Page 7 of Wrath

“To try and salvage this mess. To beg and grovel to the man who I just humiliated in front of everyone he knows to give me another chance.” I shove past him, but before my fingers can reach the handle, he grabs my waist and spins me around. All that devastation in his eyes has turned to anger and I feel the tension from his fingers as he forces me against the door.

“You do not grovel to anyone,” he growls, and when my eyes look up into his I have to remind myself to breathe.

“Get off me.” I shove him away and while I try to pull myself together, he rests his palm against the door to block it.

“Move, Aaron.” I let him see how pissed I am.

“Not until you tell me why you came here.” He refuses to break eye contact, and it makes everything feel so tense.

“I don’t even know the answer to that. I guess it was just a stupid, impulsive decision, which I regret. Now, let me leave so I can try to fix it.” He doesn’t budge, and the clever smirk he makes tells me I’m going nowhere.

“You're lyin’.” His eyes narrow.

“Aaron, I have no reason to lie to you.”

“You're lyin’ to yourself,” he tells me softly, and this time it’s me who draws closer to him.

“You don’t know me anymore,” I remind him, reaching my hand behind my hips so I can take the door handle.

“Eden, we both know you came here because you didn’t wanna marry that man, and you knew...” He reaches back and takes my wrist in his hand, bringing it to rest between his chest, “...that if I’da known about it, I would never have let ya.” His grip on my hand is so tight I’m not sure which of us is trembling.

“My name isn’t Eden. It’s Katie,” I remind him…again.

“Not to me it ain’t. You’re always gonna be Eden to me.MyEden.” He pulls the neck of his tee down, showing me a tattoo on his chest that wasn’t there ten years ago. I take some time to study the thick, trunked tree and its deep-tangled roots. All of it, including the leaves, are shaded in darks and grays, except for one single bright-red apple that hangs from one of the branches.

“The garden of Eden,” I whisper, bringing up my free hand to trace a finger over the beautiful artwork. Now, it’s definitely me who's trembling.

“The start of everythin’,andthe forbidden fruit.” He’s wearing that cocky smile on his lips again when I look back up at his face.

“Nothing about any of this is funny, Aaron.” I slam my palm at his chest and when it frees my other hand, I take a step backfrom him and let out a long deep breath. Being this close is starting to feel dangerous.

“Grrrr!” I turn away from him, slamming my palms on my brother's desk and dropping my head between my arms.

I can’t believe I’ve let myself get into this situation. This time yesterday, I had it all, and now…Now, I’m back to being that girl who had her heart ripped out of her chest.

“Listen to me.”

My body stiffens as he steps up behind me, and when his hand rests on my shoulder, I curse myself for taking some comfort from it. “Why don’t ya stay here for a few days? Just till you get your head straight. I promise I’ll keep my distance if that’s what ya need.” Having him touch me again after all these years makes me realize that it’s not what I need at all. Ineedhim close, but I can’t admit that, to him or to myself. “You and Raze have a lot of catching up to do, and you should get to know Peyton, she’s good for him. You'll like her.” His voice is a soft whisper that seems to be getting closer and closer to the skin on my neck.

“Fine.” I spin around, gasping when I realize just how close he is. Close enough for our lips to almost be touching. “I’ll stay, on one condition.” I manage to gain some strength, rubbing my lips together and trying not to think about how it would feel to kiss him after all these years.

“Anythin’.” His eyes are focused on my lips as if he’s thinking the exact same thing that I am.

“I need you to return the car I stole from the minister.” I smile at him awkwardly

“She hot-wired a fuckin’ car? When did she learn to do that?” Raze stands beside the open car door while I sit in the driver's seat, trying to fix the mess his sister made.

“It’s something I taught her.” I look up at him and shrug.

“And why the fuck would you have been teachin’ my little sister how to hot-wire a car?” The wrinkles in his forehead deepen.

“I don’t know, for situations like this one, I guess.” I put the casing back around the steering wheel and get outta the car.

“Hank’s comin’ to pick this up with his tow truck. I told him to drop it a few blocks away from the chapel.” I slam the door shut and start heading toward my bike.

“So, that's it?”

I turn around when I realize Raze is following me, and he doesn’t look impressed while he waits for me to respond.

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