18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

JAMESON

Reggie is dead. That’s all there is to it. The last few days at work have been hell, fielding calls and speaking with an investigator, trying to prove that I had no fucking clue what Reggie is up to. Thank fuck I never handed him a few dollars when he asked. They’ve been through my phone and my apartment and so far, I’ve come up clean. I’m off the hook but my boss said to take a day or two off to clear my head.

I didn’t tell Wyatt because he deserves all the peace he could get.

However, after the Facebook posts, I needed to make sure Wyatt was okay. I’m going to beat Reggie’s ass for airing out his dirty laundry. Saying that Wyatt swooped in and stole his boyfriend is a low blow. I’ve never fantasized about time with Reggie, even when many of the fraternity brothers did. Reggie is stubborn while also lazy. I need someone to submit. I need someone who needs me. I need someone… like Wyatt.

As selfish as it is, Wyatt and I work. Reggie and I never would have.

I barely make it to their old house before Reggie is at my door and yanking it open. He drags me out and into a hug, mumbling something about ‘oh thank god’ as if I’ve come to rescue him. I peel him off and sock him in the face like I’ve been wanting to do for the past few days. “Tell me what the fuck is wrong with you before I leave, Reggie. Fraud is bad enough but threatening posts on Facebook? Some of those comments are from our fraternity brothers threatening to hurt Wyatt. Are you fucking mad?” Reggie staggers forward and I punch him again.

He's going to bruise in the morning but I don’t fucking care. Reggie holds his cheek, a trickle of blood running down his chin. “You don’t understand. I told both of you!”

“And that’s not an acceptable reason for all this shit. Let’s start with the money. You realize you’re going to fucking jail for that? Eugene did a little more digging and it seems that you’re not even selling cars. Do you even work as a salesman, Reg? Or is that all a cover-up with the brothers as well?” I’m furious that men I still share a fraternity legacy with would stoop this low. The payout couldn’t have even been that high for whatever the fuck they’re doing.

“It’s just for a little extra cash, alright? I’m not as successful as the rest of you and I needed to survive. Selling shit only goes so far before they fire you for excessive partying. I was the life of that place but one too many drunk mornings and now I’m not useful. I made more money than every piece of shit in there but I’m the problem.” He grimaces as he rubs his cheek a little harder. No doubt he’s going to believe that his shortcomings are my fault.

I hate him for it.

“You are the problem, Reg. Don’t you see that? You are the problem. You have always been the problem. Your attitude toward everything is the reason you no longer have anyone standing beside you. You’re not as important as you think you are and we’re no longer in fucking college.” I punch him again for good measure, aiming for the opposite cheek. Reggie stumbles to the ground before crawling to his feet again.

“You don’t believe that.”

“What don’t I believe? Because I sure as hell believe the fact that you tried to ostracize your brother for a fucking crush. If you loved me so much, why not say something? Huh? Just tell me. When did you know that I liked Wyatt?”

Reggie clears his throat. “Before he deployed. But you were supposed to be mine.”

“I’m not supposed to be anyone’s. I chose to be Wyatt’s and he chose to be mine. End of story. Take down the fucking posts and lose my number, Reggie.” My hands fist at my side, knuckles raw. Reggie frowns as if he doesn’t understand why I’m so furious. He reaches forward and I step back so that he can’t touch me.

“Why-”

“You’ve hurt every person you’ve ever claimed to love. You push them away and then wonder why they don’t want to be around. You’ve disrespected the man I’m in love with and you’ve threatened my job by making it seem I knew about your stupid ventures. You don’t care about anyone but yourself and it’s going to make you end up alone.” I open my mouth to keep going, needing to tell him absolutely everything I feel when police sirens race through the neighborhood, two cars pulling up directly behind mine.

An officer steps out, glancing between the two of us, his hand on his belt. “Mr. Katz?” I point to Reggie as his face drains of color. “Reginald Katz, you’re under arrest for fraud. Anything you say, can or-” I wasn’t expecting this. My threat was just that… a threat. However, a few days of investigation obviously pulled up that Reggie was one of the main players.

The officer moves toward the man who used to be my best friend, still reading his Miranda rights as he’s cuffed right in front of me. The sadness and despair in Reggie’s face guts me because I’m sure he had it planned that everything would go his way. In the end, he’s going to suffer for his inability to respect the world around him.

As they drag him away, a piece of my heart breaks. I may not want to associate with him but years of a friendship are now broken, irreparable. The Reggie I knew is no longer here and it hurts that I’ve lost that part of me. A shuddering breath falls from my lips as I fall back against my car, running my hands through my hair. The first of several tears escapes.

I thought cutting Reggie off would be easy.

It wasn’t supposed to be this hard.