Page 85 of You're the Reason

fifteen

When Grace had walked toward the rec center, the last thing she’d expected to find was Seth and Gabe in an all-out brawl. She’d never even heard Seth raise his voice except for the one other confrontation with Gabe. But he had a fire in him that she hadn’t recognized. A fire she still felt on the corner of her cheek. Grace reached into the freezer and pulled out several ice cubes, dropping them into a baggie. She wrapped the pack in a thin cloth and pressed it gently to her cheek.

She didn’t blame Seth. He hadn’t even seen her, and she should’ve never tried to get between them.

The floor creaked with the weight of steps, and Grace turned to find Seth standing in the kitchen by the table. His hands and face were scrubbed clean, leaving the hair around his forehead and temples damp. The tiny cut by his eye had stopped bleeding, but a bruise was already forming along with a fair amount of swelling.

The fire she had seen during the fight was gone, and in its place was an empty, hollow shell. “I should go.”

“You need ice.” She removed the ice from her face and stepped closer to him, carefully resting it against the bruise on his face.

Seth closed his eyes for a moment as his hand covered hers, revealing his scraped and raw knuckles.

“Grace... I’m so sorry.” His voice sounded tortured. His good eye flicked to her own bruise. After a moment, he drew a deep breath and took a half step back. “I need to go.”

“Not like this.” She set the icepack on the table and handed him his phone. “I picked this up. The screen is cracked.”

Seth took it and looked at the screen, but facial recognition denied him entrance. He lowered the phone, but he seemed to struggle to see over his swollen eye.

This was too painful to watch. She lifted it from his hands. “What is your passcode?”

He hesitated for only a half second before he rattled it off.

The screen opened on an email. Grace started to close it out when the words “offer of employment,” “start date in two weeks,” and “California” jumped out at her between the cracks of glass. Was he leaving for California in just two weeks?

She closed it out and sent a quick text to herself. When her phone chimed, she handed it back. “Seems to still work.”

“You saw the email, didn’t you?” Seth still stood next to her.

“It’s none of my business.” She started to step back, but his hand landed on her elbow. His touch was feather light, as if he wasn’t even completely sure what he was doing.

“I applied for that a long time ago.” The words were low but clear as he took a half step closer. “They turned me down at the time, and it never occurred to me they would reach back out to me. I haven’t accepted it or turned it down. I just got it.”

She blinked several times before lifting her head. As if that could erase all the crazy emotions that were probably on her face. “Are you going to?”

He didn’t move. With his hand still on her elbow, his gaze trailed over her face from her eyes, down to her lips, then back. He finally swallowed and blinked. “Are you going back to Chicago?”

When she didn’t answer, he brushed the back of his free hand across her cheek with a feather light touch. “Does this hurt?”

“A little.” Truth was, it didn’t hurt at all. She had completely forgotten about it, but her brain wasn’t capable of conveying all that at the moment. All she could think about was Seth. The warmth of his hand was still on her arm. His musky scent surrounded her. The way his gaze pulled her in. Her lungs very well may have forgotten how to breathe, but her heart was pounding hard enough to be heard down the street. If he didn’t kiss her soon, she might just combust right in front of him. “What are we doing?”

“I’m sorry.” He dropped her elbow, took a step back, then lifted the ice from the table and pressed it to her cheek with a soft touch. “I know I’m sending you mixed messages. I still don’t think this will work. But...”

“But what?”

He stared at her for a long second then lowered the ice and took another step back. “Maybe I should go?—”

“No.” She frowned then winced as pain shot through her face. Okay maybe it hurt a little.

His face shifted from longing to concern. As he lifted the ice again, a shiver stole over her. “No ice.”

Seth set the bag on the table again. “Do you need pain medication?”

She shook her head and took a step closer, reaching her hand out but not touching him. “But what?”

He closed his eyes a moment as if a war was going on inside of him. “Grace.”

“Tell me.”

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