Page 58 of Crossing the Line (Whitecap)

“I always wanted to do that,” I admitted wistfully. “My dream was to sell my ceramics. Years back, I had someone in Ohio approach me about doing a showing with a collection of my vases and larger pieces. I was so excited. When Graham found out, he went into my studio and smashed every single one of them.”

“That son of a bitch,” Monica growled. “When I tell Sam, he’s going to rip that asshole’s head off.”

I hesitated in what I had to say next. “You can tell Sam and Dezzy, but no one else can know who I really am. At least not right now.”

“Your secret is safe with us,” Georgia insisted. “All of us. We’d never do anything to put you in danger.”

“I know,” I whispered, feeling my eyes mist up.

“So what does all of this mean for you and Trent?” Luna asked. It was a question I’d been dreading.

“We’re done,” I answered, my voice cracking on those two words, the jagged edges of them slicing up my throat as I forced them out. “He’s the only link I have to my sister, so I’ll have to talk to him again, but we’re over. I made that perfectly clear.”

Something happened just then that shocked me to my core. Luna sniffled, dropping her head as tears spilled from her eyes, dropping down onto the rug at her feet. “I’m so sorry,” she croaked painfully. “It’s all my fault. You never would have gotten hurt if I hadn’t pushed you to take a chance on him. You said you weren’t interested, but I just didn’t listen.”

I shot off the coffee table and moved to the love seat where she was currently curled over on herself. “Oh, honey,” I murmured, wrapping my arms around her. “None of this is your fault.”

She looked up at me, her big eyes glassy and wet. “Of course it is. I never listen. It’s what I do. I push and push people to do what I think it right for them, never stopping to consider the consequences.”

“Lu, I took a chance on Trent because he made me feel something I’d never felt before, not even when Graham had me convinced he was my knight in shining armor. You aren’t to blame for any of it, so don’t carry that weight.”

She sniffled again, wiping under her eyes while she nodded, but I knew she was only agreeing for my benefit. She didn’t mean it. She wasn’t finished blaming herself for my pain.

“Sawyer—I mean Cheyanne—” Monica gave her head a shake, like she was trying to clear the befuddlement. “What should we call you now?”

“Whatever you want when we’re alone,” I answered.

“All right.” She paused, and I could tell she hadn’t landed on one name or another when she started again, omitting the name completely. ““Look, I know what Trent did was a million kinds of wrong, and if you wanted to go over there right this second and set his car on fire or break his kneecaps, I’d lead the charge. Lord knows he deserves it. But...” She stopped, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. I knew then she was gearing up to say something I didn’t want to hear.

“But what?”

“What if he really does love you?” she finally asked, her question like a hammer to my heart. She raced on before I could open my mouth. “Yes, he lied to you, and yes, that was bad,reallybad. But I saw how he looked at you. You can’t fake a look like that. What if he really was trying to protect you by not telling you the truth in the beginning?”

“She has a point,” Georgia chimed in, shocking me with her agreement. “He said it himself, he was worried about blowing up your life. If he’d told you who he was at the very beginning, can you honestly say you wouldn’t have taken off?” I couldn’t say that. “You probably wouldn’t have believed he was here on your sister’s behalf.”

Monica lifted her hand in the air. “By the way, I still can’t believe you’re a twin. That’s crazy. I’ve never known a twin before.”

Georgia carried on like she hadn’t heard her. “You’d been hiding for so long, that the moment you realized that someone, no matter who they were, had not only been looking for you, but had managed to track you down, you would have run for the hills.”

It really sucked that, in the midst of my crisis, Monica and Georgia were being so level-headed and rational. I needed them to get on my level.

It wasn’t lost on me that Luna hadn’t thrown in her two cents in regards to Trent, but I’d let her be for now.

“It doesn’t matter. It’s done. We’re over.”

Georgia nodded resolutely. “If that’s what you want, you have my support. I just want you to know that you’ll still have it, even if you change your mind.”

“Ditto,” Monica agreed.

There was no point telling them my mind was made up, so I didn’t bother. After the day I’d had, it didn’t take long for the adrenaline to leech out of me, leaving me with this weary, bone-deep exhaustion that made it hard to stand.

I walked them to the door a short while later, receiving the tightest hugs from Monica and Georgia before they headed to their cars. Luna lingered in the entryway, waiting until we were alone before speaking.

“You know I’m with them, right? Whatever you want, you have my support. I love you and I just want you to be happy.”

“I know.” I felt some of the pressure that had been weighing me down lighten. “And I love you too, very much, Luna.”

“Cheyanne,” she said on a sigh. “It’ll take some getting used to, but I like it. It suits you somehow.”

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