Pain flashes in Luke’s eyes.
Seth winces.
There’s no point in telling Lacey to cool it. The shattered look on his brother’s face tells him she’s already driven Luke to the edge of pure fury.
At Luke’s silence, Lacey clenches her fist. “You don’t deserve her,” she spits. “You did this to her. You didn’t bring her home. You—”
“You gave up on her!” Luke hurls at Lacey. “Hell, you had a fuckin’ funeral for her. You wanted me to declare her dead.”
Lacey gasps, silver filling her eyes.
“You gonna tell her about that?”
It’s a challenge. All Luke’s got to bargain with, and he’ll do it too if it means protecting Sal.
Lacey squares up with Luke. Her chin juts in defiance. “Only if you tell her about your groupie whore.”
Seth goes as still as death.
It’s the worst thing she could say.
It’s too much for Luke. He’s had enough and he takes a step closer to Lacey. Fire rages in his eyes. His voice turns low and lethal.
“I told you once, I’ll tell you again. I was never—” Luke breaks off, his voice fractured. “I was never unfaithful to Sal.” He fixes a look of fury at his sister-in-law. Lacey’s face reddens. “And to hell with you if you don’t believe that.”
Luke shoves away from Lacey, scrubbing a hand across his face.
Seth’s own heart hangs heavy in his chest. His brother’s been put through the wringer about Alabama—but the person blaming Luke the most is Luke.
That’s when Lacey says, “I want to take her back to California.”
Luke whirls on her. “The hell you are. She is my wife.”
“And she is my sister. My job is to protect her at any cost.” She jabs a finger at Luke. “You’re the cost, Luke. You cost her too much.”
Irritation rankles Seth. He’s pissed off at how the two of them are behaving. Blaming the other for what’s happened, when there’s no one to blame at all.
“You’re both actin’ like a couple of jackasses,” Seth says loudly, and both Lacey and Luke glance his way, surprise etched across their faces. “This is Sal we’re talking about. You love her, we all love her. You’re both tryin’ to do what you think is best for her—but stop thinkin’ of yourselves and think about her. We gotta support her, instead of fightin’ all the damn time.”
Lacey opens her mouth to argue, but Seth steps in. He fixes her with a look that means business. “You say a word to her about Alabama or that baby, and I’ll toss your ass in the Cumberland, Lacey. I swear to Christ.”
Her mouth snaps shut.
Seth turns to stare Luke down. “You too, man. Cool it.”
For a long minute, there’s nothing but silence.
For a long minute, Luke and Lacey regard each other like wary, wounded animals unsure if they want to go back for the jugular.
Then Luke drops his head in shame.
Lacey’s scowling but her eyes are filled with tears.
When Luke raises his face, his eyes are clear. His fists unclench. He looks at Seth and gives him a grateful nod. “You’re right.” His gaze moves to Lacey. “Listen, I don’t like keepin’ secrets from Sal any more than you do, but the doctors want us to minimize stress. She’s sick. She gets dizzy, has migraines.” Luke lifts his eyes to the ceiling, the creak of the wood floors signaling Sal’s on the move. He lowers his voice. “I ain’t riskin’ her health, Lacey. We’ll tell her—but when she’s in a good place. A healthy place.”
“I think what Luke’s trying to say is that she’s fragile.” Seth gives Lacey a pointed look. “And Sal ain’t fragile.”
A pained sound comes from Lacey, who looks like the hard reality of the situation has finally settled around her.