Page 34 of Love Set Me Free

Paisley’s heart rate picked up when she saw a familiar Jeep sitting in the driveway, but then it dropped when she saw the totes stuffed into the back.

She took her time parking, knowing her shitty day wasn’t over just yet. A part of her hoped that she and Kydrick could sort things out. For some reason, him actually moving out made her feel like a nail in the coffin that held their friendship. She wasn’t sure why. They had withstood decades of hardships. Why would this change anything? But the truth was, things had already changed. They were already different. She saw something in Kydrick that he had yet to see in himself, and she couldn’t try to force it. That was her lesson in all this. She had to allow him to form his own path. It was no longer her job to fix him or his life.

Not caring to grab the boxes from her trunk with the stuff from her office, she exited the car and slowly walked up the driveway.

Inside, Kydrick was walking down the stairs with a box in his hands. He froze when he spotted her, while she stood just inside the doorway.

Finally, he trudged down the last couple of steps and placed the box down next to the steps. His eyes pierced her, causing emotion to ricochet through her.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, breaking the silence.

Her jaw clenched stubbornly. She didn’t want to respond out of fear of crying, and she knew he could tell. He could always tell. There wasn’t a person on this planet who knew her better than him. The only sign of irritation that she ignored him was his jaw ticking before he opened his arms up for her.

“Come here.”

And she did. She walked right into his strong arms because there was nowhere she would rather be, but it was bittersweet. Somewhere inside her, she knew this hug would be the end of their life-long friendship and the start of something new—something uncertain.

She clung to him, allowing silent tears to fall. Her life was in shambles, and she wasn’t sure what her next move would be. Suddenly, Janelle’s words came back to her.

Take a vacation or… I don’t know. Just do something for you. We all see how hard you push for everyone around you. You’re an amazing person to know… but it would be nice to see you going just as hard for yourself. Take care of yourself.

She never considered taking care of herself outside of the basics. It wasn’t until this very moment, where she knew she was on the brink of losing everything she’d worked so hard for, that she realized she needed to stop putting everyone else above herself. This hug signified the death of the old Paisley. No longer would she put this wonderful man above herself. It pained her to think that way, but something deep down inside her knew this was the change she needed to make in order to see happier moments.

“Tell me what’s wrong,” Kydrick finally muttered.

Paisley sniffled, wiped her eyes, and then pulled away from him, looking down at the floor.

“Got fired.”

It was the only thing she felt comfortable speaking on at the moment. There was so much more wrong. Fuck the job.She could get another one. She would worry about that later, but Kydrick didn’t need to understand the other emotions swimming around inside her. She would keep those tucked away tightly and only allow them free when he left.

His warm hand on her cheek almost had her sliding down the nearest wall, but she kept it together and allowed herself to lean into him briefly before she met his eyes.

“What happened?”

She shrugged. “I refused to go on a date with Steven.”

Kydrick’s brows pulled together, and a scowl formed on his face. “So he fired you?” She nodded. “That don’t sound legal.”

“It’s not.” She sighed and then walked into the living room, desperate to sit down and curl up into a ball.

Kydrick followed right behind her, and he sat next to her on the couch, pulling her feet into his lap and massaging them. He didn’t speak. He knew her well enough to know she would speak when she was ready, and she did.

“It’s honestly a fight I don’t care to indulge in.”

“Why? He cost you your job. That don’t seem fair to me.”

“It might not be fair, but I think it’s what’s best, Kyd. You know the reason I got into law in the first place.”

His jaw clenched, and he nodded before uttering, “For me.”

“Right. I never loved it. I did it so I could give you a fighting chance. Since you’ve been home, I haven’t really given that job another thought. My heart was no longer in it anyway, and I have more than enough money to live off of until I figure out my next move.”

Kydrick’s thumb grazed the gold ankle bracelet she had on as he rubbed her feet and he smiled.

“Maybe you can get back into jewelry design.”

Paisley sighed and gently pulled her feet from his grasp and tucked them under her.

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