Page 72 of Best Kept Secret

I flinched.

He took it all away. That's what Beau had done. He'd given me the best days of my life, and then he'd kicked me out like I was trash.Because you are trash. Don't you dare forget that, Mira Sen. No one really wants you. Stay away from everyone, and you'll be fine. You'll be safe.

"But he came back, and we found our way back because we loved each other."

"How wonderful for you," I said blandly. Using silicone holders, I picked up the soup pot and started to walk past her toward the dining room.

"You and Beau love each other," she continued.

I stilled. "Aurora, you don't know me, and I don't know you. Let's leave it at that."

I was never rude to people before but now it came with ease. I was as the memes said,outta fucks.

"No, we don't know each other." Aurora followed me, carrying the condiments I'd set aside to bring along for lunch. "But we could change that. Stella was depressed for a long while a littlewhile ago. I worried about her all the time. She got therapy and worked her way to being mentally healthy."

I set the soup pot on the table with a soft thud. "Why are y'all pushing me?" I demanded.

Aurora grinned. "To get a rise out of you so you'll snap out of it and rejoin the human race."

She said it so cheekily that something inside me fluttered. I think it was amusement.

"Please stop. I'm here to do a job. And that's it."

"You do what you have to do, and I'll do what I must." Aurora poured some soup into a bowl, and took a deep sniff. "Yum."

I gaped at Aurora as she then served herself a panini with extra pesto.

I was tempted to accept her offer of connection, but fear held me back.

Stay strong, Mira. Remember, you don't care because it doesn't matter.

Alone. Detached. No more attachments, no more people depending on me, no more disappointments when I inevitably let them down. There was nothing to gain from caring, from letting people in. I'd learned that lesson the hard way, and I wasn't about to forget it.

Chapter 30

Beau

Mira stepped out of Savannah Lace's front door. She didn't stop when she saw me waiting. She just kept walking, her shoulders tense but her pace steady, as if she could pretend I wasn't there by keeping her feet moving.

Well fuck that!I wasn't going to let her pretend that I didn't exist, thatwedidn't exist.

I fell into step beside her, not saying anything at first. The streets were calm, not too many people around—just a few couples walking hand in hand, a few people rushing to get to wherever they were going. Life was carrying on around us, butbetween Mira and me, it felt like time stood still and had since I fucked up.

"Pari misses you," I said after a few minutes, my voice low. "She's not asking for you during the day anymore, but every night…she won't sleep without your song."

Nothing. Not even a glance.

We kept walking. The pavement beneath our feet felt uneven, a couple of cracks in the old stone sidewalks, but Mira moved with a purpose, like nothing could trip her up, nothing could break her focus.

"She hums the lullaby to herself sometimes," I continued, my throat tightening with every word. "It's like she's trying to hold on to whatever part of you she can."

Still nothing. No flicker of emotion. No sign that my words were making any impact.

The sun hung low in the Savannah sky. After Pari went to bed, Mira and I used to sit on the porch of my house on such evenings with a drink, talking, sharing, loving. I'd blown it all up out of sheer stupidity.

I watched her out of the corner of my eye as we passed under the oak trees, their shadows casting patterns across the street. She looked thinner, paler. Her hair was tied back in a tight knot, and there were dark circles under her eyes that made her seem even more distant. She wasn't just ignoring me—she wasn't even there. She was a shell, and I didn't know how to reach the woman I loved anymore.

I cleared my throat, and tried again. "The food you're making at Savannah Lace…people are talking about it. Luna's your biggest fan. She won't stop going on about the samosas you made. Stella's been singing your praises as well, and Aurora's entire family fights over your pesto."

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