Wine and Whiskey (Surviving Absolution #1) (20 page)

Her sweet laugh is a reminder of the first day he brought her
home. Even then, there wasn’t any doubt how happy she would make him. He has to
do everything he can to do the same for her.

When they’re alone again, he squeezes her hand. “Are you going
to tell me what happened with Jason?”

She looks down, tracing the stem of her wine glass. “He’s just worried.
He’ll come around.”

“Shae?”

“It will hurt you, and I don’t want to do that.”

She protects both of them, a shield between the men in her life
who can’t get along. A role she shouldn’t have to play. “You or Max should have
let me know you were upset.”

Her head flies up, worry darkening her eyes. “Don’t be mad at
Max. I asked him not to. You would’ve gotten mad and raced home, but there
wasn’t anything you could do. You can’t change Jason’s feelings.”

“No, but you don’t have to hide the truth to protect me. We have
to be honest with each other, remember?”

“Okay, I promise not to keep things from you.”

After a few minutes, he tries a new subject. “How was the
meeting about your trip?”

Her face lights up. The first sign of her normal, happy
self he’s
seen all night. “Good! The early reviews are
strong, so they’re expecting a lot of coverage at the premiere.”

“What will we do exactly? I have no idea what to expect.”

“I have to walk the red carpet to be interviewed and
photographed. Then, the whole cast and crew watches the movie together. There’s
usually a party afterward. It opens across the country on Friday.”

He winks and lays his hand on top of hers. “You Hollywood types
go all out, don’t you?”

“You have to build excitement so people will want to go and see
it. I know I’m supposed to be nonchalant about it, but I’m pretty excited.” She
entwines her fingers in his, her face glowing with happiness. “This is the kind
of thing I dreamt about as a kid, and I can’t believe I actually get to do it.
I’m happy you’re going with me. I love sharing it with you.”

“Thank you for asking me.”

“We’ll leave on Tuesday, because I have a wish event in Missouri
for a little girl in remission from leukemia.” Pink flushes across her cheeks,
and she tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. “She’s having a Shae birthday
party, and I’m going to surprise her when they sing and bring out the cake.”

His heart races at her modesty. She’s popular enough to be a
party theme and almost too shy to tell him about it. “I’m sure she’ll be thrilled.”

“Yeah, I love doing stuff like this. I think I have more fun
than the kids do. Anyway, the premiere’s on Wednesday, and the rest of the week
I’ll do the talk show circuit. Gail surprised me; she was able to finalize the
agreement for me to be the musical guest on Saturday Night Live.”

“It’ll be wild to see you on the big screen and then TV.”

“That’s why I said it’s a dream.”

After finishing his drink, he takes his plate and glass to the
sink. Max walks in rubbing his hand across his forehead. “Carter’s back. We’ve
got a problem.”

She squeezes his hand, offering an uncertain smile, trying to
comfort him. “I’m going to say good night to Carrie. I’ll see you upstairs.”

* * * *

Returning to the house a few minutes later, she stops at the
raised voices coming from Nick’s office.

“You’re distracted, and Juan took advantage of it. Others are
going to try the same thing if you let this slide.”

A shudder rocks her body, and she wraps her arms around herself,
trying to banish the coldness creeping over her. All of Carter’s earlier
mischief is gone, replaced with pleading worry.

“I’m not distracted. Brett fucked up, and now we’re stuck
cleaning up his mess.”

Her heart aches at Nick’s words. He sounds tired, a rare hint of
uncertainty tingeing his tone.

“Yeah, you lost two big shipments, and Ricky was almost killed.
This is going to be hard to recover from. You’ve got to hit hard and send the
message you’re one hundred percent focused.”

“I don’t have anything to prove. Juan ran home scared, and if he
tries to come back, he’ll be taken care of.”

She should walk away, stop listening to their argument. She
doesn’t want to know this, doesn’t want to think about the dangers of his
business or what they have to do to survive.

“Listen to me. You look weak. Everyone knows your head’s not in
it. Shae’s sweet and all, but you can’t let her ruin everything we’ve worked
for.”

She freezes at the mention of her name. Carter blames her. Wants
her gone.

“Leave her out of this. It has nothing to do with her.” Anger
and hurt twist through Nick’s voice.

He refuses to let her defend him, and now he’s in the same
position, standing up for someone he loves, fighting those who are against
them.

“If you don’t do something, the threats are going to keep
coming. You can’t let her be the reason you’re destroyed. You need to get your
mind off that girl’s pussy and back on your business before—”

She jumps at a loud pop followed by a crash and glass breaking.

“Damn it, Nick! I think you broke my fucking nose!”

“If you weren’t my
cousin, that
would
be the least of your fucking worries. Now get the fuck out!”

Carter stumbles out of the office, hunched over with blood
pouring down his face. The office door slams shut behind him as the heat of
humiliation courses through her body.

A bitter pill to swallow, knowing what he really thinks of her—nothing
more than a dalliance Nick should end. But she refuses to run this time.

Taking a deep breath, she follows the red trail into the
kitchen.

Her anger at
Carter’s comments subsides at his pitiful state. Bent over the cast iron sink,
his sun-bleached hair hangs in his face as blood streams down his chin, his
knuckles white from gripping the sides. “Here, let me help you.”

She pulls out the sprayer nozzle, and
using her hand to buffer the force, gently rinses off his nose and mouth. Pink
tinted water swirls on the white enamel before flowing down the drain. “Pinch
your nose shut, and I’ll get you some ice.” After grabbing a dishtowel, she
wraps ice cubes inside the terrycloth and holds it against the bridge of his
nose.

He flinches at the pressure, but doesn’t
pull away. “Son of a bitch. That hurts.”

“It’ll help keep the swelling down.”

