Afraid to Fly (Fearless #2) (32 page)

I smiled and nodded my head. It wasn’t the most traditional blessing, but it told me everything I needed to know. Toby approved. And that was all that mattered.

The usual Dive Happy Hour crowd was in full swing, and it felt good walking in that evening. It felt like I was coming home, as corny as it sounded. It wasn’t the place; it was the fact that everyone that I loved was under one roof. Raven, Toby, Angel, Kami and yeah, Blaine. Hell, even CJ was part of this dysfunctional group that had become my family. And considering he was still seeing Victoria—a record for him—maybe she would be too.

I swear it was like we were a support group for the hopeless and dejected. Orphaned? Abused? Abandoned? Rejected? Molested? Misunderstood? We’ll take you in!

That was how it was, and how it should be. Even the broken needed a place to belong.

“’Sup, Dirty . . . little dude,” CJ said to us in greeting. “Catch the game last night?”

“Please, stop with the Dirty crap,” I muttered, bypassing him to give both Kami and Angel a peck on the cheek. “And no. I was busy.”

“Busy, eh?” His brows danced suggestively, to which I pretended to ignore. “Oh, come on! Don’t leave me hanging!”

“Will you shut up?” Blaine chimed in after filling a drink order. I gave him a head nod in thanks. “Hey, Toby. Mr. Bradley, our cook, has got steak nachos on special tonight. I’m sure I could snag an order if you’re interested. Sound good?”

Toby nodded eagerly before scribbling down,

“Cool. I’ll have your sister bring ’em over when she gets a sec. Sprite, too?”

Toby nodded again, even allowing a small smile to break through. Blaine grabbed a glass for his soda then looked over to me. “Beer?”

“Definitely. Thanks, man.”

“What kinda guy brings a kid to a bar?” a familiar voice said from behind me.

When I turned around, I didn’t bother hiding my smile. There was no way I could. Hearing her voice, seeing her face . . . it was if someone had hooked me up to a defibrillator and brought me back to life. I didn’t care who saw, I had to feel her body against mine. I hopped down from the stool and scooped Raven into my arms, spinning her around. She squealed out a laugh, which I hungrily swallowed with a kiss.

“Missed you,” I said against her lips.

“You just saw me. Less than 24 hours ago.”

“I know, but still . . .” I released her for only a split second to lean over and grab a bag I had brought in from the car. “I have something for you.”

“A paper bag. You shouldn’t have.”

“Just open it.”

As she pulled the item from the bag, a dimple set between her brows. “A coffee cup?”

“Read it. Kitschy mugs are kinda my thing.”

When her eyes caught the sketch of the little camera with the words
I Shoot People
over it, she burst into a fit of laughter. “Sounds about right. I did shoot you, after all. And you liked it.”

“I did. Shoot me anytime.” Then I kissed her so deeply and held her so close to me that her feet were three inches clear off the ground.

I was so wrapped up in the feel of her . . . the taste of her . . . that I didn’t even realize the entire room had gone silent. Slowly, I set her down and turned to face my friends who all wore varied shades of shock and amusement. They’d seen me with women—lots of them—but never like this. And I was never with anyone. We were either fucking or we weren’t. But Raven . . . even with her clothes on, I wanted to be around her. Her and Toby. I wanted them both in my life. And not just for a day or a week. I wanted them because they were like me—they had been forgotten. And only someone who was equally as lost knew what it meant to be found.

“Wow,” Kami gasped.

“I know, right?” Angel whispered back.

“Dude, you are so whipped!” CJ chortled, slapping his hand on the bar. “I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. I know how it is!”

I shook my head and laughed right along with him, because, hell, he was right. The beautiful woman in my arms had me so whipped, you could put me on a sundae.

“So sorry to break up the pow-wow, gang, but I thought we should catch up.”

I swear it was like a record scratched and flew right off the turntable. We dropped the happy smiles and laughs and turned toward the sound of the saccharine-laced southern drawl. Amanda stood before us, hand on her boney-ass hip and her boobs mashed together like two rotten grapefruits. None of us had seen her since Angel dropped the proposal bomb two weeks ago, so we assumed she had crawled back under whatever rock she had been hiding under. Yet, here she was, dressed to the nines in Trailer Skank Couture, smiling like she just hit the lotto.

“What are you doing here?” Blaine asked, his voice devoid of its usual friendly tone.

“Oh, just was in the neighborhood. Don’t worry; I won’t keep you long. But I came across some interesting news, and I thought, what kinda friend would I be if I didn’t share it?”

“You’re not a friend, bitch,” Angel muttered.

“Well, after you hear this, you might think differently. Such a shame . . . you think you know somebody, only to find out that they’re harboring an ugly secret. Apparently, one of
you
isn’t a friend either.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, get to the point!” CJ huffed out. None of us even admonished him for the F-bomb slip. We were all sick of this episode of Lifestyles of the Poor and Desperate.

