Page 11 of Between Now & Heartbreak

The wide span of his strong shoulders stretch the white cotton of his shirt. The short sleeves expose the lean, defined muscles of his arms. There’s something new tattooed on one of them. But from this distance, I can’t make it out.

“I have to use the bathroom,” I mutter absently to Dina, but I don’t check to see if she heard me.

I stride through the haphazardly arranged dining room.

I say an absent “excuse me” to the people I bump into.

But, I don’t stop.

My heart may be racing but my mind’s mad dash to try and understand is outpacing it.

I have a million questions.

A million emotions.

A million fears.

A million hopes.

A million regrets.

I’m trembling by the time I reach him and put a hand out to touch him.

My palm has barely skimmed the rise of his shoulder when he turns sharply.

Just like that, we’re face to face.

Our gazes slam into each other and a lump the size of my heart rises in my throat.

The huge smile that he’d been wearing disappears.

He looks as stunned as I feel.

But then, he looks angry and he crosses his arms in front of his chest.

“What are you doing here?” The accusation in his tone is even more disconcerting than his expression. I feel like a rabbit caught in the site of a hunter’s rifle.

“I think that’s whatIshould be askingyou. I live here.” I say in as hostile a tone as he used.

His mouth tightens and the muscle in his cheek jumps. He looks down at my left hand and I’m so glad I left my ring at home.

“Here with your man?” he says in a biting voice that lands like the sting of a whip.

“How did you—”

“I saw it online somewhere. You move fast.” He says in a voice so cold, it gives me gooseflesh.

He’s looking down at me likeIowehiman explanation. Anger and resentment coil around my middle and nearly steal my breath.

Howdarehe?

When I think of the choices I made in a desperate attempt to hold on to the idea of him, and terrible consequences I’m facing because of those choices, I want toslaphim.

I take a step back

Thank goodness for the months I’ve spent faking my equilibrium. Like I do whenever I feel like I can’t maintain the façade one minute longer, I bring Cameron to the front of my mind and push everything else away.

I will not fuck this up by doing anything rash.

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