He feels for the stool behind him and
sits down, closing his dark blue eyes, the only similarity between the two
cousins. His lithe surfer body, tense from the pain, contrasts with Nick’s
thick, muscular build. “How did you learn to treat broken noses?”

“Watching the medics while we were on
tour. You’d be surprised how many people get hurt during rehearsals and shows,
and the regular goofing around that gets people in trouble. Everybody drinks on
their days off.”

A shudder runs through his body after he
leans back against the counter. “So, I guess you heard everything.”

Enough to humiliate her that he thinks
the only interest Nick could possibly have in her is between her legs.
Crudeness replaces his earlier charm as he faults her for their problems. “I
didn’t realize you think so little of me.”

“It’s not that. I was just pissed and
trying to get Nick’s attention. I know I pushed it too far.” He gingerly
touches the tip of his nose. “Learned that lesson.”

“You’re the second person today who’s
said Nick and I shouldn’t be together. It’s not a good feeling to know the
people you care about are against you.”

He opens his bloodshot eyes, already
puffy with purple and black streaks. The reminder of Nick’s anger will be
obvious for weeks. “I don’t think Nick gives a damn if I like it or not.”

“I’m sure he’s hurt you don’t trust his
judgment.”

“I used to. Lately, it seems clouded.”

Drops of water dribble down her arm from
the improvised ice pack, and she tosses it into the sink. Unwilling to let him
see her cheeks burn with embarrassment, she doesn’t turn back to face him. “By
me?”

“We live in a very dangerous world. He
needs to stay focused or—”

“That’s enough, Carter.” She jumps at
Max’s hard voice in the doorway. The irritation leveled at Nick’s cousin
evaporates as he talks to her. “Thanks for helping him. I’ll take over from
here.”

Not wanting to be in the middle of
another argument, she welcomes Max’s dismissal. Finding Nick is more important
than disagreeing with Carter. “Okay, thank you. Can you please find him some
Tylenol?”

She walks through the foyer and knocks on
the office door before pushing it open. “Can I come in?”

Nick strides toward her, blocking the
entrance. Another attempt to protect her from the violence of his world,
especially when it’s instigated by him. “Let’s go outside. We can talk on the
deck.”

The destruction from Nick’s rage mars the
room behind him. The toppled bookcase, along with papers and glass bottles
strewn across the floor, reflect the physical effects, while the creases on his
forehead reveal his emotional devastation. “We don’t have to leave. I know what
happened.”

“You heard?”

She swallows down the bitterness and
nods. “I’m a distraction.”

He steps backward and lets her inside.
Absentmindedly massaging his hand, his fingers trace the scratch across his
knuckles. “God damn him.”

The last twenty-four hours she’s felt the
stab of disapproval from the people she loves, and now the knife moves to him.
“Carter’s not the first person to say we shouldn’t be together. We’re going to
have to get used to everyone being against us.”

“Fuck all of them. We don’t need anyone’s
approval.”

Fury flames in him just like the night
Juan kidnapped her. The side of Nick she so rarely sees, yet understands the
devastation that can come from it. She must calm him down, bring him back from
the anger engulfing him. Cupping his cheeks, she tilts his face toward hers,
meeting his angry gaze. “Even if Carter and everyone else are right, I can’t
change how I feel about you.”

His eyes burn with intensity as he
searches her face. His fingers cover hers, squeezing them in worry, doubt
lingering in his emphatic touch. “You’re not going to try and leave?”

“I’ll admit it was my first thought. To
run upstairs and grab my suitcase. But I knew it’d be pointless.”

“Because I’d find you wherever you went?”

She shakes her head and smiles, needing
to confirm her commitment to them despite the obstacles they face. “Because I’m
not going to run anymore. I want to be with you.”

The stiffness leaves his body, and he
slumps down on the edge of his desk. Pulling her against him, he rests his head
on her shoulder, his heavy breaths warming her neck, slowing her racing pulse
from his dissipating fear.

“I don’t want to cause problems with your
business. So, if you—”

His grip tightens around her waist.
“Don’t even say it. All of this is meaningless to me without you. No matter
what happens, you and I belong together.”

Her fingers glide over his scalp,
stroking his hair, trying to soothe the uncertainty swelling in him again. “I
was just going to suggest you don’t have to go to New York with me, if you need
to work. I know it’s a long time to be gone.”

“I'm going.”

A small smile crosses her mouth at the
ferocity imbedded in his answer, a reminder of his stubbornness amongst the
turmoil, of how much she loves him for it. “Okay. We don’t have to decide right
now.” Weakness softens her muscles, throbbing from the tension gripping them
for so long. She presses her cheek against his, the light stubble tickling her
skin. “It’s been a long day. I think I’m going to get ready for bed. Are you
coming?”

“Yeah, I’ll be up soon.”

As she starts to step back, he entwines
their hands, a shiver running through her at his lips pressed against her ear.
“Don’t let what Carter said make you doubt us. Nothing has changed how I feel
about you.”

Her heart aches from his worry, unable to
fully trust her belief in him or her promise not to run. “I know.”

* * * *

Tonight, whiskey doesn’t soothe his
temper. Not strong enough to help him forgive his cousin for hurting Shae or
make Carter’s accusation untrue.

It was easy to work sixteen hours a day
when he was alone. A focused mind and an empty bed are the ideal combination in
this world. Only indulging in the occasional hook-up to satisfy his needs and
release his tension, with no attempt at any real connection.

Now, he’s found this beautiful
distraction who makes everything else unimportant, who spurs his dream of
leaving it all behind. Of giving up everything to become a better man with a
different life. He takes a long drink, welcoming the heat sliding down his
throat. She’s already sacrificed so much, he can’t ask her for more.