Page 28 of Reid
“He was right.You’re priceless to me.”
“Oh God, Evy, it’s the same for me.I told you—without you, there is no me.”She hugged me.I held on to her, taking a moment to soak in her warmth, to remind myself she hadn’t succeeded in ending her life that night.“Vaughn gave us what we’ve always dreamed of.We’re finally together.Nothing and no one is going to take that away from us.”
We shifted so that we could both lie back, our foreheads pressed together as we lay facing each other.Most of the time, that was how we fell asleep, wrapped tightly around each other, both of us still afraid the other might disappear in the middle of the night.For a long while, we simply stayed like that, absorbing each other.
“I should have told you about William.”I was the first to break the silence.
“And I should have told you about that night.”Pulling back, she wiped her nose on the sleeve of her borrowed shirt.“We were both trying to protect each other.”
Rolling onto my back, I clenched my eyes shut.“Doesn’t look like either of us did a very good job of it.”
“Where the hell are you even looking?”she growled adorably, causing me to open my eyes to look at her.“Evy, we survived our parents.We’re together, despite everything.We made it out of the hell they made our lives, and now we have the chance to heal each other.From my point of view, I think we’re doing a kick-ass job.”
Some of the pressure that had been building inside me my entire life eased.“You think so?”
“I think you have impossible standards if you don’t, little sis.”
“You’re older by two minutes,” I argued, fighting a smile.After the bedlam of the day, it felt good to simply let go of some of the guilt that had been weighing me down.
With a snort, she started smoothing down my hair, adjusting the hospital gown I’d been changed into, fluffing my pillow.“From now on, you have to put yourself first, Evy.”
“Okay.”I gave her the answer I knew she wanted, but it was easier said than done.My entire life was my sister.Her eyes narrowed on me.“I’ll do my best to try.”
“That’s better than nothing, I guess,” she huffed.
Settling back down beside me, she wrapped one arm over my stomach, being careful not to disturb my hand with the IV.My heart was heavy from Evie telling me about the night she’d tried to end her life, but at the same time, I felt like we were both a little lighter.Her not talking about it and my not knowing had been a barrier between us neither of us had acknowledged.
We were still cuddled up together when the door opened so forcefully it hit the wall with a loud crash.Our arms tightened around each other, both of us ready to protect the other from whatever danger was coming.But then I saw Reid, his face gray, his chest rising and falling with every harsh breath.
Wild, lightning-filled eyes landed on us.Without hesitation, they focused straight on me.“Sweetness, I’m so sorry I wasn’t here.”
“Reid,” I whispered, feeling all the emotions I’d been holding back all day start to bubble over.When I saw him, a sob choked out of me without permission, but I couldn’t hold it back.
Evie disappeared, and Reid replaced her, his arms like vises as they pulled me against him.I pressed my face to his chest, inhaling his cinnamon, amber, and vanilla scent, letting the tears fall.Clutching at his shirt, I let go of all the chaos, the trauma, the pain, the loneliness.
Evie was my soul, but Reid…
He was my one true safe space.
Reid
Lifting Everlyout of the passenger seat of my truck, I carried her toward her apartment.We’d already argued about where she was going to stay while she was recovering.I wanted her upstairs in our bed.She wanted to be close to her sister.
Our compromise was that I would sleep on their couch until she felt better.Whatever bullshit I’d missed while I was off dealing with MC business with Max, Jack, Elias, and my dad, it must have been heavy.When I’d first seen her in the hospital, she’d had a haunted quality to her face that quickly morphed into something that broke my heart.
I wasn’t sure who was responsible for all the pain my woman had released when I’d pulled her into my arms, but they sure as hell wouldn’t get the chance to cause her more hurt.
Behind us, Evie gathered her sister’s things from the back seat of my truck.Once she had everything, she ran ahead of us to unlock the apartment door.I followed her inside, carrying Everly to the couch and carefully setting her down.Grabbing a soft throw that was folded on the opposite end, I draped it over her lap.
“Are you hungry?Thirsty?”Her doctor said she needed plenty of fluids over the next few days, along with regular doses of antihistamines.
Knowing I was the one responsible for her allergic reaction killed me.It had been made worse because of it being her first time, on top of how many times I’d fucked her.From what the doctor explained, it wasn’t a life-threatening allergy, but I couldn’t imagine how uncomfortable she’d been.
Her sister was already in the kitchen, grabbing a can of Diet Coke and filling a glass with ice.Without a word to me, she brought them over and pushed them into my hands before going back to the kitchen and extracting deli meat and vegetables.Everly smirked up at me as I frowned at the glass and can.
“I’m very thirsty, actually,” she said after a moment of my just standing there with my hands full.
Popping the top of the can, I poured it over the ice and offered it to her like a sacrifice.Laughing, she took it from me and gulped down half the glass.“That’s the good stuff,” she said with a satisfied sigh.
