Page 18 of Max

“Okay, Brody,” I agreed. “If the time comes, I’ll call him.”

“Do it now,” he demanded.

“Brody, brother, let him be. What happened,” I paused, trying to find the words. We went out that day as part of a routine, the thought that it was the last time we were all together, not even crossing our minds. “He’s not coming back.”

“I know he’s not coming back. But he’s the best of all of us!” Brody exclaimed. “He’s our team leader. He always will be. And he needs to know what’s going on.”

I walked the few steps that it took to come to him, put my hand on his shoulder, and promised,

“I’ll be okay. Nothing is going to happen. I just need the info, so I can pass it along to Chace and get Skylar out of the way. But, if the time comes, I’ll call him.”

Brody had no verbal response, only kept staring at me, his breath harsh. Then, he gave me a chin lift, turned, and walked away.

“He thinks he’s going to lose the two of you,” Liv watched Brody walk.

“He should know by now, that will never happen,” I said.

I turned and walked out of the building without another word. There was no need. They knew all that they should. I had to find out how much filth I had to wade through before I got Skylar out clean. Fuck, just thinking of her name made my blood pump faster. And I had to call Stone. I would never admit it to the kid, but he was right. Shit was about to get real and do it fast. We needed him. He was the best leader there ever was and the best strategist on the face of the planet. Give him a situation, and he would come up with three scenarios on how to get it done in half an hour. With the wheels of my fucked-up plan in motion, there was only one thing left to do. To find out if Skylar was willing to dive in with me and just how deep we could go. For that, I needed to find her. I sat behind the steering wheel, turned the key, and drove off to do just that.

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Chapter Seven

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Skylar

After Melanie drove us off, I managed to convince her that we needed to check into a hotel. I no longer had a place to live, and Nico had found me at her home once before. It didn’t feel safe there. I didn’t feel safe anywhere anymore... except for Max’s home. I made sure I shoved those thoughts in the back of my mind. He had done so much for me already; I couldn’t take more from him. No matter how much I wanted or needed to.

It had very little to do with him being able to protect me. I was more interested in finding out how soft his lips were, how he would taste, how hard his muscles were, and how he used them. I also ignored the fact that despite my life going down in flames, my only thoughts were of Max. I completely forgot I was moments away from pledging my troth to another man. I didn’t love Nico, and I knew that. Even my abilities in ignoring what was staring me right in the face weren't enough to mask that sad fact. No, our relationship was more of what could come of it, maybe in a distant future. The bonus was, by marrying him, I got Valeria right away, and I would get acquaintances that I would be able to claim as my own.

Sweet Marry, how pathetic I was.

We checked into a hotel, rode the elevator, and entered the suite. I was so out of it that I didn’t notice the kick-ass view the room had on downtown Denver. The moment the door softly clicked behind us, I felt like a caged animal. I went through the suite, checked both bedrooms and bathrooms, and looked into every corner and hiding spot I could think of. All that time, Melanie stood in the center of the suite, her eyes tracking my every move.

“Sky, are you okay?” she asked.

“Not even in the slightest,” was my honest reply.

“You want us to go back to Max’s?”

“More than anything I ever wanted,” I kept up with honesty. “But I can’t do that.”

“Why?”

“Because I let it get so bad, and I'm the one that needs to get it right again.”

“And you think that going away is the right way to do it?” her disbelief was hard to miss.

“I’m not going away. I won’t let Nico run me out of my town, out of the only resemblance of a home I have,” I declared full of false bravado.

“Oh?” Melanie couldn’t hide her surprise.

She knew me. She knew the very heart of me. She also knew when things got tough, I ran. It used to be I hid in my head. But no more. I couldn’t let anyone rule me or my life again. I had to take a stand.

“Yes,” I nodded, more to myself than to her. “I’m going to call Kiki first thing in the morning to let her know where I am and to ease her mind. She’s probably sick with worry,” at that last sentence, Melanie made a face but didn’t say anything. “Then I’m going to the office, call all my clients and ask for an extension on the projects. If they don’t agree, I’m going to find them a replacement.”

“They’re gonna agree, babe. You’re the shit.”