Page 73 of Myla: The Hawthornes

“Not yet,” I muttered hoarsely.

“All right.”

Chapter 11

Myla

“Irealize thateveryone is leaving,” I told my mom, rolling my eyes as I unloaded the dishwasher. “But I’m staying until everyone is packed up.”

“Would you talk some sense into your daughter?” she bitched, looking over at my dad.

“You’re comin’ home with us.”

“I’m staying with Cian.”

“He know that?” Dad asked with a chuckle.

“You’re leavin’ with your parents,” Cian said, walking into the room with a box in his arms. “End of.”

I paused to glare at him. “How well has bossing me around succeeded in the past?”

“Don’t start.”

“Cian,” I yelled as he walked out of the room.

“He’s got his hands full with the girls.”

“If Ronan would just help,” I muttered under my breath.

“Ronan’s dealin’ with his own shit,” my dad scolded. “Leave him be.”

“You’ve seen them,” I whispered, turning to face my parents. “They’re walking around like the world stopped spinning and they don’t know whether to lay down and die or start screaming.”

“Bas is stayin’ and so is Gray,” Dad reminded me. “They’ll help herd all the little ducklings to Oregon.”

“Mom,” I murmured, meeting her eyes. She knew why I didn’t want to leave Cian.

Since the moment he’d walked out of Richie’s room, Cian was like a barrel of gunpowder. One stray spark and he was going to either explode or implode. Either way, it was going to end badly. He’d forced me to sleep at the hotel for the last two nights, telling me that he thought his sisters needed a little space…but I knew that wasn’t the reason. He was pulling away—something he’d never done, even in the middle of our most epic arguments.

So, I was clinging. I knew I was clinging. I couldn’t seem to stop myself from clinging.

I wanted to cringe every time he walked away or brushed me off, but instead I just acted like everything was fine. We were best friends. Best friends got into bad moods. I didn’t keep my distance when Lou or Frankie were being pissy, I wasn’t going to do it with Cian.

Everyone saw through it.

“We’re leaving in less than an hour,” my mom informed me. “You’re going with us.”

I quietly closed the dishwasher and took off in the direction I’d seen Cian disappear. If he didn’t want me to stay, I wouldn’t stay.

I found him in Sean’s room, folding up the bedding and stuffing it into another box.

“My parents are leaving soon,” I informed him. “I’d like to stay with you.”

“You can’t stay with me,” he replied stonily. “I’m gonna be gettin’ the girls’ shit packed up and we’ll be on the road tomorrow or the day after.”

“I can help.”

“We’ve got it covered.”

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