Always: Broken Series Book Four Read Online Free PDF

down was nagging me to the bone.
    “I need to talk to Jack,” I told Nick. Jack was still my best friend, and he still lived four houses down from us. He and his husband Zane lived there with their child Daniel, who was conceived through a surrogate. They also had a mixed-race girl named Jacqui, who just finished Harvard at the top of her class and was heading to law school. Jacqui was almost the same age as Olivia, but couldn’t be more different. She was driven, intelligent and stunning. Olivia was also driven, intelligent and stunning, but, I was ashamed to admit, Olivia didn’t quite apply herself as much as Jacqui did. Jacqui was always studying, where Olivia seemed to always be partying.
    “Go ahead and call him,” Nick said, putting his arm around me again. “I’m not sure what he’s going to be able to tell you, but have at it.” He was smiling, so I knew that he wasn’t upset with me. Not that he had a reason to be, but we were at odds on this whole situation.
    I gave Jack a call.
    “Scotch Marie,” he said, picking up the phone. “How was your little lovey-dovey weekend? Did you have lots and lots of sex?”
    I had to chuckle, as I always did when I called my best friend. “We did, of course. Listen, I need your advice.”
    “Shoot.”
    “There’s a problem with Addison. I don’t know what’s wrong with her, but Olivia and Chloe both called me. Olivia was kind of frantic. I’m almost home, so I can find out what’s going on, face to face, but I’m kinda scared. I just have a bad feeling.”
    “Love, no matter what happens, you know that I’m in your corner.”
    “I know you are.” I paused. “I know I shouldn’t be calling you before I know anything. I just wanted to give you a heads-up.”
    He laughed. “Consider my head up. Anyhow, get home and find out what’s happening and then give me a call. Me and Zane are taking Daniel out right now to grab a bite. Maybe you can meet us out?”
    “Negative. We’re still about an hour away from home, and I really need to see my girls. I need to know that Addison is okay.”
    “Rain check then. Anyhow, I’ll see you soon.”
    We hung up and I turned to Nick. “It always gives me comfort just to hear his voice.”
    Nick raised his eyebrows. “What about my voice? Doesn’t that give you comfort too?”
    “Of course, silly. Sometimes I just need extra reassurance, that’s all.” I didn’t want to tell Nick that there were times when Jack could calm me down even when Nick couldn’t. It was just because Jack and I went back so far, and that Jack was the only person who was in my corner when I was a scared teenaged runaway. Without Jack, I probably would literally be dead.
    Not to say that Nick didn’t calm me down. He did. He just didn’t always get me the way that Jack did. I was usually in sync with Nick, but I always seemed to be in sync with Jack. And, right that second, I was feeling slightly out of sync with Nick. He just didn’t seem to take this whole situation seriously. He didn’t have the cold feeling of panic that I had in my gut. That was plain to me when I looked at his placid, and still devastatingly-handsome, face.

    W e finally got home and went into the house. Olivia was still there, of course, and Chloe was there as well. They both were sitting in the living room, and, when we walked in, Chloe came up to me and gave me a hug. “Mom, we’re so glad to see you. And dad.”
    Olivia hung back, as she always did. She wasn’t necessarily the warmest child in the whole world, but that was okay. “Mom, Addison is upstairs in her room. Locked in her room. You need to go up there and see her.”
    I nodded my head and took Nick’s hand. “Let’s go.”

Six
    N ick and I went up to Addison’s room and I knocked lightly on the door. She opened the door immediately, and I could immediately see that she was really upset. Her hair was all askew, her face was blotchy and her eyes were bloodshot. I looked past her, into her