Strength (Mark of Nexus #1) (16 page)

Wallace turned around. “Rena?”

“I-I was looking for you,” I stammered. “I wanted to talk about something, but I guess now’s not a good time.” Okay, that sounded good. I could use that.

“No, it’s fine.” He closed his eyes and took a slow breath. “He was just leaving.”

Cole started toward me, but Wallace’s arm shot out to stop him. “The other way.”

“What?” Cole asked. “You’re not even going to introduce us?”

“Why would I?”

“Uh, because you don’t want to look like a jackass in front of your hot friend?”

Talk about weird family dynamics. These two were textbook material.

Hey, that was an idea. I’d studied plenty of counseling methods…

“Not that it’s any of my business,” I began, taking a small step forward. “But if you guys are having some kind of problem, it usually helps to talk things out with an outsider. We could all go grab coffee or something. I wouldn’t mind.”

Wallace’s eyes widened, and his intense gaze sought mine in an unspoken plea. “No. I mean, it’s not that big of deal. Just a little disagreement between brothers.”

A little disagreement about old ladies getting killed?
“Are you sure?”

“Positive.” He stared a few seconds longer than necessary. “I appreciate the offer, but…I’d rather you just left it alone, okay?”

I pursed my lips. “Sure.”

Apparently, it was fine for me to spill my secrets about Ari, but his private life was off limits. Tight and controlled. Shrouded in mystery. Didn’t he trust me?

Cole squinted from me to Wallace and then back again, like he was trying to add something up in his head. “Yeah, what he said.”

Well, why not just snap my damn olive branch and beat me with it? I was only trying to help. “I guess I’ll leave you guys to it, then.”

Wallace frowned. “Didn’t you want something else?”

I waved him off and started for the door, leaving muddy prints on the concrete. “It wasn’t that big of a deal, either.”

Cole nudged my side as I slipped past. “Nice to meet you, anyway, whoever you are.”

“You too.” I threw a glance at his brother. “Maybe we’ll be allowed to talk next time.”

It was a cheap shot, but I wanted Wallace to know I wasn’t happy with the situation. Being stubborn would only get him so far.

Cole snickered. “Yeah, wouldn’t that be nice.”

Wallace tried to catch my wrist as I passed him on the other side, but I pulled away to scan my card. “Rena…”

“It’s cool,” I said. “I understand.”

“No, you don’t, but—”

“It’s fine, Wallace.”

The light blinked green, and I flung the door open. For some reason, not being able to help really bothered me. Did he think I was too pushy? Too eager? Maybe I’d chosen the wrong field of study. Maybe I wasn’t that great with people.

Or maybe I just wasn’t that great with
Wallace
...

I flashed my ID at the desk attendant, but when I went to cram it back inside my pocket, my fingertips brushed something rough—something that didn’t belong there. With a quick glance over my shoulder, I slowed to retrieve the scrap of paper.

Black ink, crappy handwriting, and ten digits scrawled beneath an illegible name. If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear I had a not-so-secret admirer. Some guy lacking the balls to introduce himself.
Bleh.
I started to crumple the note up, but something caught my eye.
Six-one-four…

Wasn’t that a Columbus area code?

I squinted, turned the paper at an angle, and froze dead in my tracks. I didn’t have an admirer. Cole Blake had slipped me his number
.

~

“I didn’t think I’d see you again so soon,” a cheery voice called from behind me.

I glanced over my shoulder, not really expecting whoever it was to be addressing me. I’d dumped my stuff off in the room, waited ten minutes, and then hurried out the side door for dinner. I was already late, so I gave the quad a quick once-over and started for the entrance. That was when I caught a glimpse of her.

Rachel, the tights-wearing bane of my existence, was waving and trotting toward me. “Renée, right?”

This day kept getting better and better.

I gave her a tightlipped smile. “It’s Rena.”

“Oh, I was close,” she pointed out with a grin, hugging her books to her chest. “You know, it was great to see you at church Sunday. Wallace never brings friends along.”

“Really?” Please. I knew this trick. She was fishing.

“Yes, I was quite surprised.” She kept walking, assuming I’d pick up her step. “You two must be close.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that,” I said, trying to feign embarrassment as I trailed behind her. Sure, it was immature, but I didn’t want her to think she had the upper hand—not that we were competing.

Her lips thinned as she paused near the doorway. “I guess you’re right. I’ve known him for months now, and he’s never mentioned you.”

I lifted both brows. “Maybe you guys aren’t all that close, either.”

Wait for it.

“Kidding,” I announced in my cheeriest Stepford voice.
But not really.

She giggled and adjusted the books in her arms. “Perhaps you’re right.”

I couldn’t have smiled more if I’d painted it on in clown makeup. The longer we stood there, letting people go in around us, the more it became apparent that she was working up to something. How much longer did she expect me to keep up this charade? I was late enough as it was.

Outwaiting the Blake brothers had caused a significant delay in my schedule. It wasn’t like I could waltz upstairs and then pop out a few minutes later. How awkward would that be? No, instead, I did what any other girl in my position would do. I waited until I thought they were gone, ducked my head, and then bolted out the side exit.

Their argument had left a bitter taste in my mouth. The more I thought about it, the more I realized it’d been too strained, too lukewarm. Wallace kept his brother at arm’s length the whole time, but he didn’t push him away. Not earnestly. Confliction had anchored him to that spot, and he couldn’t move. Could he trust Cole? What would happen if he didn’t? There was no way the problem was that shallow.

Part of me wanted to smack some sense into the guy. Where was the patience he showed when I bared my soul about Ari? Where was the gentleness he showed when he took care of me in his room? When faced with his own flesh and blood, he just stood there. Angry, wounded, too stubborn to accept anyone’s help.

