“Maybe. Or maybe I’m being used. I don’t know.” I hesitated, breath catching before I forced it out. “And there’s something else I haven’t told you.”
I couldn’t keep it from her anymore. Not all of it. The weird committee summons. The whatever-this-was with Luke—close one second, off-limits the next. But the threat against Mom and me? The question of whether Langley was alive or dead? That stayed locked down. I wasn’t putting a target on Avery’s back.
“What?”
“I kissed Luke.” My throat went tight. “Not once. A few times now. But no one can know. We’re not… a couple. Not in the halls, not at school. It’s safer if we keep distance there.”
Silence hummed down the line. Avery’s voice came soft but steady. “So, you trust him again. But do you forgive him for how he’s treated you?”
The question struck deep, a shove I hadn’t braced for. “That’s not the same thing.”
“No,” she agreed. “It’s not.”
“I trust him.” My fingers tightened around the steering wheel. “I have to.”
“But forgiving?” she pressed.
I let my head fall back against the seat. “He listened this time. Really listened. He didn’t throw what I told him back at me.”
“That’s trust,” Avery pointed out gently. “Not forgiveness.”
The silence stretched. I stared out at the line of cars thinning in the lot. “I let him kiss me. That should’ve been enough. That should’ve said everything.”
Her inhale was sharp. “And?”
“And I kissed him back, Aves.” The words scraped out of me. “Because it felt inevitable. Like if I didn’t, I’d split in half. And I hate that. I hate that I still want him after everything.”
Avery didn’t rush in. Just let me spiral.
“I left without explaining,” I whispered. “And when I came back, he didn’t shut the door on me. He could’ve. Maybe he should’ve. But he didn’t.”
“So he’s earned trust,” she said. “But, again, what about forgiveness? That’s different, Mila. That’s letting go of the hurt.”
“I don’t know if I can. I still feel like he could turn on me and shut me out again. Maybe it’s an irrational fear, I don’t know.”
Her voice was steady now. “Then don’t force it. Just be honest—with yourself and with him.”
The words settled heavy in my chest.
Finally, I exhaled. “Enough about me. Any news with you and Jax?”
She hesitated. “He walked me to my car today.” A pause, softer. “But he’s still holding back, as if there’s more he wants to say and he’s not sure he should.”
Protectiveness twined with hope filtered through me. “Give him time. He’ll get there.”
Her breath caught faintly on the other end, as though she wanted to believe me.
We hung up, but her question still echoed as I started the car and then drove out of the school lot. If I couldn’t forgive Luke, then what was left of us?
CHAPTER TWELVE
LUKE
Logan leaned against the locker bank like he owned the place, arms crossed, grin fixed in place. He waited until I was close enough that I couldn’t ignore him then fell into step beside me.
“Your old man better watch his back,” he muttered, voice pitched low, meant for me alone. “Dunn’s going to eat your family alive.”
I kept walking.
