Page 86 of Tate
Nice.
Her eyes filled with the pressure in her throat, and she had no thought but to just keep walking.
Just…walk away.
She picked up speed, and in a moment she was running. A full-out sprint toward—well, she didn’t know exactly where she was going.
Her eyes blurred, and she heard her name, but she couldn’t stop. She ran through the grass, spied a trail along the edge of the backyard, and tripped and scraped her way up it until she reached a meadow.
Her brain caught up to her there, and she knew she must look ridiculous, but she couldn’t bear to turn around, to face the catastrophe, so she slowed but kept walking.
“Glo!”
She closed her eyes, wincing at the sound of her name. “Go away, Tate.”
His breathing was hard, closer. “No.”
“Really, I’m just being silly.”
“No, you’re not.” He ran up and fell into a walk beside her. He reached out to touch her, but she drew her arms to herself. “Okay, listen. You gotta calm down. It’s no big deal.”
She rounded on him. “I incinerated the chicken for tomorrow’s reception! And nearly burned down the house. Did you not see the inferno?”
His mouth tweaked up. “It was an old grill. And it’s happened before…”
She just stared at him, shook her head. “I can’t believe I did this.” She turned and kept walking. “I should have stayed home.”
“Then I would have missed the wedding.” He caught up to her. “So, thank you for coming with me.”
“I would have been perfectly safe with Sly or Rags.”
“But—” He touched her arm now, stopping her. “I didn’t want Sly or Rags keeping an eye on you.” He turned her. “Don’t you know, Glo, that I would watch you every minute of every day if I could?”
“You practically do.”
His eyes finally warmed. He blew out a breath and touched her face. Ran his thumb over her cheekbone. “Your bruise is gone. Finally. I could hardly look at you without feeling guilty.”
“I thought it was because you didn’t want to see Sloan.”
His eyes darkened. “That too.”
“I’m sorry about Sloan. I just…” She broke away from him. “Tate, you really don’t want me. I’m…I’m so selfish?—”
“What?” He caught up to her. Spun her to face him. “What are you talking about?”
She met his eyes, hers hard, despite the burn in them. “I hurt you deliberately.Deliberately.”
He wore pain in his eyes but didn’t move. “I know.”
She stared at him a moment, then shook her head. “Then I’m not sure why you’re still here. I’mnota good person?—”
“Glo—”
She pulled away from him. Held up her hands. “Really. Trust me on this?—”
He was advancing on her, but she put a hand to his chest. “Listen. I’ll prove it. I was born a twin—a fraternal twin to my sister, Joy?—”
“I know.”
