Page 113 of That Last Secret

I nod.

Silas is the only person in the world who knows about what’s been going on with Emiline. While I don’t see her nearly as much as I’d like to, the thought that I miss her when I’m not with her scares the daylights out of me.

I was adamant about not wanting a relationship.

She didn’t either.

But when things shifted around us, and I realized I couldn’t be without her, we ended up in this situation, with me falling for her harder than I intended to.

“I don’t know what I want anymore,” I admit. “One day, I’m dead set on making my job my entire life. The next, I’m…”

“Falling for your best friend’s little sister.”

I cringe. The way he says it sounds so wrong. He makes it sound like committing a sin.

But I won’t lie to myself. I can’t lie to myself.

I’ve fallen for her. I wouldn’t call it love. But it’s there.

“Logan,” he says with a sigh. “You know it’s okay to change paths, right? It’s okay to want something different and change your mind. The future is not black and white. It can change in an instant.”

I feel a mix of emotions building inside of me.

If anyone knows that, it’s me.

“I just don’t know how to handle the—” I’m cut off when the door of the boxing room creaks open.

As if I thought her into existence, Emiline stands there looking around the room before her eyes land on us. She smiles and lifts her hand in a wave before walking over.

Neither one of us moves from where we sit.

“Hi, guys,” she says. “Sorry to bother, I was just finishing a workout and thought I’d swing in to see if you were here,” she says, looking at me.

“I was just heading out,” Silas says.

“Oh no.” She waves her hands in the air. “Don’t leave because of me. I was just saying hi before I left. I’ll head out.”

Silas looks from me to her before looking back at me and giving me a tight nod.

Emiline watches as he silently grabs his bag and leaves the room. My head falls and I look down at the ground. My body is drained of any energy to stand up and greet her.

On top of it, my brain is a mess of emotion right now, and the last thing I want is for her to see me like this.

She doesn’t say anything and crouches down in front of me. She rests both hands on my thigh, begging me to look at her. I can’t. Not right now. Not when my head is not in the right place.

“What’s going on, Logan?” Her voice is so soft and comforting. Like she can wrap me up in her words and hold me there, getting rid of every negative thought in my head.

“I’m good.”

She stands, taking a step between my legs. Her hand gripping my jaw forces me to look up at her. “What’s. Going. On.”

My eyes fall closed, and my hands come up to wrap around her. I press my head into her stomach and just breathe her in.

She’s here.

In my arms and asking me to tell her what’s happening in my head.

“I’m a mess,” I exhale against her shirt. “I don’t need you to see me like this.”

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