Page 55 of Masked Sins
“Hey.”
“How are you doing?” he asks. I can tell from his tone that he’s in a good mood.
“I’ve been better.”
“Everything okay?” he asks, his low voice tense with genuine worry.
The last thing I want to do is worry him. I spent half a decade worrying him, and I vowed to myself when I got sober that I’d never do that to him again.
I could tell him about our father—about how he’s declining more rapidly than the doctors originally predicted. About howhis doctor suggested he be transferred to hospice later today. But then I think of how that news would ruin his mood, and how he knows better than all of us how fucked up our father is because he’s the eldest brother.
“Just busy with the new club,” I lie.
“Ah. Well, I’m calling because of that, actually.” I flick my eyes up to the door to my dad’s room when a nurse exits, smoothing her pants and looking flustered. My silence prompts Liam to continue. “Zoe informed me earlier today that she’s going to Inferno later for girls’ night.”
I switch the phone to my other ear. “No problem. I’ll inform the security guards so they can keep an eye on her.”
“Ri, she’s bringing Layla.”
I close my eyes and sag against a nearby wall. “Of fucking course she is.”
“I’ve already told her that she’s going to give you an aneurysm, but she insists that Layla is just curious. I guess she’s been talking to some BDSM influencer, and she wants to learn more.”
Fuck.
How did I not see this coming? Layla is naturally curious, and now there’s a new kink club open that her stepbrother happens to own.
Like a moth to a flame.
“Thanks for letting me know.”
“Sure. And hey, maybe now’s your chance to give her some space.”
“She can have all the space she wants, but I’ll be damned if she thinks I’ll give her space inside my club.”
He chuckles. “Okay, I should go. I’m on my way to the donut shop. Zoe hasn’t left her office for a few hours, and I want to make sure she’s alive. Donuts should lure her out of her cave.”
“Writing deadline?” I ask.
“Yeah. This one is brutal. She called me by her male character’s name last night, and when I went to correct her, her eyes just glazed over, and she walked out of the room without responding, mumbling something about the third-act breakup.”
I laugh. “Tell her good luck.”
“Do you need backup tonight? I’d be happy to come and mitigate it.”
“No. I’ll be fine. We hung out yesterday, and it was… good. I think the ice might slowly be melting between us.”
“Finally.”
“Yeah, yeah. I was a total ass to her, so I don’t blame her.”
“I’m glad you’re on speaking terms again. It means we can all hang out without the awkwardness.”
“That might be giving us too much credit.”
“Right. Well, maybe I’ll see you later. Try not to kill anyone who talks to her.”
The call ends, and I take a deep breath as I’m faced with my current reality again. I crack my knuckles before slowly pushing the hospital door open and walking inside the suite. It’s basic and nothing like a hotel suite but bigger than a normal hospital room. Plus, the window seems bigger, and there’s a flat-screen TV.
