Page 144 of Love Notes & Lifelines
“And listen when he says he’s sorry. I’ve never seen that man as heartbroken as he was last night. He loves you, Stella.” Leo’s attention drifts to the hallway Tabby walked through, and my heart hurts even more.
“I—I love him too.”
They smile at me with blinding wattage.
“Then go see what the hell he’s up to before he brings the entire house down around us.”
My eyes fly open so wide they actually hurt. “Is that possible?”
“No.” Leo laughs. “It’s a figure of speech. But he’s only been up there for twenty minutes, so who knows? Go check on him.”
Elijah gives me a big hug, then turns me toward the stairs. Beck’s words fortify each step I take.I need you.
There are fourteen stairs to the second floor, each step bringing me closer to Beck. Up here I can hear the music blasting through a speaker more clearly, but I don’t recognize the song. The next staircase is shorter, but by the time I reach the sixth step, my head is already clearing flooring on the third level and it’s hard not to remember the last time I was up here.
Beck is across the room on a ladder. My feet hit the floor just as he takes a wild swing at the ceiling, and a cloud of dust and debris falls over him. He hits the spot again and again, only pausing to swipe at the goggles he’s wearing.
He’s covered head to toe in a thick layer of white dust. Based on the holes in the walls, I’m guessing it’s some sort of sheetrock. His hands grasp the ladder while he chokes on an inhale, and I rush to his side.
“Beck.”
He doesn’t hear me—the music is too loud.
Standing in the center of the room that looks nothing like the first time I was here, I close my eyes to decipher where the music is coming from.
I follow the sound to the window in the far corner of the room, then shut it off.
Beck’s head whips toward me. It takes him half a second to clear his goggles, but when he spots me, he jumps from his spot on the ladder to the floor as though he’s part spider.
His strides are long and determined, and he reaches me in record time. “You came.”
“I came.” My cheeks heat, and I could die of embarrassment because my mind instantly conjures our night up here.
“I remember,” he says with a smirk. Damn it. Desire flutters deep in my core, then he coughs, sobering us to the moment.
“What are you doing up here?” I scan the space again. Dust mites float all around, sparkling in the last remaining rays of sun like thick specks of glitter.
“Stella,” he says, then coughs again.
“You need to be wearing a mask up here. You’re inhaling God knows what.”
He coughs so hard his eyes water, but there’s nothing to drink up here.
“Let me grab you some water.” I turn to go, but he catches my elbow. It’s another few seconds before he’s able to speak.
“I’m so sorry, baby.” He moves in as though he wants to cup my face, but catches the filth covering his skin and pulls back. “I know none of that was real. I just—fuck, Stella. I froze for onedamn second. It looked so real. After everything, I—I panicked. But please believe me, I love you so damn much. You’re my lifeline—my northern star. I…”
He starts hacking again and I pull from his grip, run to the second-floor bathroom, grab one of the girls’ cups, fill it with tap water, and rush back to his side.
He takes it and drinks deeply.
His face is covered in muck, so when he smiles, his teeth stand out in blinding white. “I’m sorry. I’m so damn sorry.”
I shake my head—too many thoughts vying for the top spot. “No, I get it. I know why you hesitated, why you were confused. I was too, and I shouldn’t have run. But then Silas was there, and Leo pulled him off me?—”
“He had his hands on you? He…” Beck takes a step back, and his entire body shakes.
I step toward him and place a hand on his chest. It brings his gaze back to mine.
