“It would have been easier.” She blinks, cinnamon hair tossing around her face.
“For you?”
“No, Theo. For you.”
Her words strike a blow in the middle of my chest, directly to my heart. And she looks so – soheavy, in that moment, that it physically hurts. “Let me carry some of that weight for you, Ken. Talk to me. Like you used to.”
“I thought it would be easier.” Her voice is low, low enough that I step forward, straining to hear over the whistle of the wind around us. “To lie. To give you something that would help you make sense of it.”
“All I want is the truth.” I find myself in front of her, my hands on her face. “Kennedy. Please. God – just… trust me. I don’t deserve it. But trust me, Ken.”
“I don’t trust anyone anymore.” She whispers it, and my stomach flips as tears trickle out of her eyes. “That’s the truth. It hurts less that way.”
She’s breaking me. And my head is shaking, that knowledge creeping into my mind, digging into my thoughts with clawed talons and not letting go. “He hurt you. He… he did something. Didn’t he?”
Maybe I knew all along. Maybe I’ve always known, deep down.
She takes a breath.
And I know that I’m never going to be the same again.
Then – Kennedy
Fiddling with the edge of my shirt, I lean into Jake. His arm immediately lifts, tucking me beneath him as we watch Brett slide a wicker basket into the back of the truck from the kitchen window.
Jake’s thumb strokes over my shoulder, back and forth. It’s something he does often, I’ve noticed. Something I’ve found that I like a little too much.
I’m liking all of these alphas a little too much.
Mostof them.
“I still don’t understand why we’re not all going.” Biting down on my lip, I look up at Jake. His brow is slightly furrowed as he watches Brett, but he doesn’t say anything.
“Maybe he’s planning on stealing you away.” Theo’s scent rises up from my other side as he appears on my right, and I breathe him in. But despite the teasing note, he’s not smiling either. Twisting, I look between them as Jake and Theo exchange a glance over the top of my head.
My arms fold as I duck out from under Jake, already missing the feel of his touch as I tap my foot, glaring. “What’s going on? You know I hate secrets.”
“Who has a secret?” Lips press to my cheek, a brief kiss and then gone as Max slips past me. He bites down on an apple as he glances out of the window. “Where’s Brett going?”
“He’s taking me on a picnic,” I say slowly, still eyeing the others. “Up on the mountain.”
Theo offers me a smile. But it doesn’t seem to reach his eyes. “Pretty sure he just wants to spend some time with you, Kenny.”
Brett always wants to spend time with me. It’s something that’s becoming… noticeable. I seem to always end up sitting beside him wherever we are, his arm wrapped around me. And hesnappedat Theo last week when he invited me over for a movie, because he had to go to an appointment with his dad and wasn’t going to be here.
And then there was the graduation ball. An evening that was supposed to be all of us, having fun, together. Because tomorrow, Brett, Theo, Oscar and I areleaving.
And Max and Jake are staying here.
Max already has his arms out when I step forward. He wraps them around me, his hand cupping the back of my head. “No tears. We’ll be back and forth as much as we can, Ken. We’ll make it work, okay?”
I bury my nose into his chest. It’s stupid, to feel this connected to them. To feel thisneedfor them that I can’t seem to shake off.
I don’t know how I’m going to survive when Max and Jake aren’t around. Maybe it sounds dramatic, but I don’t know how I survived so long without them.
A cough behind me. “Kenny, did you have breakfast?”
Case in point. Oscar’s hands land on my shoulders, rubbing gently. “There’s plenty left.”
