Page 52 of Conflicted

He couldn’t fix this for me, just as Dimitri hadn’t been able to.

I was alone. Just as I always had been.

A twig snapped. I froze, my face buried in my hands. Oh fuck. Who had found me? How the hell was I meant to explain this?

Before I could drag my hands away and come up with an excuse, warm hands touched my shoulders. They urged me forwards until I was collapsing against a wide chest. Whoever it was had to be kneeling too.

I knew who it was. I think I’d known the instant he touched me. But how? It wasn’t possible.

Then he spoke, his voice unmistakeable.

“It’s okay, little angel. Let it all out.”

12

Nox

Have you ever had a moment where the world seems to pause on its axis? Where everything you thought you knew was flipped on its head?

That’s what I experienced as Micah sobbed. On his knees. Head in his hands. No one to comfort him.

I’d come here to tell him I was leaving. That the bond between us was a burden I’d never wished for and didn’t want. I’d rehearsed the venom I’d spill the whole way here, knowing it was for the best. That I’d never be someone he could truly love. That he’d always be someone I was supposed to hate.

But while I was walking up the path, he’d burst from the house, running as though he were being chased.

Horror had filled me as I froze for a second, eyes fixed on the open doorway.

But there was no one following him. Nothing except his own demons.

That was, until I took after him, a demon of a different kind stalking him through the darkness. I chased himthrough the woodland, expecting him to hear me. To turn and send me away.

He didn’t. Micah was so caught up in whatever had sent him running that he had no idea that I was there.

When he collapsed against the tree, I paused, unsure what to do. Should I leave now that I knew he wasn’t in danger?

As he opened his mouth and started to scream, I knew there’d be no leaving. Not now.

I’d thought Micah cold. Ruthless. Uncaring. That he was an uptight piece of shit who didn’t give a fuck about anyone, who’d never known suffering or hardship.

Seeing him break down, I wished that were true. Anything would have been better than this.

Falling to my knees and pulling him into my embrace felt like the most natural thing in the world. I’d never comforted anyone before. Not really. I’d sat with my friends while they’d cried. Commiserated with them over how shitty our lives were.

But I’d never held them. I’d never felt their sobs ricochet through my soul as though they were my own. I’d never whispered words of comfort.

I’d never been that person for someone. I’d neverwantedto be that person. I didn’t knowhowto be.

It turned out that being that person for Micah was as easy as breathing.

At first, he let me. He turned his face into my neck, moisture pooling over my skin. His hands fisted in my shirt, not to push me away, but to pull me closer. His chest heaved against my own, his shoulders shaking like he was breaking apart.

Far too soon, Micah seemed to remember himself. Hestiffened, clearing his throat and pulling away roughly before getting to his feet. He couldn’t look me in the eye.

“Sorry.”

I stood slowly. My fingers itched to grab him. To tuck him in tight to my body until he was truly relaxed, not this farcical impression he was doing right now. I shoved my hands into my pockets to stop myself. “Why do angels and humans apologise for things they’ve got no control over? I’ve never understood it.”

“Is there anything you do understand? Not that that’s your fault. The education you receive in Hell can’t be anything worth writing home about.”

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