Page 32 of The Monster I Loved
The damn Fitzgerald family would be pissed.
8
SOMEBODY THAT I USED TO KNOW
Thaddeus
While Aston liftedbags into the vehicle, I walked Lily out with one arm firmly around her shoulders. She was headed back to school. I loved spending time with her, even if it hadn’t been exactly trouble-free. Her life hadn’t stopped when I went away. If I needed more proof of that, my baby sister had a boyfriend and told me she was looking forward to introducing him. And, more mind-blowing, she wanted to marry him and was enlisting my help to break it to our father. I’d missed so much of her life. Of my own life. When we reached her car parked in front of the door on the gravel path, I kissed her and opened the door. “Drive carefully.”
Lily pulled me tight into another hug. “With this family’s bad luck with cars, I always do.”
“Good.”
Lily finally let go, stepped back, and smiled, but not before I caught a bit of something in her eyes.
“Hey, maybe I’ll drive up to the college one weekend. Check things out for myself.”
My sister’s eyes brightened. “Really?”
I nodded. “I’m home, so I’ll be visiting all the time. You’ll be sick of me.”
Lily smiled and lowered herself into the car. “Never.”
I smiled as she drove away, but my chest tightened briefly. I left my sister all alone out here; my mother would never have wanted that. Anger consumed me, and I forgot the people I had to protect. Killing Clive had felt right. It satisfied that deep, dark hole within me, but since coming home, all the things I’d missed became painfully obvious.
When I went back inside, I heard sounds coming from the kitchen. Before she left, Lily made us a huge breakfast spread, homemade croissants, omelets, waffles—it was all delicious but resulted in a big mess. Aston would have his work cut out for him. Earlier I spotted pots crusted with eggs and batter on the counters where syrup didn’t cover. When I entered the kitchen to investigate, the noise I found was Henry elbow-deep in soapy water.
“Leave it. Aston will take care of everything.”
He shook his head. “By then this place will be all clean.”
After the near blowout with Felix, I’d driven to Henry’s house, practically packed his bags for him, and moved him in with me. He’d suggested living with his parents, who lived over an hour away, but why would he do that? I had a big house all to myself, plus he could visit his son and even set up a room for Wylie here if he wanted. I had it all planned out. Fuck women. All of them were trouble.
A particular blonde’s face flashed in my mind. I scowled, cursing the image away. Now that I was free, my main focus was building a life that centered on myself and the people who’d stuck by me. I didn’t need her screwing with my mood throughout the day.Annoyingly, I’d been thinking of her more since that night at Patriots Park, when I’d thought—even ifonly for a brief moment—that she’d been the one getting laid. Something besides anger stirred when I thought of her nowadays. I didn’t want to explore what that might be.
Ultimately, I shoved the odd sensation to the back of my mind and concentrated on what mattered most.
“Look at us, two bachelors in this big house!” I laughed with Henry.
“Wait, aren’t you engaged to be married?” he teased.
Melissa, Mimi, often slipped my mind. She was Ashley’s best friend, which put me in an awkward position. “Wait, I wonder if she knew her best friend was cheating,” I said, chewing my lip.
Henry shrugged. “They’re pretty close. I wouldn’t put it past them.”
Nodding, I thought about the mess Henry was in. I mean, come on, he made a mistake. Years ago, he met a female worker at the prison and spent the past few years using his trips to visit me to spend time with her. Two wrongs didn’t make a right. Ashley had set out to hit Henry where it hurt, choosing his friend. That was a low blow. And Felix had no business helping her deliver it.
“Thad?”
A voice interrupted my thoughts, and I looked away from Henry to see my father.
“What are you doing here?”
“Let’s go. We can drive to the office together,” he said, ignoring my question.
I studied his face. He looked older than he had a couple of days ago. Something was wrong. He clearly hadn’t been sleeping if the heavy bags under his eyes were anything to go by.
“Why?”
