Page 102 of The Twilight Theft

“You’re upset.”

“I’m irritated.” I bumped into the wall.

He stopped a foot away from me. “Why can’t you tell me the truth?”

On a regular day, there were fifty-three different ways I could escape Drew’s reach. But tonight? With my leg protesting every time I put too much weight on it? Not a chance. “What do you care? I’m the weak link, right? The reckless thief who can’t be trusted and needs to be kept on a short leash?”

His shoulders sagged and his eyelids eased closed.

“Yeah, Wyatt told me what you wrote in your report.” I shoved him, which didn’t move him an inch. My throat grew tight as a ridiculous prickling started behind my eyes.No tears, Jayce. You’re not weak. Only babies cry.“You wouldn’t let me partner with him because I’d ruin everything.”

Drew braced a hand on the wall by my head. “That’s not true.”

“Not as pretty or clever as Scarlett? Remember that part?” Instead of pushing him again, I hit his chest. That stupid, broad, muscular chest I knew was covered with a light smattering of hair. Two nights ago, my lips had touched his skin there. Tears gathered against my lower lids. I tried blinking them away, but that pushed them over the edge and down my cheeks.

“He’s a trained liar, Jayce.”

“Just like you.” I ran my hand across my eyes, clearing the tears. When things went wrong, I found the reason and corrected it. Ensured it never happened again. That’s what I had to do with these feelings for Drew. Figure out why they were screwing with my head and put an end to it. And above all, stop crying.

“Yes, but…” He raised his free hand, slowly, until it was brushing my hair over my ear. “I didn’t say those things.”

“Say, write, same difference.”

“No.” His fingers dragged across my cheek, then along my jaw. He cupped my face with both hands, forcing me to look at him. “Yes, I wrote that you’re reckless because you are.”

My stomach churned and part of my brain wanted to run. But more of it wanted to stay and pretend I mattered to him.

To anyone.

“But the rest of it?” He shook his head, not breaking eye contact. “I also wrote about how independent you are. How you’re aggressive, inventive, and you’d go to any lengths to help your team.”

Those almost sounded like praise. And the opposite of what Wyatt said.

“You’re a quick thinker, brave…” His gaze roamed over my face. “But something holds you back and I couldn’t figure out what.”

“Nothing holds me back.” I wrapped a fist in his shirt.

“Wyatt figured it out.” He stroked my cheeks with his thumbs. “You have doubts about your place on the Reynolds team and he used that.”

I sniffled. “That’s not true.”

“You’ve always had doubts about where you belong, haven’t you?”

My throat tightened. We weren’t going to hash this out. We weren’t going to talk about my mother, my sister, or the men that littered my life after that. Let alone about how most of the Reynolds elite team had grown up together and I was an interloper who needed to work extra hard to fit in.

There was no hugging things out to make the pain magically go away. That was for the movies, not real life.

“You didn’t grow up with the support you needed.” Drew stepped closer and touched his lips to my forehead. “I know how it feels.”

“You know nothing about the real me.”

“So tell me.” He leaned in so close his hot breath warmed my cheeks. “Who’s the real Jayce Monroe?”

The real me? “There’s no real me. That’s the catch. I’m a tool. People use tools to fix the things that matter most.”

“And when you break?”

I took in a shuddering breath.Kick him out. You don’t have to talk about this.But if I told him, maybe he’d leave me alone. “You don’t fix your tool when it breaks. You get a new one.”

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