Page 30 of Forgiving Fate

“Sorry. I–uh—Are you okay?”

I nod and watch as he takes the water from the cup holder and hands it to me. My hands are still shaking and I beg my mind to shut up.

“Allie.”

My eyes meet Landon’s and I see the worry on his face. I turn my face away to avoid his look of pity and sadness.

“Allie. I know I have said this before. But I promise I will never hurt you. We are here to help my brothers get this woman back to her husband. I will not let anything happen to you.”

I nod and let his words sink in. Once again, he could somehow read me like a damn book and I am not sure at this point if I like it or absolutely hate it. But for now, I am choosing to not think about it. Or anything else.

My mind settles and I bask in the silence before the storm I know is coming.

And just as the first raindrop hits the windshield, a truck pulls up in front of us. I glance over to Landon and see he is completely unphased so it must mean one thing. This is Grayson and Logan.

It’s dark, but a light inside the truck flashes and I see her. Logan is staring directly at me and although we are in our own cars, and I can’t make out her expression, I can already tell this is going to be one hell of a reunion.

I just hope that silly little mantra I’ve been playing on repeat works. More for her sake than mine.

Chapter Thirteen

Allie

I’m frozen.

I am stuck, staring at the floor because if I look up, I know I will see her. I thought I was ready, but clearly there will never be enough time in the world for me to be ready.

Landon whispers into a handheld radio that somehow appeared out of nowhere, but I am so focused on not losing my shit that I can’t make out what he’s saying.

The mantra plays over and over again in my head and I will myself not to go into a full-blown panic attack. Because as much as I want to blame her. As much as I want to scream at her right now, I don’t want her to see that I am silently breaking down. I don’t want her to see the invisible scars shining through because the guilt I know she is feeling will swallow her whole.

And even though I see her as the reason I am in this state of numbness right now, I never want to be the cause of why someone loses themselves.

The sound of a car door softly shutting breaks me out of my thoughts and my head lifts. I look out to the dark road to see weare joined by another truck parked across the street and a tall figure is walking towards Grayson’s truck.

Grayson’s door opens, and he joins who I assume is Wesley to stand out of the truck. The inside of the truck illuminates, revealing Logan talking to her fiancé. I can tell she is upset even in the dimly lit car. Her arm movements are erratic and she points towards Landon and I.

A woman with long blonde hair pops her head through the seats and starts speaking to Logan. And I watch her swipe her hand across her face. My stomach turns at the knowledge that she is crying and whoever is in the car with her is most likely explaining why she can’t run over here.

Panic starts to rise in my chest. I thought I could handle this, but seeing her crying and being within feet of her is proving otherwise.

Why do my heart and my brain have to be at odds? Because my heart is telling me to run over and hug her and tell her everything is going to be okay, and that we will get through this hell together. But my brain is telling me to stay exactly where I am and avoid her at all costs so I can protect myself. Not that she would hurt me, but I’m afraid I would hurt her. I don’t want to add more guilt by snapping at the girl who is like my sister onto my already heavy conscience.

The back door opens and another large man steps out as the blonde woman, who I assume is Rowe, comes to the front seat. Grayson leans into the truck and his hands cup each side of Logan’s face. His forehead dips to hers and his thumb sweeps across her cheek. He places a gentle kiss on her lips and then on her forehead before stepping back and shutting the door softly and joining the other two in the middle of the road.

Landon glances over at me and I can tell he is about to say something, but movement steals my attention.

The three men are walking towards us and my spine steels.

Landon’s head whips towards me and he says, “It’s just my brothers. They are coming over to make sure we are good before they head up to the house. You are safe.”

I nod, and he turns to roll down the window. All three men crouch down to the window.

The car is dark, but I can make out their faces in the moonlight and the streetlight further down the road.

“Carter just texted me saying he parked around the corner and is walking through the woods to make sure we aren’t in for any surprises,” Landon says in a low and informative tone.

Landon leans back in his chair, and I get a good look at his brothers in the window. The one in the middle speaks up. “Alright. The girls know not to get out unless you tell them to.” I recognize his voice from the phone calls as Grayson. His shaggy brown hair peeks out from underneath his baseball hat and when the man next to him hands him a backpack, I see that his arms are covered in tattoos, just like Landon’s are.

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