Page 45 of Unspoken Hearts
I could have kissed her. I wanted to kiss her, but I still can’t tell if that’ll be crossing a boundary she has put firmly in place. And I wouldn’t want to cross that line and ruin what we have.
I’d rather be her best friend’s brother than ruin things and becomesomeone she avoids.
I don’t think I could handle that.
My head hangs between my shoulders, thumb stopping on the picked at sticker, leg pausing on the timber deck once more as my heart rattles hard against my ribcage. A heavy pressure builds in my head, stinging my eyes.
The back door creaks open.
My head turns to see her pretty face, copper hair twisted into a messy bun, wearing loose shorts and a baggy top that’s definitely Grayson’s.
Jaw ticking, our gazes meet from across the porch.
Macie smiles faintly before closing the door behind her.
I silently watch her walk over in only her socks, sitting down on the couch beside me. Pulling her knees up to her chest like she did the other night, her arms encircle them.
My insides melt, knowing that she’s used to comforting herself, and I wish I could be the one she’d run to, who she’d seek for consoling, but I doubt I will be with my stupid brother being between us.
I study her face. The sweep of her thicker brows, her straight nose and sharp jawline. She’s always been stunning to me, inside and out, and I fear that’ll never change.
I know she’s deep in thought, because the crease deepens between her eyebrows, the one that appears whenever she’s stuck in her mind. I want to know everything going on inside, a million questions piling up in my own.
“Are you okay?”
Throat working silently, Macie doesn’t look my way, keeping her stare trained on the nature beyond our porch. The windows are closed, so nobody else will overhear, but I can see that she’s still guarding herself.
“Yeah. I’m fine,” she whispers flatly.
You’re definitely not fine.
Sighing, I shuffle to the edge of my chair, book discarded on the side table. “We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”
That makes her look at me, green eyes full of pain and dismay. I would do anything to have them back to their usual, bright selves.
“There’s not much to talk about. I just didn’t want Axel to lose his childhood home. He grew up there, and now it’s being taken away.” Her words are as light as a feather drowned in anguish. Her head falls against her knees, hiding from me.
I bite the inside of my cheek.
Again, she’s thinking of her brother over herself. I hate when she does it, even though I know it’s her instinct after all these years.
Frowning, my jaw ticks, seeing her looking this on edge. She’s been through enough already. “At least you can stay here,” I offer.
Her head shakes, and my heart stings beneath my ribs. “I know, but I really don’t want to impose on your family.”
“You’re hardly imposing, Mae.”
She blows out a breath, face coming up, hand brushing hair from her eyes. “It feels like I am.”
“How?” I question.
Watching her chest move slowly, she goes back to focusing on the paddock where the cows are huddling together.
Her favourite.
After a couple of years of knowing Macie, I compiled a list of everything she prefers in my mind that I’ve been adding to since high school.
Likes: pickles, lamb lasagna, blueberry muffins, baby cows, oversized sweatshirts, writing, honeyed coffee, wildflowers, snake lollies.
