“I’m sorry,” I say. She’ll never know how much I’m sorry for hurting her. I would give anything to take it back.
“Don’t be,” she whispers, running her fingers along my sleeve. “You did nothing wrong.”
I place my forehead to hers, still catching my breath. “I did.” In so many ways.
She cups my face, and I lean into her touch, my eyes growing heavier by the second. I can feel the adrenaline from the fight dying off. I blink and her face grows with concern.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” I answer, taking a step back. “I just…” I trip over her clothes and fall into the wall.
“Grave.” She grips my upper arms. “Come on. Let’s get you cleaned off and in bed.”
I don’t argue with her because I don’t know how much longer I have left before I pass the fuck out.
She lathers my soap and washes me off, being careful with my busted hand. It’s swollen, but it’s stopped bleeding. I can’t even make a fist with it right now. She finishes up quickly and turns the water off before she gets out and grabs two towels for us. She dries me off and I take it from her, wrapping it around my waist. Then she walks over to the counter and rummages through the cabinets beneath the sinks, slamming doors open and closed.
“What are you looking for?” I ask.
“Medicine. You need something for pain.”
“No.”
She stops her quest and turns to face me. She hasn’t even taken the time to dry off yet. Her towel still sits on the counter, folded. Her wet hair clings to her naked chest and she still has makeup smeared on her face. “Grave, you need to take something.”
I shake my head. “I’ll be okay.”
She bites her bottom lip as if she wants to argue, but I just told her I’m an addict. I have some tabs in my duffel bag in the closet, but I’m not going to tell her that because I will not take them. I can live with the pain.
“I just need some rest,” I assure her. “Will you stay the night with me?”
We’ve always stayed at her house. One, because I enjoyed being at her house. It felt like home to me. And two, because I never wanted her around the guys at Kingdom.
“Of course.” She sighs, accepting the fact I’m not going to take anything for the pain.
APRIL
I stand inthe cooler at Roses, arranging flowers, when I hear the bell ring.
“How may I help you?” I call out, walking behind the desk. The smile drops off my face when I see who it is.
Lucy stands before me in blue jeans and a long-sleeve white shirt. Her blonde hair is swept up in a high ponytail, and her bare face highlights the sadness in her brown eyes.
She gives me a hesitant smile. “Hey,” she says shyly.
“Hey.” I cross my arms over my chest.
She bows her head, staring at her tennis shoes. “My brother told me that I owe you an apology and a thank you.”
I just stare at her.
She looks up at me. “I’m sorry?—”
“I’m not the one you owe an apology to,” I interrupt her.
She lets out a long breath. “I told him I’m sorry.”
It’s been five days since we found her dying in her bedroom. Grave hasn’t mentioned her once, but I think about her all the time. Wondering if she’s okay.
