“And what reality is that?”
His hand is still clasping mine, his heat seeping into my skin. It’s comforting and distracts me from everything else around me.
“That I don’t have anyone and work full-time. I don’t know. It’s just different from what I’m living right now. All happy and sunshine with rainbows, even when the characters go through something horrible. It’s hard to explain,” I ramble toward the end. “But it’s just different.”
“What if your life was like a book? What would you do then?”
“I don’t know. I think I would feel weird and probably try to self-sabotage it because it wouldn’t be normal. Not that I would really want to, but I don’t think I would be able to help it.” I force a chuckle out. “Wait, why are we only talking about me?”
“I want to get to know you better. What you like and don’t like. I want to know everything so I can make your life easier,” he replies.
“Oh.”
Awkwardness fills the air, and I look at our hands. Why hasn’t he moved his? Did he forget he’s holding mine?
“Are you uncomfortable?” he asks.
“With what?” I look at him.
“With my hand holding yours?”
“Oh no. It’s actually quite comforting. I don’t know why though. Whenever Aiden has done this, it doesn’t feel like it,” I overexplain. “But maybe it’s because I see him as an annoying little brother and always wonder if he wants something. At least that’s what my older brother would do sometimes.”
“Did Aiden know your brother and mother?”
“Oh yeah, we grew up together. That’s why Aiden gets worried about me, I think. He’s seen my whole life, and the past several years have been a lot different.”
So different.
“When did they die? And you don’t have to answer.”
“Three years ago.”
Tobias looks over at me, fury written all over his face. “And Aiden didn’t visit you?”
CHAPTER 8
MILA
“You know when he visited me last?” I ask, shocked.
“Five years ago,” he grumbles. “He didn’t come and visit you when you went through all of that? Little One, why didn’t he? You were going through so much.”
“I told him not to,” I whisper.
“What was that?” He pulls the car to the side of the road. He faces me, but I quickly look away from him.
Danger. Danger.
“What did you just say?”
“I told him not to come,” I reply, still not looking at him.
“Why?”
“Because I didn’t want him to take time off for that reason. He made sure to call me every single day,” I add quickly. “Sometimes he called me twice a day. Though that was only when I was in the hospital.”
“You were in the hospital?”
