Page 76 of Collateral Damage
I hate to see him agitated, so I pat his round shoulder and give him a wink. “Don’t worry, we’re not here to stop you. We just want you safe. That’s all.”
Maybe I’m ignorant, but I would rather Chandler not drink at all. I know firsthand how addicting it can be—how easy it is to fall into bad habits with something that numbs the emotions.
At least he’s got Syb here to take care of him.
And us.
Helpful for him, but not for me, considering I can’t stop looking toward the bar, searching for her in the crowd, simultaneously dying to see her and not wanting to see her.
Then there she is, her brother’s beer in one hand and an ice water in the other. She falters when she sees us, mixed emotions rippling across her face like deep ocean currents. She straightens her shoulders as she approaches with a murderous expression.
God, she’s beautiful when she’s mad. She’s stunning in a way that makes my chest ache. Dressed in a little black dress, she’s got the attention of every male in here, but she acts like she couldn’t care less as she marches toward us.
“Cooper and Ethan,” she says coolly, her eyes flashing emerald as they jump from me to my brother. “Crossing boundaries, I see. What are you doing here?”
“I invited them,” Chandler announces, giving her a death-glare of his own.
Atta-boy.
“Yup, we were invited,” I supply nonchalantly. “We wouldn’t miss Chandler’s twenty-first birthday for anything, not even yourboundaries. Isn’t that right, Ethan?”
Ethan sits up taller, but his voice is strained. “That’s right.”
Sybil is still standing, towering over us, when Chandler reaches out to grab the beer in her hand. After weighing her options, she passes him the drink and sits next to him with a pout.
I return Sybil’s charged look with a completely unaffected one of my own, even though I’m equally pissed off. Ethan, however, isn’t so good at hiding his feelings. My boy looks completely shattered.
Fuck.
Thank God Chandler cracks a joke. “Tastes so bad but feels so good,” he says after taking a long swallow of the beer and following it with an exaggerated sigh.
“The world is your oyster now, kid,” I confirm, and Ethan and Sybil both shoot me annoyed glares.
I hold up my hands. “What? You heard the man. He’s going to be responsible. That’s more than any of us can say. Do you remember what we did for our twenty-firsts?”
“Still putting your foot in your mouth, aren’t you?” Sybil hisses.
Yeah, maybe. “I need a drink.” I step away. “Do you want anything, Ethan?”
Ethan holds my gaze for a long moment. “I take it we’re calling a car tonight?”
I nod like the functioning-alcoholic I’ve become lately.
“That’s fine with me,” Ethan confirms. “I’ll get whatever you get, but please make sure it’s strong.”
Amen to that.
Making my way to the bar, I can’t help but wonder about Chandler’s intentions tonight. Does he think getting Ethan andSybil in the same room will get them back together? It’s not the worst plan.
The thought of having to endure them as a couple again makes me want to vomit. Then again, I want her in my life. I want things to be how they were compared to how they are now. Truth is, I’m just as fucked up about this girl as my brother is, and I’d rather lose her to him than lose her entirely.
The bar is crowded, and it takes forever to get drinks. This isn’t one of those clubs that has good waitstaff and tables like in Manhattan. It’s definitely a wait-in-line kind of establishment, but I’m grateful for that. I don’t want to sit and listen to whatever conversation is happening at that table, or more likely, the long awkward silences stretching out between Chandler’s attempts to make things better.
Things are never going to be better.
I end up with two double whiskeys and return to the table, trying not to glower at the way Ethan and Sybil have their heads leaned close while they talk. I set his drink down a little too forcefully, and the pair jump apart.
“Here you go,” I seethe.
