“How have you been?” he asked. I stared at him. The question came so easily to him, matching the unfazed expression on his face.Was he crazy?“Besides the thing with your mother—”
“What are we doing here, Maverick?” I demanded, cutting him off. I dropped my sandwich back in the wrapper. Whatever smalldesire I had to eat was gone. “We haven’t seen each other in six years—”
“I know—”
“—and now you’re just… nothing is fine, Maverick.”
“I know.”
“No, you don’t,” I snapped. My voice rose a notch while the world grew fuzzy in my ears. The tightness in my chest increased, turning painful with the surge of panic.Fuck.“You can’t just walk in here as if nothing happened. It doesn’t work that way.”
“I know—”
“Stop saying you know!” I exclaimed. The breath stuck in my throat as the world spun sideways with panic.
Inhale…
Exhale…
In—oh, fucking shit.
This wasn’t happening. I couldn’t lose it now.
Inhale…
Exhale…
“Harley, are you okay there?” Maverick’s voice floated in my ears, fuzzy and uneven with the rush of blood to my ears.
Inhale…
Ex—fuck, fuck, fuck.
I surged to my feet and stumbled, my knees giving out. Strong hands grabbed me by the rib cage and hauled me upward to keep me upright.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!”
Inhale
Exhale
In—
“Okay, come on, let’s sit down,” Maverick ordered. He manhandled me back onto the steps, and I went without a fight. I folded over, unable to get control of my body.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
I tried to push him away, but he didn’t budge. I didn’t need him. I didn’t need his help.
“Breathe, Harley,” he instructed.
Inhale…
Easy for him to say.
Inhale…
I was trying.
