Page 35 of The Ache That Stayed

“I said I would.”

I kissed her forehead and held her tighter. From the corner of my eye, I saw him, still, watching.

Her.

Then he looked away.

She pulled back just enough to look at my face.

“Are you alright?” I asked.

She nodded too fast.

I saw the lie. I saw the tightness around her mouth, the way her fingers curled into my jacket. But I didn’t expose it. Not in front of him. Not while she was still holding herself together.

“You should tell him to leave,” she said, voice stern.

“Let’s talk inside.”

I wrapped my arms around her shoulders and walked toward the cottage, leaving him leaning against his bike.

The house smelled like her the moment I stepped inside.

Vanilla, citrus and warmth beneath it. As soon as the door clicked shut, I grabbed her and kissed her. Her shoulders finally loosened.

Roxanne was all softness where I was hard edges and control, her body fitting against mine with devastating familiarity.

She pulled back just enough to look at me, and I already missed the weight of her against my chest. The loss of contact irritated something primal in me.

I hated that she was away, even if I understood why she needed to work. I’d built space for it long before she asked.

But understanding it never made the distance easier. The distance suddenly felt far longer than it had any right to. Long enough for me to notice every room that didn’t have her in it. Long enough to reach for her in the middle of the night and find nothing but cold sheets.

The house felt wrong without her in it. I did too.

“Aren’t you going to ask him to leave?”

“It’s not that simple.”

Her jaw tightened. “It was all too simple for him last time.”

Yes. Yes, it was. And I know what it did to her.

I kissed her forehead. “He’s here for a reason.”

“Oh. So now you’re choosing him?”

“I’m choosing the option that keeps you breathing.”

I rubbed my thumb on the side of her jaw.

“Right now, that includes him.”

“How?” She frowned, angry.

Anger only made her more beautiful. Eyes dark and narrowed, lips tight, thinking three steps ahead even when furious.

I’d always loved that about her. Even when I’ve wanted to ruin it with my mouth. Consume her.