“Some people can’t be fixed.” That’s what Hector said this morning when I told him the sordid details of what went down last night and why.
Bullshit.
That’s something people say when the road looks rough, when the mountain looks too big to be moved. The truth is, everything is fixable in its own way. Some people are broken. Hearts get broken. Relationships get broken. Candles get broken.
Sometimes the best way to fix broken things is to rebuild them. It may not look the same when you’re finished, but that’s not the point. Sometimes you replace them—not necessarily with something better but with something different. Sometimes the best thing is to leave them alone and simply admire the beauty in their brokenness. Like the colorful mosaic of stained glass in a cathedral, broken can be beautiful. Then sometimes… sometimes… the best thing to do is take their broken pieces and put them with your own and build something completely new.
To say the best thing to do with someone’s brokenness is to ignore it… That’s shit. Complete shit.
It’s almost five o’clock, and Liam will be leaving soon. We put the finishing touches on the ceiling then have a seat at the bar. I pour us two glasses of Sprite, our end-of-the-day routine. He gulps down the first one the way he always does. I’m learning his habits, his quirks, and all the little nuances that make Liam Liam. Damn, I’m going to miss this kid.
“You sure you don’t need me to do anything else, Mr. Abbott?” he asks as I pour him another glass.
“Blaze.” I slide the glass across the bar, and he smiles. “I’m not old enough to be Mr. Abbott.” Or rich enough, or arrogant enough, or selfish enough. Mr. Abbott is my father. Me? I’m just Blaze. “And I’m sure. We gotta leave it to the professionals now. This whole thing would end up lopsided if I tried to do it.” I laugh and ruffle his hair. “That probably wouldn’t be good for business.”
Liam chuckles into his straw, causing little bubbles to fizz in his drink. Haley’s car comes into view through the glass doors, and my heart pinches. I’m not ready to say goodbye. From the way his head falls and his gaze drops to the floor, he isn’t either.
“Remember when I said you could come play basketball?”
He looks up at me. “Yes, sir.”
“Why don’t we start next week? I’ll see if Adrienne can bring you and the rest of the boys, and we’ll play some two-on-two.”
He smiles a broad smile. “That would be awesome.”
Seeing Liam again and spending more time with Adrienne? Yes. That would definitely be awesome.
It’s been four days since I last saw Adrienne. Four days since I touched her. Four days since I heard her voice. Four days since I buried my dick in that wet, hot place that would have men like me going to war for one more taste. Not because I haven’t wanted to. Not calling her is one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do, but giving her the wrong idea about what this is would be worse. Instead I remind myself she said hearts and flowers and good morning texts aren’t her thing anyway. That’s why this works. That’s why we work. The hard part is convincing myself we’re not both in denial.
I broke down and sent her a text last night about the basketball game I promised Liam. She agreed to bring him and the other four boys to the brewery for the afternoon. Hector and I might have thrown in an extra little surprise for Liam outside of having a concrete slab poured with a basketball goal installed at each end. I even had them paint the lines on the concrete to make it feel official.
Hector has music playing over the sound system when the boys walk in. Liam’s face is the first I see. He grins when he sees that we’ve hung a “Thank You” banner from the ceiling and tied bouquets of balloons to each of the stools at the bar. That grin, it’s pure joy, honest, innocent, contagious joy. We pushed three tables together in the center of the room and filled them with pizza and sandwiches and chips along with buckets of ice and Sprite. On a separate table to the side, there’s a chocolate cake with strawberry whipped cream icing—which I learned not long ago is Liam’s favorite.
Adrienne walks in last, after all the boys. She beams when she sees what we’ve done. Her eyes light up in this smile—this gorgeous fucking smile that I feel all the way to my balls. Can you miss someone’s smile? Because I’ve missed the shit out of that smile.
Her hair is pulled back in a long braid. She’s wearing a white Just Do It T-shirt that’s tied in a knot at her hip and these dark blue yoga pants that cling to her thighs and draw my eyes to that place—that place where her thighs part, the glorious “Y.” Fuck. I want my mouth on that place. Then I smile because I know. I know. This woman is so much more than beautiful. She’s so much more than sexy. She’s kind and gentle and sassy as fuck—except when I’m inside her. When I’m inside her, she melts. God, I love making her melt.
Her eyes meet mine, and I can almost hear the thoughts running through her mind. Yeah, babygirl. I missed the fuck out of you too.
“You did all this for Liam?” she asks when she finally makes it across the room to where I am.
Ten steps, maybe fifteen, and it felt like a goddamn mile.
“He earned it. We figured he should know that.”
She looks at me like I just found a cure for cancer. Hero-worship I know I don’t deserve. “What am I going to do with you, Blaze Abbott?”
I hook my pinky with hers, making sure the movement is discreet. “Well, there is this thing I’ve been wanting to try.”
She pulls her lips in as though it’s all she can do not to kiss me. It’s okay. I feel it too. “Yeah?” she asks.
“Yeah. It’s called Whatever the Fuck you Want.”
“That’s so weird. I’ve been wanting to try that too.” Her voice is breathy and happy and… Why am I not inside her yet?
“Did you do this for me?” Liam asks. His voice is a bucket of ice water on a blazing fire.
Right. Because we’re at the brewery with a room full of adolescents.
I unhook our pinkies and turn to Liam. “You bet you’re a—” I stop myself. “You bet it is.”
“It’s been a long time since anyone has thrown me a party.” He looks around at all the food and decorations, then wraps his arms around my waist and squeezes tight. “Thank you.” Then he looks at Hector. “You too.”
Hector smiles at him. “You deserve it, kid.”
“You mind if we go shoot before we eat?” Liam asks.
“Heck no.” I nudge Hector with my elbow. “I’ve been waiting to kick this guy’s butt all day.”
Hector teams up with Ryder, who is the second youngest. I team up with Zeke, who is the smallest. Adrienne teams up with Jacob. And Liam teams up with Nate, who is a year older than Ryder.
The first game is my team against Liam’s team. Winners play Hector’s team. Those winners play Adrienne and Jacob since Jacob has played basketball all his life. He’s fourteen years old and six-feet-two. How fucking fair is that? Yeah, they’re going last.
Zeke and I beat the piss out of Liam and Hector. Okay, it might have been close with Hector’s team, but I lifted Zeke so he could dunk at the end for our last two points. Now it’s us against Adrienne and Jacob. I’m bent over with my hands on my knees, panting like I just ran a marathon. Zeke is off to the side, finishing a bottle of water. There’s no doubt he’ll have to take a piss in about three minutes, so we’ll need to make this quick.