Page 131 of Wicked Minds
I arch a brow at him. “You do remember that he tried to choke me to death the last time I tried to speak to him?”
Royce has the good grace to grimace. “I won’t let him lay a finger on you.”
My eyes narrow on him as I think. “Why are you suggesting this now?”
Looking away, he rubs at the back of his neck. “I don’t want to betray his privacy, but after that day in the food court, I ran into him when I came to grab some things so I could stay at yours, and well… He’s a mess.”
Yeah, I’d noticed that for myself.
“Doesn’t that just make him more unpredictable?”
Royce blows out a breath, and I tilt my head at him in confusion, curious as to what Grayson told him. I won’t ask. I respect their friendship too much to put Royce in that position.
“He said something. A bunch of things, really… but I think he’s starting to doubt his dad.”
My eyebrows hit my hairline. “How? Why?” Why now? Why, after all this time, would Grayson suddenly be questioning his father?
Royce shakes his head, pinching the bridge of his nose before he exhales. “His Gran is sick—Alzheimer’s. She’s been saying things—not about you, but about his dad... It’s got his head all messed up, but from the way he was talking, I think he’d be open to listening. If he knew about Aurora, it would confirm the doubts currently eating him alive.”
Searching his face, the corners of my lips tilt up in a small smile. “You’re a good friend, Royce.”
Jumping down from the counter, he stands between my legs, taking the ice cream tub from my hands and setting it on the counter. I’m only wearing his t-shirt, so when his hands land on my outer thighs, I feel the intimate brush of skin against skin.
“I’m worried about Grayson, but if you tell me you don’t want to tell him, Ry, I won’t bring it up again. I swear. No matter what you choose to do, I’m on your side in all of this.”
“But?”
“Butis keeping her from him really the best thing for you? For her? What’s your long-term plan here? For Grayson to never find out? Do you genuinely think that’s achievable?”
Releasing a strained breath, I lean forward to rest my forehead against his shoulder, and he winds his arms around my waist, bringing the two of us chest to chest. “I don’t know,” I admit. “Before I discovered Grayson was also at Halston, I had no intention of ever telling him about her. But now… everything has gotten so complicated.”
Royce coaxes my head from his shoulder, his fingers stroking my cheeks as I stare into his eyes. “I’m scared,” I confess. “What if he still doesn’t believe me? Or what if he tries to take her from me? I’m already fighting a battle with my mom. I can’t take on one against him, either.”
“He wouldn’t,” Royce states with confidence, one side of his lips quirking up. “You think me or Logan would let him do anything that would hurt either of you?”
My responding smile is small and fleeting.
“I know you’ve only known the worst of Grayson since you got here, but he wouldn’t do that to you. To either of you,” Royce promises. “I think if he knew, he’d want to help. It might help the two of you find some closure.”
Shoulders dropping, I admit, “I don’t know if there can ever be closure for me and Grayson.”
Silence wraps around us as Royce pulls me in for a hug. “I’m not saying no,” I mumble into his shoulder. “Give me a few days to think about it, and we should have this conversation with Logan and get his stance.”
“Okay,” Royce readily agrees, and when he pulls back, there’s a wicked smile on his face and a predatory sparkle in his eyes. “We have a far more urgent matter to attend to, anyway.”
“Oh, is that so?” My lips are already lifting in a smile. “And what might that be?”
“The fact that you can sit there without wincing means I haven’t done a good enough job of destroying your pussy. That’s a problem we need to rectify immediately.”
I don’t get a chance to respond as he tosses me over his shoulder, and I squeal when his hand smacks against my ass.
“The ice cream!” I call, remembering that we didn’t put it back in the freezer.
“Forget the ice cream, James. I’d far rather watch you swallow my cock.”
Ugh, me too.
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