“Yeah.”
“Okay.” He rubs his jaw. “Tell me more about her.”
I fill him in on how we met and how much we talked and hung out. “We nearly…” I break off.
“You fucked her?” he asks me bluntly.
I shake my head. “Almost.”
He sits quietly for a moment. Then, he says firmly, “I don’t get why she’d lie, but I’d trust your gut, Colt. If you liked her that much, maybe there’s an explanation. Maybe someday you’ll find out why she didn’t want to be found.”
* * *
Skylar
“Someday soon,” Mom says as we careen down the dark highway on our way to western Connecticut to what we all hope will finally be a permanent home, “Things will go back to normal and you can have friends again.”
I’m pretty sure things will never “go back to normal.”
When the man who helped give you life also tried to take that life away, it’s pretty hard to relax.
My father appears to have finally disappeared. Ivan sounded more confident than we’ve ever heard him when he told us the news, and Mom feels good about where we’re going. She thinks we’ve finally shaken him this time.
I pray she’s right.
My chest tightens, and I suck in a breath. Nick asks if I’m okay.
“Mom,” I call out. “Can you speed up?”
As soon as the speedometer hits seventy-five, my pulse returns to normal along with my breathing.
If I can just keep moving, I’ll make it through this ordeal.
Colton flashes through my mind for the millionth time in the last two months. I bite my lip to hold back the tears.
He was so sweet. And sexy.
And God, the way he kissed me. And touched me. Like I was precious. Like I was important.
But I need to stop thinking of him like we actually could have a future together. I don’t live the kind of life where I can have a future with anyone.
My family and I have been on the run for ages. Only time will tell if our new home will actually remain a safe haven for us.
Colton Wild can do far better than me.
He deserves to.
And the only way for me to keep up my walls and stay strong for my mom?
I have to convince myself that Colton was all wrong for me. I have to trick my brain and, most importantly, my heart. And I have to start right now.
He was a cocky jackass.
Okay, that one’s sort of true. But only in the best ways.
He was rude. He only cared about football. And he was all wrong for me.
Lies. All lies.
