His brow lined with tension at that thought. I didn’t know why it bothered him more, but I suspected that he feared he might not find that peace, and what that meant for Landon.
I couldn’t take that fear away while the threat still hung over our head. So, instead of trying to fix it further, I wrapped myarms around him. I hugged him as tightly as I could. Wishing I could bring him peace but unsure if I’d be able to.
Kingston’s arms came around my back, and he held me just as tightly. “I’m sorry.”
“I am, too.”
He shook his head buried in the crook of my neck, and I nodded back stubbornly. A small laugh left him, and he pulled back to smile at me.
“Alright, stubborn girl. You win.”
I smiled wider, resting my forehead against his.
Drained by the admission, Kingston didn’t offer more of their history, and I didn’t press him to keep going. He’d set out to explain the rivalry between the two of them and Max, but that didn’t matter right now.
It had to be connected to that memory, but I didn’t need the details right then. Not to understand the source of all the pain between them. It ran deeper than I’d imagined, having been carved into them as children.
As we lay there together, with our eyes locked, Kingston’s slowly fell closed. I stared at him long after he fell asleep, that invisible weight remaining on his shoulders.
It never truly left him.
And I might never be able to bring him peace, or heal the wounds his upbringing had caused.
But I was with him.
He slept, knowing, for just a moment, he wasn’t alone.
It felt like enough.
Landon
Why would you do that?
Why wouldn’t I?
Kingston stared at me in disbelief. Eyes wide, his chest heaved like he was sucking air in through a straw.
Why are you so upset?
My father—If he’d seen you, he’ll?—
I’m not scared of him. He’s a bully.
Kingston growled, tearing away from me in frustration. Pacing the ground beneath our feet like he might spiral under the surface.
He can’t make you?—
Yes, Landon. He can! He can, and he will!
I shook my head.But you don’t want to marry her. You don’t love?—
What I want doesn’t matter, Landon. Don’t you get that?
It wasn’t right. It wasn’t fair. Kingston should have a choice.
He deserved a choice.
We can find a way around him. Kingston, you can’t?—
