Page 135 of After All This Time

"Aren't we?" The words come out soft and broken, and something in his eyes shatters.

He stops dead, and the hurt I see in his eyes makes my chest ache. "How can you say that to me?"

I wrap my arms around myself, feeling everything I've bottled up today threatening to spill over.

"You know I can't do this with you. This up-and-down, these fucking mood swings. Last night was—" My voice cracks because how do you describe perfection? "And then today, you just—"

"Get in the car, Amelia," he interrupts, his voice dropping low.

"Oh, okay, you're done, are you?" I throw my arms up, my anger bubbling to the surface. "Now that I'm calling you out on your bullshit, you don't wanna hear it?"

He moves like lightning, caging me against my car with his body, hands slamming down on either side of my head. His breath fans across my face, and God help me, even now—evenfurious and hurt and scared—my body recognizes his like it's coming home.

"I want everything you've got, Firefly. But I don't want it here. So, please, get your ass in the car, drive home, and we can finally have an honest fucking conversation."

I swallow hard, my chest heaving as his words sink in. Before I can respond, he pulls back, slipping into his car without another glance. His engine roars to life, but he doesn't move until I'm in my car, his headlights casting a protective glow as he follows me home, never letting me out of his sight.

When we finally reach the apartment, I slam my keys down on the counter, the sound echoing in the silence. Tobias closes the door behind him, leaning against it, his eyes on me.

"You're still pissed then," Tobias says, and it only stirs the storm inside me, fueling this mess of anger and hurt I'm not sure where to aim.

"I don't even know what I am right now," I snap, pacing the room like it might burn off the frustration. "All I know is one minute you're right there with me, making me feel closer to you than I ever have, and the next?" I laugh, but it sounds like breaking glass. "Next, it's like you don't want to be anywhere near me."

"Not true," he says firmly, stepping closer, his arms crossing over his chest like he's bracing himself for the next hit.

"No? I've had the worst fucking day, Tobias. The worst. And where were you?" My voice breaks, betraying every emotion I'm trying to hide as I whirl to face him. "Probably with one of the hundreds of women on your goddamn speed dial."

The muscle in his jaw ticks, and his eyes narrow, the sharp edge of his glare cutting through my rage. "That's how it is, huh? That's what you think of me?" He takes another step forward, the room shrinking as he looms over me. "I know you're lashing out because you'reangryand you're scared. But accusing me ofdoing anything—anything—that could hurt you? That's fucking low."

His words hit me like a punch to the chest, and the worst part is he's right. I'm being an asshole.

"My mom set up viewings for me to move out today." His shoulders stiffen, and he bites down on that full bottom lip I kissed raw last night, as his gaze drops to the floor. "Did you know?"

"No."

"But there's something you're not telling me."

"Kayla knows about us."

He doesn’t ease me into it, and for a moment, everything stops—my breath, my heart, the whole fucking world.

She knows.

"How?"

"Because I told her." His voice is granite, unmovable, and completely unapologetic.

"What do you mean you told her? How did that even come about? 'Morning, Kayla. Coffee? Oh, by the way, I'm screwing your daughter, you know, my stepsister. Two sugars?' What the fuck, Tobias?"

I spin on my heel and walk toward my bedroom, needing distance, needing to breathe, needing something. However, he follows, and I hear the door click shut behind him as he enters.

"She asked me where I was last night," he says as I rip off my jacket and kick my shoes across the room. "She got up, and I wasn't there—because I was with you in the bed we share every night."

"You couldn't just say you were in the bathroom?"I shoot back, whirling around to face him.

"No, Mills. Because that would be bullshit, and hiding this"—he gestures between us, his voice rising with everyword—"implies we're doing something we shouldn't be. And we're not."

I open my mouth to respond, but he cuts me off. "I swear to god, Amelia, if you say one thing—one goddamn thing—to suggest that you feel like this is wrong, I'm going to lose my shit. Because Iknowyou feel it. I know you felt it last night."

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