Page 20 of Eight Years Later

The plan was to give the cops a heads-up, and make sure Milo got locked up for a long fucking time.

But my faith in law enforcement wasn’t all that high.

I couldn’t say for sure that there wouldn’t be more issues.

“Not really,” I answered honestly, rolling my shoulders back. “Which is why I’m going to convince them to stay in Troy.”

Wreck snorted. “And how do you think you’re gonna pull that off?”

There was only one answer.

“Christmas.”

Chapter Eight

KAT

“Hey, gorgeous.”

I spun around and grinned when I spotted Tally in the doorway. “You’re back.”

He stepped into the room Dylan and I were sharing. “Dylan here?”

I shook my head. “Harmony took the kids out to get ice cream.” He pushed the door shut behind him and held my gaze as he walked across the room, making my heart flutter a little. I licked my lips, curiosity winning out over excitement. “How’d it go?”

“Turned out crackhead Post Malone was just the head guy in some stupid street gang. He folded pretty easily,” Tally explained with a shrug. “And while I’m not usually one to involve the cops, we stopped by your local station on our way out of town. Turns out he had about five warrants out for petty shit like bail jumping and not appearing on theft charges. So we let them know he was probably not doing so shit hot and where they could definitely find him.”

I stood tall, feeling like a weight was being lifted from my shoulders. “So when we go home, he won’t bother us?”

Tally’s face changed.

It was instant.

“Yeah. You’ll be fine.” He turned away, but I grabbed his arm.

“Tally—”

He pulled it away, shaking his head as he faced me again. “If that’s what you want, to be in Jacksonville, then just go. Maybe this time it won’t hurt so fucking much.” He stormed toward the door, but I couldn’t let him walk out.

“You think it didn’t hurt me?” He paused, his hand on the door handle. “You think it didn’t kill me to pack up my shit and walk away?”

He slowly turned around, scrubbing his hand over his face. “Then why, Kat? Because one day you were there, things between us were so fucking good, and the next day you were gone. No warning. No goodbye. I just showed up at your damn door, and Sophie had to tell me.”

“Because I was falling in love with you, and I didn’t think you would love me back,” I yelled, stumbling back and hitting the wall.

It was out there.

Off my chest.

The feelings that I don’t think I’d ever even admitted to myself floating in the air between us.

I swear, if I’d blinked, I wouldn’t have seen him cross the room toward me.

He moved so fast that I was suddenly wrapped in his arms and being carried to the bed. My back hit the mattress, and he climbed on top of me, pinning me to the bed as he hovered over me. “For a long time, I wished you’d given me a chance to fight for us. To fight for you. To show you I gave a damn.”

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, feeling a single tear drip down the side of my face.

I felt guilty and sad about the choice I’d made.

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