The desperate edge to his words is too familiar. The raw hopelessness of his plea has me honestly feeling bad for the guy.
Fuckin’ A, mon ange. You’ve got us all past the point of ruin.
Three weeks ago, I would have used this show of emotion against him. I would have taunted him about being cut off from the woman we’re both clearly obsessed with.
But I can’t even bring myself to feel smug about his desperation.
If Sawyer hasn’t made any efforts to contact Noah, Mercer, or me, that means we’ve all lost.
It also means my girl’s shouldering the fallout alone.
I survey the empty desk again. She really hasn’t been here for over two weeks? Shit. This isn’t just a class to her. It’s her livelihood: the assistantship that allows her to be here at Holt University with Atty and me.
It’s why my threats to share their sex tape were so effective. While no one would want to lose their job, Sawyerneedshers. Losing it could affect her student visa and enrollment at the school.
Just a few weeks ago she’d give anything to stay here. With him.
And now…
I try to blow out a slow, centering breath, but when the tugging, burning sensation on my left side flares, I wince.
Weighing my options, I crack my neck from side to side. I don’t know what compels me to be honest. For some reason, after all the shit that’s gone down, it feels like the only option that will serve both of us.
With a shake of my head, I whisper the truth. “I haven’t seen her or talked to her since that night at the hospital.”
He balks, his head rearing back and surprise knitting his brows together. The look is only there an instant before he schools his expression and he once again looks like the pompous professor we all know.
So the orchard owner must not have given him the update. Or maybe they didn’t believe me.
“She’s okay,” I offer with a shrug that sends white-hot pain down my side.
Fuck. The smallest movements make my body scream in agony.
“Her brother’s seen her, gone out to dinner with her a few times.”
I don’t know why I’m offering him reassurance. But now that I’ve started, I can’t stop myself.
“Atty says she’s fine. But his version of fine is different from mine…” I shift forward in my seat and grit my teeth. I fucking hate that she’s icing us all out. But more importantly, I hate that she’s alone. “He would tell me if something was really wrong,” I say, the solace intended as much for myself as for the man standing before me.
Eden stares at me for a breath, surprise painted across his face.
That’s probably the most I’ve ever spoken to him without using threats.
Yeah, buddy. I’m just as shocked as you.
His watch beeps, and he shudders, as if jolting awake from a bad dream. “I need to start class.”
He reaches out, like he’s going to adjust the paper he placed on my desk, then quickly pulls back like he’s been burned.
When he doesn’t walk away, when he only continues to assess me, my anxiety spikes again.
“There are many things I wish to say to you. I will not embarrass either of us by doing that here. In fact, I vow to cause no harm to you ever again…”
Dread washes over me. Fuck. I clench my teeth together, fighting the sensation. I can talk to him about Sawyer all day, apparently, but as soon as he acknowledges the bigger issues between us, the darkness creeps in.
I won’t lose it.
I won’t even slip a little bit.
