell asleep an hour ago.”
“Yeah, but she stayed up all night desperate to see you. I can’t stand to watch you pace back and forth like that. I know for a fact she’d want to be woken up the second you arrived. Besides… I gotta pee.”
He glanced down at her sleeping form as Jake’s suggestion bounced around his mind. Whether she heard them talking or just sensed his presence, Tori’s eyes cracked open and met his gaze.
“You’re here,” she whispered in a ragged croak.
“I’m here,” he replied, crowding them on the couch and pulling her into his arms. “God, I just need to hold you,” he murmured as he gently pulled her hand into his lap and wrapped her in his arms.
A little hiss escaped her as she tried to sit up. He glanced down and sucked in a sharp breath. Her hands. Her wrists. Her perfect, pale skin. It was sliced open and raw. She was covered in speckles of dried blood.
“What. The. Fuck,” he hissed as he lifted her hands toward his face. “Neither of you told me she was bleeding.”
Tori winced again. He instantly released his grasp, cradling her hand instead of holding it so tight.
“She wouldn’t let me inspect any of those or clean them,” Jake lamented as he stood up. “They’re on her hands and wrists. There are some on her legs, too.” He let out an exaggerated yawn as he stretched his arms overhead. Like it was casual. Like it was no big thing that Tori was bleeding in multiple places.
“I don’t think the spots on my legs are as bad, honestly,” Tori whispered through a yawn of her own. “I was wearing leggings and a sweatshirt, so my legs were covered when the bottle hit. Only my hands and wrists were exposed.”
Rhett released his hold on her completely as an unfettered rage spiked his blood pressure and had him seeing red. He locked eyes with Jake before he asked, “What do you meanwhen the bottle hit?” through painfully-clenched teeth.
“Hethrewthe bottle?” Jake probed.
Tori recoiled under their glares before nodding.
“He threw one of the bottles,” she confirmed.
“Jesus fucking Christ,” Jake raged as Rhett spoke over him: “there was more than one bottle?” He was on his feet the next second, matching Jake’s angry pacing stride for stride.
Tori looked up at them both, horrified, her eyes tracking their movements. It was the hesitancy in her voice that made Rhett freeze when she spoke again.
“One bottle was already broken when I got outside. The other bottle… well, I think he meant for me to catch it, but I was surrounded by glass, so I was too afraid to move.” She visibly shuddered and pulled the blanket tighter around her body. “He lobbed it up in the air, then it hit a few feet away from where I was standing and shattered.”
Her voice caught on the last word, as if the recollection was too painful to share. Rhett searched her gaze and saw the depth of her pain. Forget the cuts and scrapes on her skin—Fielding Haas had hurt her deeply last night.
Rhett knew he had to decide in that moment how he was going to play this, how he wanted to proceed. Or rather, how he needed to proceed. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what hewantedto do. What his body ached to do. What his curled fists longed to do in retaliation. But going after Fielding wasn’t going to help her or solve any of their problems today.
