There are only a few blocks between the Kappa Mu house and my place, so I walk, needing some time to clear my head. If I didn’t get out of there when I did, I was going to do something I couldn’t take back. I wouldn’t regret it. I know that much. Taking Kasey and laying her down on her bed, sliding into her wet heat, yeah, that isn’t something I would regret. But it is something that would make shit complicated, and I can’t do complicated right now. Almost to my street, I change course and head for the field instead. I could use a run. My body is wound up tight. I need to tire myself out and get Kasey out of my head.
Three miles in and I still can’t get the image of her naked body out of my mind. Sweat drips down my back, my calves burning, but I keep up the pace. Two more miles and my chest is heaving, but I still see her perfect tits. Her tiny waist. Her bare pussy. Running isn’t going to cut it.
I jog off the track and head for my place. Maybe a cold shower will help.
When I reach my door, I notice Aaron’s ride in the driveway, which means he’s home. Good.
“Hey, man. You good?” I ask as soon as I see him.
He looks up, eyes bloodshot and unfocused.
I curse. “What happened?”
He shakes his head.
I grab a water bottle from the fridge, uncap it, and bring it back to him. He accepts it but doesn’t take a drink. “Bro, you’re freaking me out. What happened?”
His hands flex. “I freaked out, alright.”
“I’m gonna need you to give me a little more information.”
He hangs his head, no longer meeting my eyes. “A car pulled up to me while I was driving. They had music going. I—” He swallows hard. “There were gunshots in the song. I didn’t think. Just fucking panicked.”
Shit. “But you came home? You’re good? Nothing else happened?”
He exhales a harsh breath. “Yeah. I’m good. Just freaked the fuck out.”
“Why didn’t you call? I would have come back sooner.” I rub the back of my neck. He can’t keep going like this. He needs help. Like real, professional help. “I think you should see someone—”
“I’m not talking to a fucking shrink.”
I open my mouth to argue with him, but a phone buzzing halts my response. Aaron frowns down at his phone, the thing still buzzing.
“Who is it?” I ask.
He shakes his head. “No clue.” He lifts the phone to his ear and answers. “Hello?”
“I’m gonna grab a quick shower,” I tell him and head down the hall. I make it quick and cold. Enough time to wash the sweat from my body and erase the images of Kasey from my head so my dick calms the fuck down. That finished, I throw on a clean pair of clothes and head back to check on Aaron.
He still has the phone to his ear, but all the blood has drained from his face as he listens to whoever is talking.
“You okay, man?”
It’s like he doesn’t even hear me. His eyes fill with moisture and my chest seizes. Fuck. His hand falls away from his face, the phone still cradled in his palm. Whoever is on the other line is still speaking, but Aaron’s no longer listening. I reach for the phone and he relinquishes it without comment.
I bring it to my ear right as he drops his head in his hands, a sob wracking his entire body.
“Who the hell is this?” I snarl.
There’s a pause. “Are you related to Mr. Henderson,” a calm voice asks almost hesitantly.
“I’m his roommate. What’s going on? What did you say to him?” He’s not in the right headspace to deal with whatever shit this is right now.
The guy on the other line clears their voice. “I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news. I was explaining to Mr. Henderson—”
“Aaron,” I correct.
“Right. I was explaining to Aaron that there’s been an accident.” I wait. “His… his mother was in a car accident on the highway earlier today. There was a pileup, and while Ms. Douglas was able to stop before colliding with the vehicle in front of her, the eighteen wheeler behind her wasn’t able to do the same.”
Fuck.
“Is she okay?”
He’s quiet for a beat, and I look down at Aaron. He’s hunched over, elbows on his knees and hands on the back of his head. If she was okay, he wouldn’t be like that.
“She was rushed to Mercy Hospital but was DOA.”
“What the hell does DOA mean?” I bite out, and it’s Aaron who answers, his voice dejected.
“Dead on arrival.”
“What?” I ask him, eyes wide before repeating into the phone, “What? She’s dead?”
