Page 24 of Axe Backwards
“You can do better than that.”
“Ick-Ick,” Tess said, scone crumbs in her eyebrows and down the front of her jacket.
“Shout it,” Noah commanded.
“I did nothing wrong,” I said louder, though not at full volume. It was too peaceful out here to be so disruptive.
“A little better. Walk up there.” He pointed at the path that led to the falls. “Scream it. Scream whatever you want. Let it out. You can’t carry all this shit around with you forever.”
The lump in my throat grew once more, making it hard to swallow.
With one expectant brow raised, he put his free hand on my shoulder.
He stood so close, his chest almost touched mine when he inhaled. His warmth seeped into me, chasing away the sadness and bringing with it a new sensation.
His proximity awakened my body. His masculine scent lit a low flame deep inside me. The weight of his large hand grounded me.
“Shout,” he commanded.
With a deep breath in, I willed my pounding heart not to leap out of my chest. Then I spun and strode toward the rushing water, focusing on the sound and only stopping when I could feel the mist on my face.
“I did nothing wrong!” I shouted as loud as I could. “I didn’t deserve it.”
The tears fell again, mixing with the mist coating my skin. But it felt good. Therapeutic. The cold air in my lungs, the icy mist on my face. Staring down nature and letting loose.
“I hate the way he made me feel,” I yelled. “I hate what he did to me.”
I sucked in a harsh breath, energized.
“I did nothing wrong,” I screamed with all my might, my voice drowned by the pounding of the water against the rocks.
For a long moment, I stood in that place, catching my breath. When the tears had stopped, I carefully made my way back to where Noah was standing with Tess.
He was beaming. “That’s my girl,” he said softly as I approached.
My heart clenched at the sentiment, but I was too raw to linger on the meaning of that response.
Wiping at my cheeks, I went back to where we’d set up our picnic and picked up a scone for myself. For a while, we ate and played with Tess, supervising her as she crawled around on the rocks. By the time we began the hike back to the car, I felt lighter and exhilarated.
The dread that had plagued me this morning lightened a modicum. It wasn’t gone altogether, but for the first time in a long time, a gentle contentedness took up residence inside me.
We were down the steep trail, on the last leg through the forest, when Noah finally spoke again.
“We should work out the details for the wedding.”
I turned to him, my mouth agape.
Tess had conked out, her cheek resting on the back of Noah’s head, and was snoring softly.
“I’m going with you,” he said before I could formulate a single word. “For moral support.”
Stunned, I stumbled over a rock in the path.
He grasped my arm, steadying me. “I assume that, as the bride’s sister, you get a plus-one.”
I nodded.
“So Memorial Day? My mom has been desperate to spend more time with Tess. I’m sure she’d babysit.”
