Page 40 of Unstoppable Love

“But I will leave you for now. I won’t get out of your life, not when you’re the most important part of mine.”

She made a choking sound and curled herself tighter.

I left her room, left her house, and went to the porch.

Grabbing my phone, I pulled up Lydia’s contact in my phone.

“What’d you do this time?” I wasn’t surprised at the hatred in her tone. Lydia was nothing but loyal.

“I need you at Ava’s house. Immediately.”

“What’s wrong? What happened?”

That was Ava’s to share. I wouldn’t further break whatever trust I might be able to salvage by telling Lydia anything. But I wasn’t leaving her alone, either.

“Just get here. Please? Fast as you can.”

“Okay. Okay. I’ll be there. Let me get things settled here. Ten minutes?”

“Five,” I told Lydia.

I hung up. Called my brother Caleb. He and Emily were living in their newly built house on my parents’ land. When shit hit the fan, it was my twin brother I always turned to, but I wasn’t sure even he could help me dig myself out of this hole.

Fuck.

I’d totally fucked up.

Chapter 12

Ava

I woke up in a dark room. It felt like someone had scrubbed my eyes with sandpaper while I slept and then poured rock salt down my throat. Everything hurt. My limbs. My teeth. Even my scalp stung as I tried to stretch. A warm body stopped me, and I forced my dry eyes to blink away the darkness and haze of sleep.

“It’s late,” Lydia whispered. “And you’ve been sleeping all day.”

Oh, thank God, it was her. But…

“Why are you here?” Vaguely, I remembered her showing up. I remembered her running her hands through my hair while I curled into her and bawled until my body had no tears left to expel.

“Cam called me,” she said, and I jerked at the mention of his name before she held me tighter. “He didn’t say anything, but I’m guessing he did something monumentally stupid.”

“He…” I coughed again.

Lydia pushed up so she was sitting, worry pinching her brows as she looked down at me. “Don’t talk. We’ll get some water in you and some food in you. Then you shower, and I’ll get us some wine. You can tell me whatever you want to say or nothing at all, okay? But no talking until you can do it without hurting.”

I would hurt for the rest of my entire lifetime.

Love.

Fuck Cameron Kelley and his ideas of love.

Lydia patted my hip and slid off the bed. I stayed there a while longer, unable to sleep, unable to stop the hurt squeezing my chest, compressing it.

Eventually, I made my way into the shower. Hot water pelted my body like needles, stinging my skin, but instead of turning down the water, I leaned in closer. Relished the pain. If I stopped feeling all the pain and anger, I was terrified I’d feel nothing at all.

Was it possible for a heart to shatter, to become nothing, and yet keep beating?

I had no idea, but when I was in the shower long enough, I was risking Lydia coming in to check on me. I finally trudged out of the shower, dried off, and climbed into cutoff sweat shorts and an oversized, ratty T-shirt. I let my hair hang down, wet, and by the time I made it into the kitchen, Lydia had commandeered my kitchen.

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