Page 84 of Love Me

“What are you doing? This is not your room.”

She rolls her eyes at me as if I said something stupid and climbs into bed next to me.

“Celine?”

“Shut up already. Good night.”

She turns on her side, and I debate if I am imagining things.

In her sleep, she curls into the fetal position. She always did that when she missed her parents, and everything became too much.

I do what I did then, led by the instinct to comfort her.

I wrap my hands around her, drag her to my chest, and say, “Shh, I’m here. I got you.”

Tears fall down my cheeks. This night turned from hurt from a minor break to my heart being shredded in my chest. Nothing will erase the fact I saw Kaden dangling over a cliff.

His strong arms cocoon me, and his body infuses warmth into the coldness consuming me. He’s here, next to me. Safe. Alive. Tomorrow, we can return to whatever we are when we’re not giving in to this craving interwoven with weakness.

He tucks a strand of my hair behind my ear and kisses my neck tenderly, making me feel cherished. I cuddle even more into him. His warmth soothes me, putting me at ease.

I ghost a finger over his hand. “You’re reckless. What you did…”

“You’re with someone else.”

A surge of anger ripples through me. How dare he accuse me of being unfaithful when he’s engaged to Abigail?

“She’s wearing your ring.” I remember when we once snuck into his father’s office, and it was on his desk. Kaden had an impish grin on his face as he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him.

We were at that age where we weren’t kids anymore, but we weren’t yet teenagers. I said yes, and he slipped it on my finger, even though it was too big. But I knew even then it was mine.

“I know a lot more now than back then. I would never offer you that ring.”

I gulp, so damn exhausted and frustrated with loving him. We steal moments when I want all of him: his touches, his kisses, his heart, his loyalty, his life, and all the promises he made. I want him to keep his word, damn it.

I didn’t plan on actually kissing Dane. I just wanted to get a reaction out of Kaden. Dane and I have developed a strange bond. I like the easy friendship between us––two people suffering from broken hearts. Then Kaden and Abigail interrupted us, dangling their harmony in my face.

I didn’t lie. They make perfect sense together. They keep each other anchored while Kaden and I are madness and chaos. We’re explosive, yet the bond between us is indestructible.

“We’re bad for each other,” I whisper.

“When did this happen?”

We chuckle, but it’s broken like everything else in me.

I turn to him, his eyes searching mine.

“You know what I hate the most?”

“That would be new. You giving me truths.”

He has no right, none. Guilt and jealousy wreck me.

“You and Abigail are the ideal couple.”

“Are we?”

“Even when we were children… it’s like I needed you while you needed…”

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