“You know she loves you, right?” Harleigh smiled. “Whatever happens, she loves you, Nix.”
“I know.”
The ache in my chest spread, squeezing the air from my lungs.
“And you know what happened to her wasn’t your fault?” Harleigh traced her fingertips over my jaw, refusing to let me cower in the face of the truth.
“I… yeah.” I conceded, because she was right, it wasn’t my fault. But it didn’t stop me carrying a seed of guilt that I hadn’t been there to stop him.
“You’ll figure it out, Nix. We’ll figure it out. Together.”
“Nix,” Jessa breathed, reaching for me. I shuffled toward the chair beside her hospital bed.
The nurse had wanted to wheel me in here, but fuck that. I could walk on my own two feet, even if my ribs felt like they might snap clean in half.
Coach was going to lose his shit when he found out the extent of my injuries, but I’d worry about that later.
“Hey,” I said, taking her hand and easing myself into the chair. “How are you feeling?”
“Oh, sweetheart. I’m sorry.” Tears filled her eyes. “I’m so, so sorry.”
“Don’t do that. Don’t apologize for him. He did this… he…” I clenched my fist against my thigh, willing the anger out of my veins, my pores. “I’m just sorry I wasn’t there last night—”
“Let’s make a deal.” A hint of a smile broke out from underneath all the swelling and bruises. “Neither of us apologize. It’s over, done. He can’t hurt us anymore.” Something akin to relief glittered in her one good eye. “Is Harleigh—”
“She’s here,” I said. “She went with her brother and sister to get coffee.”
She was exhausted, but when I’d suggested she go home and get some rest she wouldn’t hear of it.
“I met her father. Michael. He’s very… put together.”
My lips twitched at Jessa’s assessment. “He’s a selfish, pretentious asshole. But he came through for us.”
“He did. He said we won’t have to pay a penny, Nix. His legal team will handle everything.”
“Yeah, I know.” I rubbed my jaw, still unsure of how I felt about all of Michael’s handouts. But we didn’t have the money for lawyers and court hearings.
“I thought he was going to kill you.” The words got stuck over the sob in her throat. “I thought—”
“I’m okay,” I said, inhaling a thin breath. “I’ll be okay.”
But I’d come so close to not being okay. If Zane hadn’t arrived when he had, if he hadn’t pulled my old man off me and shoved him away… I probably wouldn’t be sitting here now.
A shudder rippled through me, but I forced my fist open, laying my palm against my knee. He couldn’t control me anymore—he couldn’t hurt me.
“We’ll get through this, Nix. You and me, okay? I’ll get a job, figure out somewhere for us to live. I’m not sure I can go back there… I’m not—”
“Hey, hey, we’ll figure it out.”
She nodded. “I’m tired, Nix. I’m so damn tired.”
“It’s okay, close your eyes. I’ll be right here, I promise.”
“You’re a good boy, Phoenix, and I feel so lucky that I get to call you my stepson.”
She closed her eyes, but her words stayed with me long after she fell asleep.
“You know, this isn’t a club.” The nurse smiled as she checked my notes. Kye and Zane were busy fighting over the television channels while the girls were curled up on Harleigh’s makeshift bed.