Page 26 of Bliss: Part 2
It gave me a moment to think about a few things.
I was in a better place now. The worst of my pain was behind me, but I still went to therapy twice a week. At first, it was just to make sure I didn’t slip back into that dark place and let what happened take over my mind. Lately, though, it had started to feel almost…good. There was something freeing about sitting across from someone who listened without judgment, who let me say exactly what I felt without flinching. I didn’t tell her everything. Not the truth about the guys and me. That was a line I could never cross with her. I knew she would have to report it if she found out, and the idea of anyone coming for my family terrified me.
Instead, I told her my truth in pieces, rearranged. I changed names. I changed the shape of the relationships. I still told her about the love I had for these four boys, but I gave her a version of it she could accept. She gave me advice. She told me that love like that was probably why I’d been able to let go of the memories from that night at the carnival. I believed her.
Tripp pulled into the gas station, and we climbed out, then started toward the door. Before entering, I looked over at the two cars parked a little farther back in the lot, with a small group of men standing around.
My eyes caught on two guys leaning against one of the cars. One had hair as red as fire, the other dark brown, and they were shoving each other lightly, laughing. Then the brunette pulled the redhead in and kissed him. I slowed without thinking, my eyes lingering. Something about their ease made me feel warm inside. They looked happy. Whole. Like the world couldn’t touch them.
“Lissy, you coming?” Dash called from the door, his voice snapping me out of it.
“Yeah.” I hurried after him. When I reached him, I hooked my arm through his and leaned into him, smiling up. “Can we also get some ice cream?”
“Sure. I think Dad will like that.”
We made our way to the chip aisle, where Tripp and Ashby were already debating over which flavors to grab. Rhys was over by the refrigerators, loading different sodas and a couple of beer cans into a basket.
“I’ll help Rhys,” Dash said, nodding in his direction.
“Okay. I’ll be by the ice cream.”
He bent down to press a quick kiss to the top of my head before turning away. I wandered toward the freezers. The glass doors were clouded in spots from condensation, but I could still see enough. The selection wasn’t huge, just a few neat rows of pints and popsicles.
“Hi.” A voice spoke beside me, startling me.
I turned quickly to see a girl standing next to me, smiling.
She was about my age, with hair that was a wild, fiery red. I’d never seen her before. Her skin was dotted with freckles, and her eyes were this dark blue that reminded me of the lake. She had a look about her that was…different. Not polished. Not city-pretty. More like she belonged to some place far from here. Her style was almost…rural.
I gave her a tight smile.
“Uh, hi,” I replied.
“Do you live here?” she asked, turning briefly toward the freezer as if deciding on something inside it.
I kept my eyes on her, unable to stop staring at her hair. It was the same color as the hair of the guy outside, and I decided that they had to be related.
“Yes, I do. You? I mean…I’ve never seen you around here.”
“I’m not from here,” she said. “We’re on a road trip. My family and I. We’re going camping.”
“That sounds fun,” I said honestly.
“It is.” She glanced around the store, her eyes moving over Rhys, then Dash, then Tripp and Ashby. When her gaze came back to me, there was a new expression there. She had a strange grin on her lips. “Are they your brothers?”
“Yes. Two of them are. The others are my cousins. But…they’re like brothers to me.” The words slipped out before I could stop them, and I regretted saying so much right away. She was a stranger, after all.
“They’re cute,” she said simply.
“Yeah. They are.”
She shifted closer, her grin still in place. Her voice was quieter now. “I think I know your secret.”
My heart stopped.
What did she just say?
“What?”
