Page 66 of Better Hide

She grins. We’re silent for a bit. Then, she asks bitterly, “What did I do to make him hate me?”

My chest clenches. She thinks he doesn’t like her? After he chased her to the ends of the country, poured every bit of energy into finding her, and centered his whole routine around her?

I swallow. But she doesn’t know how careless he was with Sage. How little he cared for anyone until she came around.

“Jayden is stuck in his nightmares.” I reach out to touch Jo’s waist, tracing my hand along the soft skin, thinking about what to say. “He relives them constantly. It’s not that he doesn’t like you. It’s just…his brain doesn’t have room for anything except survival.”

Jo doesn’t say anything for a long time. When I look up at her, her eyes are guarded. “Will he ever?”

“Ever what, lemon drop?”

“Have room for something other than survival?”

I swallow. I’d wondered the same thing until he met her. I thought, for a bit, that there was some hope. But now, with the way he’s been acting, I’m worried.

But I won’t tell her that. Instead, I say, “I think he will, with some help. But he won’t accept it from me.”

There’s silence.

“Could it be ‘cause you’re a dick?” Jo looks up at me with innocent eyes.

I laugh and slam a pillow into her. She’s such a fucking brat. And I love her for it.

I’m not a dick.

Well, maybe I am. But my brat loves it, and therefore, I won’t be changing, ever.

31

JAYDEN

After Cole givesJo the eggs, I stride out of the room. I’m hungry, and I refuse to eat the food Cole made for Jo. She needs it. All she’s been eating on this trip has been snacks. Plus, their show of affection makes me feel sick.

As I’m in the hallway about to enter the kitchen, I hear a male voice bark, “Sam!”

I spot Ralph in the kitchen. He slams the refrigerator door shut. Ralph is about my height, with slicked-back gray hair and a toned body despite his age. He looks good, which is why he still makes money schmoozing lonely housewives for their money.

“How many times do I have to tell you?” Ralph yells. “We aren’t refrigerating the damn house.”

Something cold skitters down my spine. The sounds of a shooter video game explode in the background.

“Maybe that damn game is too distracting,” Ralph tosses something on the kitchen island.

All my muscles lock up, and a nauseating feeling rolls over me. The voice in my head screams at me to run, fight—to get away.

But I can’t. I stand there, frozen, staring.

The sound of the game gets louder, the sounds of gunfire ringing in my ears.

Move, Jayden.

But it’s like my body is stuck in cement, my mind wanting to run anywhere but here. Just like I was.

Just like I’ve been my whole life.

I shake my head violently. What in the actual fuck is wrong with me?

Weak. Fucking weak! Hatred settles in my heart. It grips its claws into me and takes over my vision.

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