Page 57 of Rules, Roses, and Rivals
Bubba nodded once. “We keep listening to her words, trying to decode what she’s telling each of us. But we’re missing the bigger picture.”
Not quite rolling his eyes, Jake crossed his arms. “That would be?”
“It’s not about what she’s saying. It’s about what sheisn’t.”
That hit me square in the chest. Not because I hadn’theardthose silences. I’d damn near drowned in the one over the summer.
“She’s smiling when she’s tired. She’s laughing when she’s scared. She’s saying she’s fine, but she’snot. She ran from us all summer. That might be on us.”
Bubba raised a hand to stop any protests.
“She has a new boyfriend.” He chewed over those words like they left a bitter taste behind. “She has a boyfriend that she met and started dating while none of us were around. She’s made it clear she plans to keep him.”
I wasn’t alone in grimacing.
“Has her mother been home at all this week?” He turned to me now and I sighed.
“No.” Not that I’d seen. We’d all made excuses for Maddy over the years. But she had been gone more than she was around. Especially since Frankie started driving.
“That’s what I thought.” Bubba folded his arms. It gave him an air of restrained violence. “We fucked up somewhere. Whatever else she thinks or believes, we are the reason for it.”
“Rachel Manning didn’t help,” Jake spit out.
“She wouldn’t have said anything if it wasn’t true.” I couldn’t believeIwas defending her. I didn’t owe Manning a damn thing, except what had she donebuttold Frankie the truth?
“Why was it her business to tell her anything?” Jake demanded.
“Because she saw something we didn’t,” I answered. She’d seen Frankie was unhappy.
How the fuck had I missed it?
Archie’s voice was quieter now. “You think we’re making it worse?”
“I think we’re not helping,” Bubba said. “I think every time one of us corners her, challenges her, confesses something—she shuts down more.”
“She’s unraveling,” I murmured. “And we’re tugging the threads.”
No one spoke for a long time.
Jake finally dropped onto the armrest, face buried in his hands. “I thought—if I just told her how I felt…”
“I thought I’d get there first,” Archie muttered.
“I thought it wouldn’t matter,” I admitted. “Because we’ve always been there. Always been together. That… we always would be.”
Accepted that she didn’t want to date anyone so I was content to just be her friend. But now?
“She’s not a prize,” Bubba said. “And we’re not opponents.”
“Maybe.” Archie leaned back, scrubbing his hands down his face.
“Maybe?” I snorted. “No maybes about it. Jake makes moves and stays the night. Archie usurps her away from a lunch date with me and just takes off.” Yeah, that still stung. “It feels pretty damn competitive.”
Jake glared at Archie, but it lacked the earlier heat. Maybe because Archie wasn’t even looking at him.
“Guys…” Bubba said with a sigh. “If we really start fighting over her…”
“We already have.” Call me, Mr. Sunshine, but we were fighting over her. That was what brought us here with Jake on a tear and Bubba ready to throw down. Hell, even Archie had been ready for the invasion. “All of you know it.”
