Wrong For You (Before You Series Book 3)(57)

He chuckled and his dark eyes lightened a bit. “I know.” He pulled his hand away from her and dropped it in his lap. “So anyway…will you help me tomorrow?”

She looked into his deep blue eyes and saw a person worth helping. She never walked away from someone in need if it was in her power to help and she wouldn’t start now. “I’ll help any way I can.”





Chapter Twenty





It’d taken Alec nearly a full week to set up a mutually agreeable meeting place and time with Brad. Granted, he canceled the first meeting because he wasn’t ready to talk to him, but now that Jax demanded a band meeting this weekend, he didn’t have a choice. Since Brad hadn’t made any effort to contact him in the last sixteen years of his life, he figured he didn’t have to be too accommodating of Brad’s schedule and he didn’t go out of his way to push the meeting or make it happen.

The only reason why he hadn’t blown off Brad was because he didn’t want this family shit hanging over his head and shifting his focus away from the recording sessions next week. Chasing Ruin needed to pull out all the stops if they wanted their new album to be as successful as their first.

Thus, on Wednesday morning, two days before he planned to drive back to LA, he found himself walking into a small diner, his hand intertwined with Violet’s while having serious second thoughts about meeting Brad or letting Violet leave him alone with Brad for an hour.

Last night, he didn’t go back to his temporary basement and stare at the ceiling waiting for nine in the morning to roll around. Instead, he opted to stay at Violet’s house, in her bed, with his arms holding her next to him. She didn’t press him for answers about his uncharacteristic behavior, but she probably didn’t have to. She knew.

“Brad,” he said, pausing by a table near the back corner. Alec visibly relaxed. At least they’d have some privacy for the conversation, instead of being front and center where someone could recognize him or overhear the impending incredibly awkward conversation. He hadn’t set his eyes on Brad since the day he confronted his mom over sixteen years ago. Unlike his mom, the years had been kind to him. He looked nearly the same with the exception of the deep lines that bracketed his eyes and mouth.

“Alec,” Brad responded, his voice thick with emotion and his eyes pained.

Alec didn’t say another word and he squeezed Violet’s hand even harder, but she didn’t complain.

“Do we need another chair?” Brad nodded in Violet’s direction.

Alec looked toward Violet, taking in her pale eyes that looked almost silver in the morning light. Her cute cupid lips pulled into a smile that brought out the identical dimples. Even now, she took his breath away. He turned back to Brad. “No. Violet isn’t staying.”

She squeezed his hand before slipping it out of his hold. “I’m Violet Emerson,” she said, holding her hand out to Brad.

“Brad Reed,” he responded, shaking her hand.

“Nice to meet you. Alec, I’ll be back in an hour.” She kissed him on his cheek and patted him on his back before exiting the restaurant.

“Is she your girlfriend?” Brad asked when they sat down.

“Why?”

“She seems like a nice girl.”

“Too nice for me, you mean,” Alec snapped.

Brad held up his hands. “I didn’t mean that. I meant it as an icebreaker.”

“Well, Violet isn’t any of your business.” Alec scanned the menu in front of him ignoring Brad altogether while they sat in awkward silence until the waitress appeared.

“Are you ready to order?” she asked, pulling a pen from behind her ear. She was older, if her gray hair was any indication, which meant he wouldn’t have to deal with her recognizing him. She definitely wasn’t part of the Chasing Ruin demographic.

“You go first,” Alec said.

“I’ll have the country omelet and a cup of coffee.”

The waitress looked pointedly at him. “And you?”

“What are the pancakes of the day?”

The waitress chewed on the end of her pen for a moment. “Huckleberry.”

Alec chuckled. “Seriously?

The waitress rolled her eyes. “Yes. This is Montana in the summer.”

“No. I wasn’t criticizing. I’ll have the huckleberry pancakes and coffee.” Pancakes weren’t normally his first choice, but they were Violet’s favorite, so he had to taste them.

When the waitress walked away, Alec leaned back in his chair, stretched out his legs to the side, and crossed his ankles. “So my mom said you wanted to talk.”

Brad sighed, weariness seeping out of every pore. “You’re probably curious why I wanted to meet after all this time.”