Page 177 of The Broken Keys

Andrew keeps the conversation flowing for a while until Quinn rattles on and on about how romantic Cash and Livianna’s life is. Andrew asks her about Mayhem and when they’re going back out on tour.

It’s something I haven’t thought of. I shake my head at myself.

How did I gloss over that fact?

That thought leads me to the next one.

Who the hell is going to be there with her to take care of her?

Cash recently shared with me she’s still suffering from intense headaches. She’s not taking painkillers anymore, but it wasn’t without a massive fight between them.

I have to give him credit, though. Once I pointed out the dangers of having pills around them and their past drug abuse, he cleaned out their house.

She threw a fit, but he put his foot down. I guess their love is more important than drugs.

Knowing she’s healthy is the only solace I have. I have tobelieve this is what fate had planned all along. Otherwise, I’ll spin in the question of why.

Why did I lose her?

Why did I leave her?

Why did we lose a child?

The answers never come, so I resign myself to believing it’s just meant to be this way. The limo stops, and with it, so do my tired thoughts.

The driver gets out and lets us all out. We enter the Hemings mansion. The entryway is decorated with big white bows.

“Hi, darling.” Lorna meets us near the door. “Oh, you brought more people than Quinn.”

“Yeah, they were on their way to happy hour, so we hijacked their plans.” Livianna hugs her mom. “I hope it’s not too much trouble.”

“It’s not. The more people, the better the celebration will be.” Lorna releases her. She comes over to Andrew and me, planting small kisses on each of our cheeks. “It’s nice you two could make it.”

“Thanks for having us.” I gesture toward the kitchen. “You don’t mind if I get a whiskey from the cabinet, do you?”

She takes my arm and pulls me along with her. “Of course not, Jaxon. But I already have all the alcohol out. There are servers to make sure everything is perfect. Just let them know what you want.”

They all follow behind us. While my drink is being poured, Livianna asks her mom where her “daddy” is. Lorna explains that he’s in his study talking with Cash.

I glance through the formal dining room, down the hallway to where Greg’s office is. The door is shut. From that small tell, I know they’re not in there having a casual conversation.

Once everyone has a drink, Lorna gestures to the concrete deck. “Let’s go outside. It’s beautiful out tonight.”

We start to go, but Livianna places her free hand on my arm. I stop and face her.

“Jaxon?” She swallows hard. “Can we talk? Just for a minute or two, then you can let loose.”

“All you need to do is ask, and I’ll give you all the time in the world.”

“Thank you.” She removes her hand. “You’re too kind, considering how I’ve been treating you the past three days.”

“And how is that?”

“Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed.” She gives me a knowing look. “I just wanted to apologize.”

I dip my chin in acknowledgement. “You don’t need to apologize. You haven’t been as rude to me as you’re alluding to.”

“Come on, Jaxon. Don’t play nice.”