Page 56 of Bound By Obsession

You fucked my thighs in the dark, you naughty pervert. When can we do it again?

“I suppose it’s useless trying to persuade you to stay behind whilst at least Dax leaves?” He asks, a knowing tilt to his brow. I nod.

“A complete waste of breath.”

“I thought so.” He stares at me like I’m an odd jigsaw piece that won’t fit in the perfect compartments in his mind. For a moment, no one moves. The air seems to buzz with tension. And then, slowly, Axel rises from his seat, walking toward me. He stops just in front of my chair, hazel eyes meeting mine with a look of determination.

“Then we’ll make it work,” he says, his voice steady. “But don’t expect me to be happy about it.” Huxley follows suit, standing and giving me a small nod of agreement.

“I guess that’s that then,” he mutters. Garrett still looks like he wants to argue, but when Wyatt shoots him a look, he shuts his mouth, throwing his hands up in resignation.

“Fine whatever, but for the record,” he points his index finger at me, “I am not getting fat.”

Through it all, Dax’s piercing stare doesn’t leave my face, but eventually, he stands and moves around to my side. “I will never stand in your way, Avery. You know that.” His fingers tangle with mine and he brings my hand up to his lips for a brief kiss. “But if there’s one hint of trouble, Wyatt is to take you somewhere safe without a single argument. Even if we need to beseparated for a while. My scholarship doesn’t come before your safety.”

For the first time all morning, my resolve wobbles. I wouldn’t know what a day without them would even look like. I’ve become so attached - no,so dependent- on them. I trust Dax implicitly, but he is putting my life in Wyatt’s hands.

But if this is the reassurance Dax needs, then I will give it to him. “I promise,” I reply softly, leaning into his embrace. I cling to him as much as I cling onto a small slither of hope that Wyatt doesn’t care about me enough to separate me from the other Shadowed Souls. Once we’re back at Waversea, he becomes so focused on returning to his own life, he’ll be oblivious to mine.

It took longer for Garrett to say goodbye to each element of the safe house than it did for all of us to pack.Goodbye bed, goodbye Christmas Tree, goodbye refrigerator.The sea was the worst one, as Axel had to drag him away weeping and promising to return one day. Garrett can always be trusted for his melodramatics, but also for being easily distracted. Given that there is one more person to seat ratio, a giggly blonde in his lap was enough to get him down the driveway without looking back.

Rolling my tongue between my teeth, I hang my arm out of the driver’s side window. My other hand grips the wheel, smoothly gliding Huxley’s SUV between lanes with the man himself tensed in the passenger seat. There was no way I couldsit for hours on end, listening to the bland chitchat in the backseat without a distraction.

Since Avery made the decision to leave on our behalf, we took no arguments in the logistical planning of heading home. Home. I roll that word around in my mind, buffered by the sweeping wind hitting the side of my face and hair. The Waversea frat house used to be the one place I’d ever felt accepted.Seen, if only for the rich fuckboy facade I put on. Now that word holds a very different meaning, with Rachel patiently waiting for me. As we turn into the hangar where Huxley’s jet is waiting, I switch off the engine and manage to sneak off and find five minutes to call her. The phone rings twice before she picks up.

“Hello?”

“Rachel, it’s me. Wyatt.” My voice cracks on her name, my sneaker rolling over a small rock behind the hangar.

“Oh, Wyatt,”she gasps. Relief floods her voice.“I’ve been so worried. Are you well? Are you eating?”

I choke on a lump locking in my throat. Fuck, just hearing her voice, hearing how much she cares, is enough to buckle my knees.

“I’m okay,” I say shakily, barely convincing myself. I clear my throat and try again. “Yes, I’ve been eating. I…” My cheeks heat from the confession working its way out of my mouth. “I went a little hard on those…vitamins…you gave me. My brothers storm-rolled in and stopped me before it went too far.”

There’s a beat of silence on the other end, and I hear her breath hitch like she’s about to cry. My gut twists painfully. She’s not supposed to cry. I’m the one who screws up. I’m the one who deserves to feel like this. But her voice is trembling now.

“Oh dear. I’m sorry, I’m so, so sorry.”

Throwing one fist backwards into the hangar’s exterior, I look up to force my own tears back. I hate that I’m causing her more suffering after everything she’s already been through.It doesn’t matter that she gave me drugs under false pretenses. She was doing her best to guide me through twenty one years of trauma in a matter of weeks. But it didn’t work. I’m still broken, and all I’ve done is hurt her more.

“It’s not your fault,” I murmur, blinking back the tears as one of Huxley’s staff appears, signaling we’re almost ready to take off. I shoo him away with my hand. They can wait. I can’t step foot on that plane until I know Rachel is okay. “You were just… trying.” Trying to love me the only way she knew how. But that doesn’t make it hurt any less—for either of us.

“I just wanted to give you a way to escape. I…I need to escape sometimes.”

“I know that. You’re not to blame. In fact, I have so much respect for you. You’ve been so strong for so long. I can’t wait to come back.”

“Does that mean you’re coming home?”She gasps, so full of hope that I’m about to crush into dust. Why do I always have to be the asshole? Why can’t I seem to just…be?

I swallow hard. There’s that word once again. Home. A tugging pulls at my chest, a physical draw back to her. I know Rachel would love me like no other, that she’ll never let anything come between us again. But something holds me back.

“Not yet,” I push my fist against my mouth. “I have something I need to do. It shouldn’t take long.”

“Is this about the girl?”Rachel asks bluntly, twisting my gut into a knot. I forget that I’m the only one late to this party. Rachel has known the truth all along, and she’s been forced to live with it.

“Yeah, it’s about her.” I nod to myself. It’s always about Avery. Every damn aspect of life has always revolved around her, even before I knew she existed. Inhaling, I close my eyes and let the dam crack open for a moment, spilling the words I’ve never dared to speak aloud before. “She’s been tossed around in thismess as much as me. Call it my redemption, but I need to see this through.”

“I understand.”A quiet sigh sounds on the other end of the line.“But remember, Wyatt, you haven’t done anything that’s worth a redemption. If Nixon can’t see that you are owed the world, then I will happily get it to you.”

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