Need to know?
Is she being serious right now? Maybe because my place has been ransacked, and she’s getting murderous text messages from a stalker that watched me eat her pussy while she screamed in my bed?
But I can’t say any of that. I need to choose my words carefully.
“I just think if you opened up to me more, maybe I could understand what’s happening.”
“Understand?” she questions, her tone low. “Miles, I don’t need you to understand. I’m perfectly capable of handling myself.”
Shit. Okay. Wrong words. I’m already fucking this up.
“Maddie—”
“No.” She shakes her head. “I know you mean well, but every time someone finds out something about me, it becomes a reason for them to treat me differently.”
“That’s not what I’m doing.”
“Isn’t it?” The hurt in her voice makes my chest ache. “How would knowing about my past help stop whoever is sending these messages?”
I open my mouth to answer, but she keeps going.
“The more you know about me, the more you’re at risk.”
“Mads—”
“I can’t do this,” she says, standing from the bed. “I think we need some space.”
My heart drops. “What?”
“This is getting too serious, Miles. And I can’t handle it.”
Before I can respond, Kaitlin steps out of the bathroom.
“What's going on?” she asks, stepping farther into the room, her eyes darting between Maddie and me.
Maddie doesn’t answer. Instead, she brushes past her and heads toward the front door.
My chest tightens.
“Maddie,” I call out, following after her, catching her wrist just before she reaches the handle.
She freezes, her shoulders tensing beneath my touch.
“Please,” I say quietly. “Just talk to me.”
She slowly turns around, her amber eyes glassy with tears that refuse to fall.
“I have talked to you.”
“No, you’ve told me just enough to keep me from asking more.”
The words leave my mouth before I can stop them, and the hurt that flashes across her face makes me regret them instantly.
“Miles,” Kaitlin warns, and I ignore her.
“I’ve watched you jump every time your phone buzzes. I’ve watched you wake up crying. Someone broke into my apartment, trashed everything I own, left notes about you, and now they’re texting you again. How am I supposed to just sit here and pretend none of that means anything?”
“Because it doesn’t involve you.”
