And make things right.
Chapter Ten
DEE
As I hobble into the kitchen, two voices carry through the air—one is Colt’s, the other sounds like Hux.
When did he get here?
I round the corner and freeze.
Colt sits at the table, elbows on his knees, head hanging in his hands. Hux stands beside him, a hand resting on Colt’s shoulder in a rare show of comfort. The sight alone guts me. It’s like the air is sucked straight from my lungs.
Hux notices me first. His glare could peel paint. I bite my lip, guilt already flooding in because I know that look—it’s all fury, disappointment, and barely restrained disgust.
Our relationship has always been rocky,but this?This feels final.
Colt slowly lifts his head, eyes rimmed red, jaw locked tight. He doesn’t speak, doesn’t look at me—just turns his face toward the window, refusing to let me in.
My chest constricts.
“I’m gonna leave you two to talk,” Hux says, giving Colt a firm pat on the back. His voice is stern. “But if you need me, bro, call me.”
“Thanks,” Colt mutters, not moving his stare from the glass.
The tension is a living thing in the room—sharp and unforgiving.
Hux scrapes his chair back like he wants me to feel every ounce of his contempt. As he passes, his glare cuts me clean. “Colt loves you,” he growls, stopping beside me. “God knows why, with the way you turn everything into a goddamn mess.”
“I—”
“No. Shut up and listen.” His voice is razor-sharp. “If youevermake him feel like he’s a burden again, I swear to God—”
“He’s not a burden, I swear.”
He spins on his heel. “Then maybe say it to him. Because right now? He thinks he’s not enough for you. That he broke you, that using again is his only out. That shit’s on you, Dee.”
“Hux,enough,” Colt says, voice low but firm.
“No, she needs to hear it. You’re spiraling, Colt, and I’m not lettingherbe the reason. You worship her, man. And she turns around and makes you feel like you’ve ruined her life? She is spoiled and obnoxious.” His eyes flash with fury. “I’d be gone so damn fast if I were you.”
“I said,that’s enough,” Colt snaps, rising from the table with a force that silences the room.
Hux backs down, barely. He stares me down one last time, venom in every word. “Pick up your act, or let him go. Could youbeany more of abitch. Fuck! If he fails again, I swear, Dee… I’ll make sure you’renevernear him.” He spins on his heel, muscles tight beneath his shirt, and storms out, the slam of the door—a finality—echoing through the silence he leaves behind.
I stand, trembling, tears threatening to spill.
Colt doesn’t say a word. He doesn’t move, just watches me with that guarded stillness I’ve never seen in him before. “If you want me to go,” he finally says, voice low but even. “Say the word, and I’ll be gone before you can blink.”
The breath I’m holding shatters. “What?No. God, no. Colt, I’m so sorry. Did Ireallymake you wanna use again?”
He doesn’t answer right away. Just closes his eyes for a long moment, his face drawn with pain. Then, a single nod.
“Colt…” I reach out, my fingers grazing his arm. He lets me touch him, doesn’t pull away, and it gives me hope, the tiniest sliver.
“I’m not the man you need, Dee,” he murmurs, his voice rough. “I let go of your hand when you needed me most. I let my shit bleed into yours. And now I’m standing here, watching the woman I love break because of me.”
I shake my head, frantic. “No. Colt, no. That’s not true. God, I didn’t mean any of the things I said. I lashed out. Anna had her baby, and you didn’t tell me. The hysterectomy… everything hit me at once, and I broke. But that’s not on you. That’s onme! Hux is right, I am a bitch, and a spoiled one at that.” Tears run freely down my face, messy and loud.
