Page 145 of Fourth Point Of Contact

Debra walked me to the door and wrapped her arms around me one last time. I held her tight, my chest squeezing painfully as I thought of all I was losing. I stepped back, wiping the tears from my face as I picked up my bag and walked out the door.

I made it as far as the road to the OPS building before Chase pulled over and motioned for me to get in.

“Need a ride?”

“To the airport,” I answered, trying not to look at him. I might break.

He sighed heavily as I shut the door. “Are you sure about this?”

I swallowed hard and met his gaze. “Positive.”

34

PATRICK

I stoodat the top of the stairs and listened as Piper told my mom she was going. Part of me itched to run down there, to stop her from leaving me. Yes, we had started as friends with benefits, but now I couldn’t imagine my life without her in it.

And she was walking away.

“Thank you so much, Debra. I really did enjoy every second with you.”

My eyes slid closed at her words. She enjoyed her time with my mom. Not with me. No, she only spent her hours with me in bed, using me for sex. Meanwhile, I had trouble not running to her every chance I got and sliding my hands over every inch of her body, desperate just to touch her skin to tell myself she was real and I could convince her to stay with me.

No, it hadn’t been like that from the start, but deep down, I always knew this was more than fucking. Something about her called to me, drawing me to her every chance I got. And it was fucking obvious to me in every way, from how she chose to decorate my house to the way she handled my mother. And at night, when she would wrap her body around mine, my heart slowed and the day just slipped away as if it meant nothing now that she was in my arms.

How could that mean nothing?

I heard the snick of the door and grabbed my crutches, hobbling down the stairs. My mother’s gaze slowly drifted to mine and a sad smile touched her lips.

“Piper’s gone.”

I nodded and headed over to the coffee pot. “I heard.”

“Why didn’t you come downstairs?”

“Why didn’t you ask her to wait?” I snapped, knowing this wasn’t her fault.

“Honey—”

“It’s fine,” I cut her off. “It’s not like it would have worked anyway. She has her life and I have mine. She never would have liked it here with the gigantic spiders,” I said scathingly.

I took a sip of my coffee and tried not to let the anger wash over me, but it was fucking hard. I’d never, not once, considered that I might actually want to be in a relationship. Never. Until her. Until she swooped into my life and saved me from a bear. Until she stayed by my side when I was burning up with a fever from the infection, and she refused to leave. Not even to get help. And then she wrote me those fucking letters, those cute, fucking adorable letters that wormed their way into my heart.

She got on a plane and flew out here for me.

All to save me from my mother. She did that for me, and then she just walked out the door without a goodbye.

“Honey…”

I turned to my mom and saw the smile on her face, confused when she slid her hand over my cheek. “You love her.”

“What?”

“You love her, sweetie. Fight for her.”

“She doesn’t want me to fight for her.”

“Are you kidding?” She laughed, shaking her head at me. “She’s scared. Yesterday really scared her.”

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