The Promises We Keep (Made for Love Book 1) (109 page)

I
’
m on my feet in a fraction of a second. I don
’
t even have to think twice about it. Even if I wanted to, I couldn
’
t. There
’
s only room for two thoughts in my head just now. One
—
Grayson,
my Grayson
, is drunk! Two
—
where are my shoes?

“
Text me the address. I
’
m on my way.
”
I end the call before she can respond. I slip on the first pair of shoes that I can find, throw on the nearest warm cover-up I can reach, snatch up my purse, and then I
’
m out the door. I
’
m halfway to my car when it dawns on me that I might need help. If Claire called me to come get Sonny, it means he
’
s so far gone that they don
’
t want to have to worry about him for the rest of the night. I have
no idea
what he
’
ll be like intoxicated.
No one does!
I turn back to our building and find my way to the boys
’
apartment. I bang my fist against the door as loud as I can and wait.

It
’
s freezing. When I look down at myself, I realize I
’
m in a pair of pink running shorts, a white t-shirt, and an olive green wool cardigan
—
the one with the tan elbow patches. I also notice that I
’
m wearing two different color Toms on my feet just as Hammy answers the door.

“
Avery?
”

“
Sonny
’
s drunk. We have to go get him.
”
As the words pour out of my mouth, my worry seems to become more tangible. I
’
m mad at him, yes. I
’
m afraid that we might break up, yes. But none of those things are important right now because above all else, I love him; furthermore, I
know
him
—
and if he
’
s drunk, then something is
seriously
wrong.
“
We have to go. Please. Come. Now.
”

He disappears for a second and then hurries his way out the door, locking it behind him.
“
I
’
ll drive.
”
We run to his vehicle and hop in. I barely have time to fasten my seatbelt before he
’
s speeding his way out of the parking lot. I appreciate his sense of urgency, even more so knowing that it comes from his own love for Sonny. He understands, without a single explanation, that we
’
re both needed in this moment. When the text from Claire comes in with the address of our destination, I rattle it off and he simply nods, needing no further directions.

Upon arrival, Hammy parks illegally in front of the fire hydrant that
’
s located just in front of the frat house. Before I open my door, I can
’
t help but groan as I assess the two story residence we
’
re about to walk into. People are
everywhere
.
“
How are we going to find him in there?
”

“
We
’
ll split up. Whoever finds him first will send a text. They don
’
t call him Big Red for nothing
—
we
’
ll find him.
”

“
Okay,
”
I murmur, my gaze still concentrated at our destination across the long stretch of lawn.

“
Let
’
s go, Ave.
”

I climb out of the car obediently and we hurry our way inside. It
’
s even more crowded than I thought possible. Hammy gives my shoulder a squeeze to catch my attention; when he
’
s got it, he points to the set of stairs that
’
s immediately to the left of the door. When I look up, I see what appears to be a loft at the top
—
just like everywhere else, it
’
s filled with a crowd. I nod at him and then he
’
s gone. As I make my way further inside, I keep my eyes open for Claire, Jack, and Sonny. I figure if I can find any of them, I
’
ll be able to leave with who I came for.

Just beyond the stairs there
’
s a sitting room. It doesn
’
t take long for me to decide that Sonny
’
s not in there. I peek inside of the dining room, where there
’
s a bunch of people playing drinking games, and don
’
t see him there either. I walk through the kitchen and that
’
s where I spot Claire. I call for her and she turns to find me.

“
Thank god! You need to get him out of here,
”
she insists, taking hold of my hand as she drags me out of the kitchen.

“
What
’
s he doing? Is he that bad?
”

“
He
’
s that
depressing
. He
’
s too sad to be drinking. He started while I wasn
’
t watching. I didn
’
t think he would, so I wasn
’
t worried about it.
”

“
He
’
s sad?
”
A small part of me is glad to know that I
’
m not the only one; but a bigger part of me is surprised.
If he
’
s so sad, why didn
’
t he just come talk to me?
The damaged state of our relationship suddenly feels more real than it did a half an hour ago
—
and it was bad then!

“
Babe, are you kidding?
”
she asks, stopping dead in her tracks. She shakes her head at me before she continues.
“
When are you two going to learn that you
can
’
t
shut each other out when you
’
re fighting? When things between you guys are good, you
’
re shitting rainbows and then something bad happens and you self-destruct! He loves you
—
of course
he
’
s sad, you haven
’
t spoken in days.
”

All at once it hits me
—
this is my fault. I should have listened to Addie and I didn
’
t. He told me to call him and I refused. My stubbornness drove him away and now he
’
s here
…
“
Take me to him.
”

Without another word, she leads me into the den on the other side of the kitchen. When I see him, my stomach drops. He
’
s sitting on a couch with Jack and another teammate
—
I can
’
t remember his name
—
and he
’
s sandwiched between a couple girls. Actually, three
—
if you count the one sitting on his knee. They
’
re talking
—
Sonny and his entourage of women
—
and Jack and the other guy are caught up in their own conversation. He
’
s not touching the girl who
’
s practically in his lap, and it appears as though she
’
s using him more for a chair than anything else, but she
’
s too close for comfort and my temper flares back up at the sight of them.

I drop Claire
’
s hand and storm across the room. He doesn
’
t notice me until I
’
m standing right in front of him
—
but when our eyes meet, his face falls.

“
Let me guess,
”
says the pretty brunette on his knee.
“
Avery?
”

My mouth opens to deliver a response, but then my curiosity about
how
she knows who I am silences me.

“
She
’
s here to break up with me,
”
slurs Sonny. He
’
s speaking to the brunette, but he
’
s looking right at me.

I don
’
t like the sound of his voice
—
it
’
s different when he
’
s drunk. My already shredded heart aches a little bit more at his words. I know that feeling; after the letter
—
after three and a half days of nothing
—
I
had
that feeling. The man in front of me is hurting.
Forget the brunette on his knee, I should be more worried about the cup in his hand
. And his eyes. The melancholy look in his eyes kills me.

“
Well, if you
’
re going to do it, then do it! Put me out of my misery,
”
he mumbles.
“
There
’
s
plenty
of booze to help me forget after you leave
…
just like Patrick.
”

All the air rushes out of me in a sort of reverse gasp.
Did I do this? Have I broken him? I thought it was the other way around!
I rake my fingers through my hair and try to pull myself together. I discard my confusion as I stare at Sonny. I need to get him out of here. Right now, that
’
s the only thing that matters.

“
I
’
m here to take you home, Sonny.
”

“
I don
’
t want to fight anymore.
”

“
Okay
—
Sonny, just get up. Let me take you home.
”

“
If it
’
s over, I want to stay here. Jack can take me home.
”

I sigh, extracting my phone from my pocket. I
’
m too little to drag him out of here, especially if he
’
s unwilling, so I send Hammy a text informing him of our location. I return the device to my shorts and try again.
“
Sonny
—
we
’
re going home.
”
I direct my attention to the brunette, who hasn
’
t budged.
“
Could you please move? We
’
re leaving.
”

“
Hey, Little Red!
”
I turn at the sound of my nickname just in time to see another player, whose name I don
’
t remember, approach. I can smell the alcohol seeping through his pores and I wonder when he started drinking and how much he
’
s had so far. He drapes his arm across my shoulders and I cringe when he leans down to whisper in my ear.
“
Word on the street is, you
’
re about to be on the market.
”

“
What? Get off of me.
”
I try and shrug him off, but he
’
s hanging on me like he
’
s using me to hold himself up and he
’
s too heavy.

“
Oh, come on. Big Red
’
s been telling anyone who will listen that his sexy little lady is about to leave
‘
em. How about a dance?
”