“Gladly.” She reached into her purse and pulled out a beige file folder, making a show out of flipping it open. “Since someone had such an interest in people’s personal info, I thought I’d do a little fact checking. And, boy, did I hit the jackpot! One of you has some explaining to do.”

I felt Raven tense in my arms, her whole body growing hot. She looked pale, her eyes wide with horror. What was going on? What could she possibly fear from Amanda? And what the hell could Amanda have on any of . . .

“Dominic Luis Trevino, born May 26, 1990, orphaned when he was barely four years old. He was taken in by his uncle, Hector Trevino, who was convicted of sexually assaulting Dominic until he was the age of twelve. Hector, who is up for parole later this year, argued the defense that Dominic
wanted
it. That he
loved
it. That he even
ejaculated
when they had sex. After Dominic was taken from his uncle, he was placed in a group home, where he began a sexual relationship with another
male
resident there, which lasted until he moved here from Florida. After that, Dominic posed as a straight male, sleeping with close to a thousand women, when he’s really nothing but a
fake
and a
fag.”

No one spoke, no one moved, no one even breathed. The least of all me. How . . . How had she found out? Those records were sealed! Where did she get—

“Funny what you can find out when you fuck a lawyer or two. And just in case you all don’t believe me, read it for yourselves.” She pulled several photocopied sheets from the folder and tossed them at our stock-still bodies, causing paper tears to rain down on us.

When her gaze went to Toby, I knew where this was going. I knew what she would say, yet I was too stunned to stop her. “Kinda scary that a liar and a fraud like him is working around children, especially young boys. Wonder if your employer knows it. Oops! I bet they will now.”

Then she stepped in close, pinning her vicious gaze on Raven. This was the kill shot. This would be the one to end us . . . to end me. “Statistically, most pedophiles were molested as children. Be a shame if that happened in this case. Careful.”

I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t speak. But I knew I had to go. I had to get far, far away from this. I was covered in the bloody filth of my past, and now they all saw it. They all knew what had happened to me. They knew what I was. I could feel their eyes on me, could hear the whispers around the room. I knew what they were saying.

Faggot. Queer. Freak. Sissy. Pedophile. Rapist.

They were talking about
me.
They could see
me.

Through the numbing cold in my veins, my legs carried me toward the door. I was running. I was bursting through the exit. I was speeding away, and never coming back.

The ugly had found me. My eyes had found beauty, but it wasn’t enough. I wasn’t strong enough to hold on to it. I wasn’t worthy enough to keep it.

What was wrong cannot be made right.

What was broken cannot be fixed.

What was dirty cannot be erased.

I
KNEW I SHOULD
have said something—done something. But I couldn’t. Or I just . . . didn’t. My first thought was that it couldn’t be true. But then he ran. He left us and he ran. And that was all the confirmation I needed. Dom was molested. And Dom . . . No. I couldn’t believe he was gay. Could I? Could the women be a front for a secret life?

There was a shrill scream and a scuffle, breaking me from my reverie. Angel was trying to lunge for Amanda, but CJ had her by the waist. So no one thought a thing when Kami slowly rose from her seat and walked towards her, her round belly leading the way. That’s why it came as a shock to us all when Kami reeled back with all the power in her little body and punched that sadistic bitch in the face, sending her sprawling backwards onto the floor, her nose gushing blood.

“If I ever see you around my family again,” Kami gritted out, leaning over so Amanda could hear her loud and clear. Blaine flashed to her side and gently tried to pull her away, but the tiny warrior wasn’t having it. “I will kill you. Do you hear me? I will fucking kill you.”

Amanda scrambled back, holding her face, until she was out of reach. Then she jumped to her feet and ran for her life. Kami was serious. And she knew it.

“She’s getting away!” Angel cried. “How dare she! I will end her!”

The entire bar had witnessed the whole thing, and now everyone was whispering. Some had even pulled out their smartphones and were recording it.

While CJ was trying to calm Angel down, Blaine was comforting Kami, who was still fuming as well. I started to go to Toby, fearful of what I would find. He was just a kid and all this was much too heavy for all of us. This would shatter his world. And it was still on the mend from the last time it had been broken.

“Raven?” I turned to see a still-shaken Kami and an equally worried Blaine. He had his arm around her waist, but it seemed like he was holding her up on shaky legs. She looked to him then looked back to me, wearing a pained grimace. “I think my water broke.”

Those five words zapped me back into reality, and I sprang into action, letting my instinct and training guide me. I looked down and sure enough, there was fluid running down her leg, along with a good amount of blood. Shit.

“Let’s get her down. Blaine, call her obstetrician. Kami, are you having any pain?”

Cringing, she nodded, as CJ slid a chair under her. “Yeah. Cramping. I thought it was gas all day, so I didn’t say anything.”

I gently pressed against her belly to check the baby’s position. “What about now? Any pressure?”

“Yeah, um.” She leaned in as close as she could. “In my butt. It feels like I have to poop.”

I looked up at Blaine’s wide, worried gaze. “We have to get her to the hospital right now.”

“What do you need me to do?”