Page 44 of Fractured Frets

With a shaky hand, I scanned more headlines on my phone. More photos had surfaced of Slip and Harper. Then I saw the picture of them kissing—a touch of her lips against his—beside a town car.

My heart lurched, cracking and splintering against my ribs.

No. No. No. I wasn’t going through this again.

“Shit.” Was he cheating? Lying?

“Call me once you’ve talked.” Jodie sighed. “I’m here if you need me. I hope he has a good explanation.”

“Me too.” Oh, he’d better. “Love you. Bye.” I dropped my cell phone on the sofa beside me.

The front door swung open.

Slip stepped through the entrance.

Timing.

With my head spinning, I stormed over and thrust my phone in his face. “What the fuck? You kissed her?”

“Mads.” He dumped his bags and held his arms wide. Desperation and exhaustion contorted his face as he closed his eyes. His shoulders slumped. “It’s not what it looks like. Trust me.”

“I’m trying very hard to do that, but you’re not making it easy.”

“Can I just kiss you and then I’ll explain everything?” He stepped forward, but I placed my hand flat against his chest.

“I’m not kissing you if you’re a lying, cheating prick.”

“I’m not.” He clutched at a handful of his hair. “Harper was joking around. She thought it would be funny and caught me off-guard. I was so pissed at her. Did you not see in the photo I tried to block her? That I pushed her away? They don’t print the photos of me yelling at her. Ask anyone. Ask Cole. Ask Beckett. They were there.”

Oh, I’d be having words with them, and tripling Beckett’s pay to ensure Harper stayed the fuck away from Slip. “Why should I believe you?”

“Because it’s the truth.” He slouched like it was an effort to stand upright.

Exasperation flared in my tone. “Why would you even go out with her?”

“It was her birthday.” His head dropped back. Clearly, he was over the whole ordeal. “Charlotte was running around the café, and Cole kept chasing after her. We took Harper out for cake and coffee before the long flight home. I didn’t think it would fucking backfire.”

“You should’ve known it would.” I folded my arms and crushed them against my belly as if that could protect my heart. “The media twists everything. I don’t know who or what to believe.”

“Mads, believe me. I’m not lying.” He took a small step toward me and drew my hand into his. He held it against his chest. “I don’t want to fight. I only have a few days here with you. It was honestly nothing. Please, trust me. How many times do I have to say that?”

“Actions speak louder than words.” I kept my voice level as I shot him a daggered glare. “Just...stay away from her.”

He nodded as he lowered his chin. “Mads, I do.”

I hated this situation. “I don’t want to be jealous or have doubts. But shit like this makes it really hard to trust you.”

“I know and I’m so fucking sorry.” His fatigue slammed into me. His red-rimmed eyes held no glint. His slumped posture wasn’t normal. My chest ached. Slip didn’t have to say anything. His body told the truth.

“This is so messed up.” My own shoulders sank two inches as I held out my other hand for him to take.

“Tell me about it.” He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around me. Holding me against his chest, he clung to me like a lifebuoy. “I miss you so much. I hate this never-ending gossip.” He circled his hands over my back, holding me tighter. “It never bothered me before when it was just about me and the guys and the shit we got up to. But now the most innocent of things can be twisted around, taken out of context, and hurt you. I want it to stop. I want to protect you from the crap that surrounds me.”

I linked my hands behind his back and rested my cheek against his shoulder. “I’ve caused my fair share of drama in my time. I’m sorry too. It’s just hard being apart.”

“Yeah.” He kissed the side of head. “But we’ll be together soon.”

“I’m counting down the days.”

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