Page 50 of On Thin Ice

That’s it, I can’t sit here and watch her cry like this.

“Baby, please don’t cry.” I grab her face in my hands and wipe her rolling tears away with my thumbs before she shakes my palms off her cheeks. “I promise I didn’t do any—”

“I trusted you Sean!” She yells, water splattering all over my duvet where she sits. “I fucking trusted you and I don’t trust anyone, you know that.” “I spent so long building your trust Cal, why would I want to ruin that now? I swear I didn’t betray you baby, I could never. You mean fucking everything to me, absolutely everything!” I’m yelling now too, the desperation to fix this mess clawing it’s way up my throat and out of my mouth.

Callie’s feet land with a soft thud on my carpet and she starts to pull her jeans up her legs. “You know,” she croaks, water still forming tracks down her face. “I never doubted your feelings for me until now.”

My stomach flutters with panic as I watch her collecting her things. “Are you leaving?”

She nods once but doesn’t look at me. “Yes, I am. I need some time to think.”

Shit, she’s serious. No, she can’t go, I…I need her.

“Callie no, please don’t go.” I stutter, falling to my knees as she reaches the bedroom door. I cling to her legs, holding her to me and hugging her thighs like a scared child. “No Callie, you can’t go, please don’t.” My own voice is pained, desperate, pleading with her. If she leaves tonight she might never come back to me…I can’t even comprehend trying to live my life without her now.

I peer up at her and her gaze is equal parts shocked and aching with uncertainty. “What are you doing?” She says, her hands landing on my shoulders.

“Begging you not to leave me, you have to trust me on this. I can’t lose you Cal, I just…I can’t.” I croak through a bubble of my own tears, the water in my eyes spilling over and Callie’s green orbs widen with pain as she tracks it down my cheek.

“Stand up Sean,” she whispers and I sniff hard, wiping away the moisture with the back of my hand.

She squeezes her eyes shut for a moment and then brackets my stubbled jaw with her delicate hands, pulling our foreheads together. I breathe in her heavenly smell, the scent that reminds me that I'm home, when I'm with her, I'm home.

“I promise I’ll come back, I just need some space for tonight.” Her voice is soft and warm when she speaks now, her breath tickling my lips as I lick away a remaining salty tear that lies there and swallow down any more that are threatening to escape.

Her thumbs find my under eyes like mine did her’s only minutes ago and she wipes away any remaining moisture. “I’m not mad at you ok? I believe you when you say you didn’t cheat on me, I…I trust you.”

The words that fall from her tongue make my heart melt into a puddle behind my ribcage. I pull her chest to mine, hugging her tighter than I ever have before and sinking my still wet face into her neck.

“Just go home for tonight, but please come back to me tomorrow. I need you Callie, you’re the only person I’ll ever need.” I say into her shoulder and I feel her arms squeeze tighter around my neck. I lift my face and hold her gaze, locking our eyes together and deciding if I should say what’s on the tip of my tongue right now.

“I can’t believe you still don’t fully trust me after all this time.” I sigh, “I've been there for you through so much and it kind of feels like you have one foot out of the door, waiting for me to fuck up.” She lets her hands fall from my shoulders to hang by her side, letting out an exhausted sigh. “If you still don’t trust me now, I'm not sure you ever will.”

She blows a tired breath and then brings her eyes up to mine again. “It takes a hell of a lot for me to trust someone Sean, but I'm getting there I swear. And I do believe what you’ve told me tonight, like I said, I trust that you didn’t do anything with that girl.”

I nod and lean down to kiss her soft, pink lips, holding her mouth to mine for a long beat before releasing her and watching her leave my bedroom. As soon as I hear her engine roar to life and the sound dwindle away as she drives off toward her dorm I sink back on my mattress, rubbing my jaw and thinking about how this night did a 180 so fucking fast I feel like my feet haven’t touched the ground.

I need to find out who the fuck set me up tonight and when I do, it’s going to get messy.

Chapter 40

Callie

I don’t know why the hell I doubted him, I should have known it was a set up or a misunderstanding like Sean said. He has worked so damn hard to earn my trust over the months we’ve been together and how do I repay his hard work? By doubting his loyalty to me at the very first hurdle we’ve faced. I feel like shit as I twist my key in the lock, letting myself into my dorm at just after 2am, trying to be as quiet as possible as I tiptoe down the hallway to my room. I push open my bedroom door, the emptiness of not having Sean with me sinking deep into my bones and making it’s home there for the night. I’m desperate for sleep, my eyelids we’re dropping dangerously on the drive over here and I feel immediate exhaustion the second my head hits the pillow. Before I let my eyes flutter closed and the heaven that is sleep take over, I shoot Sean a quick text.

Callie:

'I’m sorry I doubted you tonight, I should have known you’d never cheat on me. I see how hard you’ve worked to earn my trust and I promise you it’s working. Please don’t give up on me now.’

It’s mere seconds before my phone pings in my hand and I read Sean’s text with a smile.

Sean:

‘I know baby, it’s ok. You forget that I know you, better than anyone and that means I know when you’re scared. You can always tell me how you feel and I’ll always listen, no matter what, but don’t close the door on me. If I ever upset you, tell me and I’ll fix it, ok?’

Callie:

‘I will, I promise. I’ll call you in the morning.’

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