Page 86 of Meet Dare

“I—”

She holds up her palm to stop me and speaks to Gabrielle. “She’s denying the charges.”

I slap her hand away and lean into her face to hiss at her. “I’m not denying the charges. There are no charges. This is ridiculous. I don’t love Cedar.”

“Why are you lying about loving him?” Gabrielle asks.

At her quiet voice asking me about love, I lose it. All restraint is gone. Everything I’ve been hiding for twenty years pours out of me. The guilt. The fear. Every single bit.

“Because I don’t deserve love!”

“Everyone deserves love.”

I cross my arms over my chest and glare down at her. “Oh, yeah? Even people who killed their parents?”

“You didn’t kill Mom and Dad. They died in an accident,” Elizabeth says.

“I. Killed. Them.” I slam my palm against my chest. “Me!”

She reaches for my hands, but I scoot backwards behind my desk where she can’t touch me.

“And now you know why I don’t deserve love.”

“Bullshit, Cassie. Tell me you understand it’s bullshit.”

“It’s not. It’s all my fault Mom and Dad are dead.”

“You’re wrong.”

My head hurts and my heart aches. My throat closes up and I can’t breathe. Guilt and heartache choke me. They’ll never forgive me for what I’ve done. I’m going to lose them. This is why I never intended to tell my sisters what I did.

“Please go.”

“No, we need to—”

Gabrielle nudges Elizabeth toward the door. “Time to go.”

“But she—”

“Isn’t going to listen to you now.”

“Fine. We’re going. But this isn’t over.”

I’m about done with people telling me things aren’t over. This is definitely over. I’m never discussing it again. In fact, it might be time to leave. The only reason I moved to Colorado was to be near my family, but I’ve lost them now. There’s no reason to stay.

Chapter 29

Never tell your brother a secret ~ Cedar’s rules for living in close proximity to his meddlesome family

Cedar

I’m not surprised when I open my door to find Rowan standing on my porch. I motion him inside.

“Do you want a coffee or is this a beer conversation?”

“You tell me.”

If we’re talking about Cassie and what happened, the answer is clear. “Beer.”

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