Page 93 of Dirty Secrets
“I’d be jealous,” I corrected.
“The difference is, you’d be willing to share her with Reid. Would he share her with you?” he asked curiously, sitting on the edge of my bed to get comfortable.
“I don’t think he would,” I sighed, sitting beside him. “Reid’s always been possessive of her, but he also doesn’t want to make a move because of Josh.”
“He needs to let Josh go,” he said quietly, my heart hurting at the thought. “I know Josh was family, but he’s gone. I don’t mean to sound like an asshole, but loyalty to a ghost is stupid.”
“I know. You didn’t see them together, man. They had a friendship that nothing could break.”
Footsteps sounded in the hallway, and we shut up just as Raven appeared. “Are you guys coming for breakfast?”
“Yeah. We just wanted to give you two a minute since you were talking,” I answered, getting to my feet and stretching, loving how her eyes trailed over my chest and abs.
“He’s going to head into Ashburn to try and make some money. Will one of you go with him?” she asked, chewing on her lip nervously. Despite being pissed at him, she still wanted to make sure he was safe.
“Yeah, baby. I’ll go with him,” I smiled. “It’s probably a good idea so me and him can talk.” Relief crossed her face and I quickly gave her a reassuring kiss. “You and Zav can hang out for a while. Maybe check out the community center? Rory would probably appreciate some feedback on it. She’s working her ass off to improve things around here.”
I was a little surprised that the Donovans were investing so much money here, but I wasn’t going to complain. Between building the community center, updating the skatepark, and helping out with donations to Hawthorne Heights High, she was making changes that no one had wanted to before.
Would it turn the Heights around? No, but even something as simple as offering free condoms from the community center could’ve stopped at least one kid from getting knocked up.
Raven’s eyes slid to Zavier and he nodded. “Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. Maybe we could give her some input? We could plan a meeting with her to discuss it.”
“I’d like that,” she replied, looking back at me. “You two will be fine on your own? You won’t kill each other?”
“Maybe we just need to throw some hands to get over it,” I shrugged, hearing her sigh behind me as they followed.
“I wish you’d save your fighting for the Pit.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll save some energy for Masterson,” I chuckled, entering the kitchen and grabbing a plate of pancakes, sitting opposite Reid at the table. “You and me today, asshole.”
Reid frowned, glancing at Raven before returning his eyes to mine. “What?”
“There’s crazy people out there, dude. Buddy system,” I informed him as I cut a piece of pancake and popped it into my mouth. It was almost a shame I was straight because Zavier would’ve made me a damn good husband with his cooking. “We should talk anyway.”
“We should,” he said slowly, watching me like I’d grown two heads.
I needed to convince Reid to let down his walls for Raven, but I knew it was going to be easier said than done. The chances of him breaking his promise to Josh was slim to none, but I had to try.
Most people would’ve thought I was crazy for trying to get him to be with her, especially after the way he’d handled things lately. They needed each other, and I wanted him to realize it before it was too late.
If he didn’t, it would most likely destroy their friendship, taking mine and Zavier’s from him too. I loved Reid, he wasfamily, but there was only so much pig-headed shit I’d tolerate before beating him to a pulp and giving up on trying to make him see sense.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
RAVEN
The community center wasn’t too far from home, so Zavier and I walked. It was a nice day, and it would’ve been an unnecessary waste of fuel to drive such a short distance.
One of Beckett’s dads, Diesel, was there when we arrived, a warm smile on his face as we approached. The man was covered from the neck down in tattoos, and he’d been part of the Psychos since he was a teenager. He looked scary, but he was one of the nicest guys I’d ever met. “Hey. Checking the place out?”
“I can’t believe it’s almost finished,” I answered, glancing around the large building as the landscapers worked on the gardens. “You know most of the plants will just get wrecked, right?”
“We know. Can’t hurt to try though,” he shrugged, motioning for us to follow him inside. The doors were massive, and my eyes widened as I looked around to find a whole kid’s corner at one end, office computers along the wall close by, and even some small private offices on the opposite side of the building.
“We got a little carried away,” Diesel grinned as he started pointing things out to us. “A lot of people who are struggling have kids, so we wanted an area they could play in while theparents got help, or just to play in for the fun of it. Most kids around here don’t have a lot of toys, so now they have somewhere safe and fun to play. We hired staff, so people can get help throughout the day for things like resumes, job applications, or schooling. Kids can do their homework on the computers, and those who want to work can find jobs online.”
“This is amazing, but the second you close for the day, someone will break in and steal the computers,” I said with a wince.