Aaron flinches.
“I’m sorry. She’s gone. Aaron Henderson is listed as her next of kin. I was contacting him so we can proceed with the next—”
“No. He’s not dealing with that today. He just found out his mom is gone. Everything else can wait.”
“Sir, if I—“
“No. You can call back in a few days. Give the man some time to grieve.” I hang up and toss Aaron’s phone on the sofa beside him.
“Hey.” He’s not looking at me. “What do you need, man? What can I do?”
He hiccups and then gets to his feet.
“Whoa. Slow down. Where are you going?” He grabs his keys and heads for the door, but I block him. “Aaron—”
“I have to tell my sister. Shit. How am I supposed to tell her? How do—”
Fuck. I didn’t even think about Kasey. Shit. “Okay. It’s okay. You don’t have to do that right now. We have time.”
“Yeah, I do,” he shouts, tears tracking down his face. I’ve never seen him like this before, and fuck if I know how to fix it. “She needs to know. She’d want to know. Now. Not tomorrow or in a few hours. She needs to know now. But how the fuck am I supposed to do that, Dom? She’s my baby sister and I have to tell her but—”
I nod my head and grab him in a tight embrace. He clings to me like his life depends on it, hands fisted in the back of my shirt. “I get it, man. But, you’re still processing shit right now. You can’t drive like this. Just, sit down for a few, okay. We’ll sort this out.”
His shoulders shake. “She needs to know, man.” His voice is hoarse.
“I’ll tell her. You stay here and I’ll tell her.”
He pulls back and runs his hands through his hair, tugging on the strands as he begins to pace.
“You’re cool with that? You don’t mind?” he asks, not looking at me.
“I got you. I’ll tell her. You stay here. I’ll have the guys—”
“I don’t need a babysitter,” he grinds out.
“No, you don’t. But you just lost your mom and you don’t need to be alone right now either.”
He shakes his head, about to argue.
“What about Allie?” I ask. They’ve always been close, and she lost her mom a few years back. She’ll know how to help him get through this while I … shit. I don’t know how I’m going to break this to Kasey.
“Just, Allie?” he croaks.
“Yeah, man. Just Allie.”
A nod.
“Okay. I’ll call her. Just sit down. Okay?”
Another nod.
I pull out my phone and make the call. An hour later, there’s a knock at our door and I let her inside.
“Hey, how’s our boy doing?” she asks, voice low.
I peer over my shoulder at the boy in question. “He hasn’t moved since I called you. Hasn’t talked either.”
She nods as I grab my keys. “Where are you going?”
I swallow past the lump in my throat. “He asked me to tell Kasey.”
Her eyes soften and she places a hand on my arm. “Dom, that’s … you shouldn’t have to—”
“I know. But he can’t, and someone needs to.”
“I can call Bibiana.”
I shake my head. “No. I’ve got this. You look after him. Don’t leave him alone or let him go anywhere by himself. If you need to call Roman to sit on him, do that, okay?”
She nods but…“I’m serious, Allie. He’s dealing with some other shit right now too. His mom dying is awful, but the timing couldn’t have been worse. Do not leave him alone. I’ll handle Kasey, but depending on how she handles things, I don’t know what time I’ll be back. If you have to leave—”
“I got it. He won’t be left alone.”
“Good.” I leave Allie with Aaron and jump in my Escalade. When I pull up to her place, it hits me that I don’t know what I’m going to say to her, so I sit there, my car idling. It’s been a few hours since I left and I know she won’t be happy to see me but… it doesn’t matter. I told Aaron I’d have his back and tell her, so I’m going to do that. He shouldn’t be the one to drop this bomb on her. I’ve got this.
There’s a back entrance off the hall that leads to Kasey’s room, so I put my ride in drive and head that direction. There’s a chance Kappu Mu’s pool party is still in full swing. Greek parties are usually an all-day, all-night sort of thing. I don’t want to see anyone and deal with their bullshit, so I’ll slip into Kasey’s room and wait for her there if she isn’t inside already.