Maybe that was why another part of me—a very small part—had wanted to kiss Wallace then. Both sides of his mouth, between his brows, and every other place those stupid worry lines marred his expression. That part of me had wanted to hold him tight and give him the comfort I knew he couldn’t ask for.

But that part terrified me the most.

I shuddered and focused on Rachel again. She and Wallace had been friends, maybe even more, for a while now. Did she know anything about the situation?

There was only one way to find out. “So, uh, you know Cole, right?”

“What?” She lifted both brows, caught off guard. “You mean Wallace’s brother?”

“Yeah,” I said, trying to keep my voice neutral. “Do you know what happened between them?”
Nice, Rena. Casual conversation shift.

Her gaze turned serious. “Do
you
?”

Crap.
I hadn’t expected a counter. I could’ve bluffed my way through, but I didn’t want to risk it getting back to Wallace. “No,” I admitted with a sigh. “I was hoping you did.”

Disappointment wilted her posture. “He speaks very carefully regarding the matter.”

“Yeah, I know.” An acidic mix of guilt and anxiety began to churn in my stomach. “Sorry. I wasn’t trying to pry or anything.”

She shook her head and her rich auburn strands glowed like a halo under the fading sunlight. “You’re worried about him,” she said, looking around to make sure no one was listening. “I understand.”

“So, have you ever asked—”

“I think they had a fight,” she cut me off in a soft voice and looked down at her feet. “I wish I could do something for him, but he won’t talk about it. At least, not with me.”

The unspoken challenge fell between us. Could I do any better?

“I’m sorry, Rena, but I really should be going.” She edged toward the door with a shy reluctance in her step. “I don’t want to keep him waiting.”

My blood ran cold. Wallace? She was meeting him for dinner? “Hey, you’re not going to tell him about this, are you?”

“Why would I?”

“I-I don’t know.”

“We’ll keep this between us,” she assured me, grasping the door handle. “He wouldn’t be interested in girl talk, anyway.”

Thank God.
I started to back up. “Cool, well...”

“Aren’t you coming inside?”

I faltered. “No, I, uh…forgot something I need to get. Maybe I’ll see you at church sometime.”

She brightened. “I’d like that.”

And I’d like to sort this thing out, once and for all.

We went our separate ways, and I made a beeline for the dorm. As soon as I was upstairs, I crashed in my chair, grabbed my phone, and flattened Cole’s number against my desk. Screw dinner. It was obvious one of the Blake brothers wanted my help. I couldn’t give up now.

My stomach growled in protest of the skipped meal, but I ignored it. I only had so long before Gabby and Aiden would realize I wasn’t coming to dinner—especially since I’d ignored their texts. There was no way I wanted them up here, breathing down my neck while I made this call. They’d blow the whole thing way out of proportion.

I tapped Cole’s number into the screen and held my breath. One ring, two…

“Come on,” I prompted, shuffling a few papers around on my desk. If he didn’t answer now, I wouldn’t have the nerve to call again. It wasn’t like I enjoyed going behind Wallace’s back to intervene.

Another ring.

I moved a second stack of papers, and a smooth patch of reddish-brown caught the light. My breath hitched in my throat.
Ugh.
Ari’s porcelain giraffe.

It was a polished reminder of her passing, of my own mortality, and I hated the way it looked at me. I’d bought the small figurine for her eighteenth birthday, but she didn’t live to see it.

Tears pricked my eyes, and I balled my fist.
Damn it.
Why was Wallace being so stubborn? Life was too short to let things come between people, especially family. Whatever he and Cole didn’t see eye to eye on, it wasn’t
that
important. It couldn’t be. Someday he might not have a broth—

“Cole Blake,” a familiar voice announced. “Go.”

I jumped and made weird little movements with my mouth in an effort to speak. “U-Uh…”

“Hello?”

Cole sounded
just like
Wallace on the phone. The familiarity was disarming. “Cole?”

“Yeah?” he asked in a cautious tone. “Who is this?”

“Oh, sorry. This is Rena. We met like half an hour ago.” The words spilled from my lips before I could stop them. How stupid did that sound? I grabbed a pen to busy my shaking hand.

“Ah, okay. You found my note.” There was a click before his voice echoed, like he’d switched me to speakerphone. “Sorry, I’m driving.”

“I can let you go,” I offered, twisting the pen through my fingers. “I just wanted to see what—”

“No, I’m good.” A muffled horn sounded in the background, and he muttered something under his breath. “Actually, I was wondering if you’d let me take you up on that coffee thing sometime. You know, to work this thing out.”

The pen slid from my grasp. “Wallace agreed to that?”

The line fell silent for a few moments, and my chest constricted.

“Not technically,” Cole admitted. “I kind of thought we’d sort through my shit—sorry, my crap—first. Maybe bring him in after I’m in the right mindset to work on the problem.”

Wow.
He was really committed to salvaging this relationship. “Okay, well, when did you want to meet up?”

He clicked his tongue a couple of times. “Hmm, I doubt I’ll be able to swing another trip up there anytime soon. I’ve got a lot going on at work. Is there any way you could meet me down here this weekend?”

“Columbus?” I asked, scrambling to find a blank piece of paper in the stacks I’d made. “Um, yeah. How about tomorrow? I’ve got class until three, but I’m free after that.”

“Tomorrow would be great, but are you sure? I hate to make you come this far just for me.” He was definitely the outgoing twin. Wallace would’ve had this conversation wrapped up by now.

“It’s no trouble,” I lied. Actually, the idea of a two and a half hour drive didn’t exactly appeal to me, but I was willing to suck it up for a good cause.

“I really owe you for this,” he admitted with a sigh. “You might be just the person I need to get through to my brother.”