Page 124 of Just Like That

“Hey ...” I stepped forward, climbing the steps and wrapping Hazel in my arms. “I’d be happy to be his dude.”

That earned a watery chuckle and her whisper wobbled. “We have to tell him.”

My gut churned. I shook my head, despite knowing she was right. “I know.”

She stepped back to swipe at her splotchy, tear-soaked face and groaned. “Ugh ... my emotions are all over the place.”

My hands rubbed down her arms. “I feel it too. I’m sorry if I don’t always show you.”

She chuckled softly. “You showed them by dismantling the company your father built. Vengeance at all costs.”

I shrugged. “Maybe it was vengeance ... though it didn’t feel quite as good as I’d expected.”

Hazel nodded and gestured toward the bus. “Teddy’s in the skoolie. He was playing around after dinner while I edited some content, and he fell asleep in the big bed.” Her eyes stayed focused on the big white bus.

“I can bring him in,” I offered.

She shook her head. “It’s okay. We can let him sleep there tonight. I’m pretty drained, too, and I think I’ll cuddle up with him for the night.”

Hazel reached up on her tiptoes and dropped a soft kiss on my lips before turning and walking toward the skoolie.

I frowned as she walked away, feeling the chasm yawn and stretch wider.

It wasmeI wanted her cuddled up with, but I had no right to take that from Teddy. Instead, I entered my too-quiet house and slowly made my way to the primary bedroom that overlooked the driveway.

I watched as her shadow moved across the windows of the skoolie. Reaching beside me, I flicked the small lamp on and off and waited. I tried again—on and off.

Come on. Do it back. Show me you’re still with me.

My back ached by the time I gave up the fight and crawled into bed. I stared at the ceiling and imagined life without Hazel and Teddy. Hours ticked by as I ran through every possible scenario, and they all came to the same, horrifying conclusion—if Hazel left, she’d be taking the last shred of goodness inside me with her.

She couldn’t leave. There had to be another way, and it was up to me to find it.

I was no longer afraid of Russell King. His influence was nothing more than a misplaced sense of superiority, and he no longer held any claim over me.

Hazel and Teddy were mine.

If he wanted a fight, I’d bring that fight right to his fucking doorstep.

FORTY-ONE

HAZEL

The soft creakof the bus’s wooden floors beneath my feet was the only sound as I paced back and forth, running my fingers through my hair, tangled from another restless night.

I caught my reflection in the little mirror by the kitchen sink—my eyes were hollowed, staring back at me. Usually they were wide and bright, filled with hope and curiosity.

Now they looked haunted and lost.

The interior of the skoolie was dimly lit by the string lights hung along the ceiling, casting soft shadows. It was intended to be cozy, like a cocoon, but tonight it felt too small, too tight. I could feel the walls closing in on me, wrapping around my chest like a vine threatening to choke me.

Teddy was asleep in the big bed, his gentle breaths steady and innocent, completely unaware of the chaos in my heart. In such a short time, that quirky little guy had become my world—my reason for being.

And now, because of one twist of fate and my sister’s unfathomable choices, I might lose him.

I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to hold it together.

How had everything unraveled so quickly?

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