Page 126 of Firecracker

Her face wet with tears, she made her way into the bedroom through the dark, a hand on the wall. She didn’t want light. She wanted her bed, covers pulled over her head, while she tried to figure out how she was going to put her life back together…again.

* * *

She slept like crap, tossing and turning and having the same dream over and over. She couldn’t even remember what the dream was, but it had been disturbing. In the morning, she dragged herself out of bed and into the bathroom.

God, she looked like crap too, mascara smeared around her eyes, which were red and swollen. Her nose was pink, her lips puffy. It all could’ve been from a night of wild sex, except that the slope of her eyebrows and the downward tilt of her lips radiated sadness.

She washed her face, finishing with cold water, her heart like a stone in her chest, her stomach tight. She had to work at noon today, a nice early shift she’d usually be glad for because it meant she’d have an evening off to do something with Tyler or with her friends.

How could she face any of them after what she’d done to Tyler? Jamie was going to be so pissed at her. Probably they all would be. And she totally deserved it.

Once again, she was falling into that blame game. What she’d told Tyler was true…shehadbeen honest with him. She’d told him she wasn’t ready for a relationship. She’d let him talk her into going on that date…and then everything had just kept going.Hewas the one who hadn’t been honest. He’d told her he didn’t want a relationship either, but clearly he did. And now everything was fucked up.

So why did she feel so guilty?

Because it wasn’t his fault. It was her fault for letting things progress to the point he wanted more than she could give.

She wanted coffee, but couldn’t stomach eating anything before dressing for her shift at Shenanigans, trying to hide puffy eyes with dark eye shadow and loads of concealer. Bright blusher and some shiny lip gloss would help too.

Liam eyed her as she walked into the empty Shenanigans. “Jaysus. You look like you’ve got a bad case of the Irish flu.”

Or maybe not.

She fluffed her hair. “Gee, thanks.”

“Rough night, love?” His forehead creased as he studied her face.

“Wasn’t the best.” She sucked in a breath and squared her shoulders. “I’m afraid I have to give my notice.”

“Notice of what?”

“Of quitting. I have to quit. I don’t know how much notice you need, but it would be great if today could be my last day.”

“What the fuck are you going on about?” Liam’s jaw jutted. “You can’t quit.”

“Who’s quitting?” Sorcha appeared. “Just when we hired a bunch of new people, someone quits. Ofcourse, we can never get ahead of things.”

“I’m quitting,” Arden said quietly. “I’m sorry.”

Sorcha’s mouth fell open wide enough to see her molars. “What? Why?”

“I’m going to Florida.”

Brother and sister now both gaped at her. “Florida?” Sorcha finally said.

“Today?” Liam added.

“No.” She tried for a breezy smile, showing her teeth. “Tomorrow.”

“Ah.”

“You can’t quit,” Sorcha said. “You’re the best waitress we’ve ever had. Besides me, obviously.”

“Obviously.”

“This seems a little rash,” Liam said. “Something is clearly arseways.”

One corner of Arden’s mouth kicked up. “I love you, Liam.”

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