Page 10 of Crossroads

But then I would just be the monster they said I was.

“Here,” I said, handing over two bags.

She blinked at me and then smiled softly before taking them.

“Thank you. Though I don’t know what to do with the fact that you continue to take care of me. I was going to ask if I could order something for delivery, but then I didn’t know if you do that. And well…I’ll just thank you.”

“I can get some things delivered out here, but not everything. You got everything else you need?” I asked, my voice rough.

I did not want this woman. And yet when she bent down ever so slightly to set something down, my dick noticed, and I cursed myself.

After so many years, you would think I would have figured out how to ignore a woman like this, and yet, I couldn’t. Not with her.

What the hell was wrong with me?

“How much do I owe you?”

“Don’t do that,” I snapped.

“What?”

“Just rest. Heal. Do whatever the fuck you want. But you’re not going to pay for anything.”

Her eyes widened. “What’s the matter?” she asked, and then her gaze went to my hand, and my knuckles that weren’t bloody, but marked ever so slightly. “Bodhi. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“Don’t lie. Please, please just don’t lie.”

“Nothing you need to be concerned about. Everything’s fine. Just let me know if you need anything else.”

“I need you to tell me what’s wrong.” She met my gaze then, her chin raised. So defiant. That fire that had been missing these past couple of days.

“That I can’t give you.” And so much more. And with that, I turned on my heel and closed the door, hoping like hell she locked it behind me. I worked in my workshop until I tired myself out, thinking about what I would do.

I did not want Kiera West. There was no way that my body would want her. I refused to be with anyone. That was my penance.

But the part of me that I had long since buried, the part of me that cared about anyone, wanted to see Kiera smile again.

Chapter 4

KIERA

Rain falls down.

The tears slid through memory.

Heartbreak cuts deep.

Yet the world stands by while I fall.

I strummed the last of the notes, my fingers aching, my voice slightly brittle. “Rain on Me” was one of the biggest hits from Wilder. At least it had been before I had joined the band. “Echoes of Goodbye” had also been the band’s number one hit, all while Malcolm had been the drummer. I set my guitar down and rolled my shoulders back. The bruises were fading through the past week, but I still hadn’t left this cabin enough, other than to walk around in the forest to really gauge how my body felt. The band had stayed away, and the Ashford women had done the same. I knew Teagan was chomping at the bit in order to invade Bodhi’s space. I knew she was worried about me, just like everybody else in my life seemed to be, but nobody knew the truth. Honestly, I was afraid I didn’t even know the truth at this point. The idea that Bodhi of all people would know more than others should have surprised me, but then again, when it came to Bodhi Ashford, I felt like he excelled at being the unexpected.

It might seem nice if I thought about it too deeply, but I was scared.

There. I said the words. I was scared.

I ran my hands over my face and winced once again as I touched a bruise.