Page 131 of Cold As Ice

“What for?”

“Being there for her when I wasn’t. She’s lucky to have you, Holden.”

“Not as lucky as I am.” He clapped me on the back and made a beeline for my sister, pulling her into his arms. “Try not to physically harm him; we need him for regionals.”

Her gaze flicked to mine as she muttered, “I can’t promise anything.”

Noah kissed her. Soft and lingering, enough to make me look away before the night’s liquor made a reappearance.

“He’s gone,” she announced, moving closer.

Rory leaned against the counter, staring at me with a mix of pity and sadness that hit me right in the chest.

I knew I’d messed up—I didn’t need her to rub it in.

“What?” I bit out, the silence almost too much to bear.

“Oh, Austin.” Her expression softened. “What have you gotten yourself into?”

* * *

“Better?” Rory asked.

She’d finally sat down at the breakfast counter while I managed to eat two plates of bacon and eggs.

“Yeah, thanks.”

“Okay, time to talk.”

“Rory, I—”

“No, Austin. I’ve been patient. I’ve been understanding. But the look in Madison’s eyes last night… that wasn’t fair to either of us.”

“You barely know her.”

“True. But I like her, and I think we could be friends. Surely you can see how messed up it is that she thought... God, I can’t even say it.” She shuddered. “How long has it been going on?”

“The night Connor got injured.”

“She has a daughter.”

“She does.”

“Have you met her?”

“Not on purpose,” I said, and Rory frowned. “I ran into them at the store before Christmas.”

“And yet, you didn’t stop seeing her?”

“We agreed to keep things…” I trailed off, realizing that we hadn’t kept things simple at all.

Madison continually let me go back to her place. She let me into her and Imogen’s space. I didn’t think much of it at the time. I figured it was just sex.

But now, it felt different.

“What happened?” My sister pushed, but I saw no judgment there.

“I stayed over, and Imogen almost walked in on us. She was supposed to be staying away for the night but wanted to surprise Madi in the morning.” The twitch of her lips had me frowning. “What?”

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