Page 41 of Captured Heart

Those files are in her house. I found two of them in the filing cabinet when I went snooping around the study on Sunday. I’m not sure if there’s more because she caught me before I went through the next drawer. But it doesn’t matter, anyway. I have no way of finding the rest and getting them out of there.

I’m at a point where part of me wishes I had just kissed her so I could get what I found and then all this shit would be over.

Yet even with hindsight, I can’t see myself going through with that. I couldn’t do that to her, use her in such a callous way. That kind of intimacy requires transparency. If I ever were to touch her, she would have to have full knowledge of the villain I truly am. She doesn’t know the real me, and if she did, she wouldn’t look at me the way she did on Sunday night.

I check my phone to see where she’s at this morning. Her schedule used to be very predictable. She did the same things at the same time every day. But these last few days, she’s been all over the place.

I see she’s at the student lounge, the little icon of her phone pulsing on my app like it’s mocking me. It’s not her usual hangout, and it’s nowhere near the library, so it’s sort of throwing me for a loop.

I make my way across campus, my mind churning with everything I want to say. Apologizing feels useless, but staying silent isn’t working either.

When I reach the lounge, I spot her immediately. She’s sitting with some other chick and two guys from the football team. I only know this because of the sweaters they’re wearing. The taller one leans in close, laughing at something she says as his hand caresses the small of her back. Every muscle in my body tightens, my hands balling into fists.

That fucker better get his hands off her before I—

I stop that thought right there and remind myself that I’m just here to do a job.

Taking a deep breath, I try to release all that restless energy as I exhale and stride toward her. Her eyes flick up as I approach, and something in her expression shifts. She smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes.

“Hey, Rebel,” I say, stopping just short of the table.

“Alex,” she replies, her tone light but distant.

I awkwardly stuff my hands into my pockets. “Can I talk to you for a second?”

Her friend raises an eyebrow, looking between the two of us, but she says nothing. Katelyn hesitates, then stands, smoothing her hands over her jeans before she grabs her drink.

“I’ll be right back,” she says to the group, following me to the edge of the lounge.

For a moment, I just look at her, trying to gauge her mood. Her smile is still in place, but there’s a guardedness in her eyes that wasn’t there before.

“You’ve been busy,” I say, nodding toward the group she just left. “New friends?”

“They’re Karmani’s friends.” She shrugs. “But yeah, I’ve been trying to change it up a bit. Meet new people. Try new things.Be arebel.” The word is coated with disdain, yet her fake smile remains intact.

I glance at the cup in her hand. It’s a smoothie. Bright green, the kind of thing she would’ve never ordered a week ago. “That one of them?”

She grins, holding it up like a trophy. “Spinach, kale, pineapple, and... I think ginger? It’s actually pretty good.”

“No iced coffee today?”

She shakes her head. “I told you I’m trying new things.”

Her tone is playful, but there’s an undercurrent of something...sharper.

I nod, realizing that I have to tread very carefully. “Well, do you think you could make time for an old friend?” That reference visibly upsets her. I can see it in the slightest change in her expression, and I quickly change tactics to save myself before she shuts me down again. “So, listen, I know things are...a little awkward between us, and I want to move past that.”

This is new for me. I don’t usually ask for anything. If I want something, I just take it. No questions asked. So, the fact that I’m standing here, trying to negotiate with this chick, is unchartered territory for me. I’m basically groveling. It’s a pride-swallowing exercise, and I absolutely fucking loathe it.

“I want to...you know...kinda go back to how it was,” I continue. “I was thinking...maybe I could come over to your place tonight...and we could watch another movie.”

She goes silent and her hand moves up to toy with the locket on her chain.

“You’re thinking about this way too hard,” I say when she doesn’t answer. “It’s really not that deep.”

That instantly snaps her out of her internal debate. “You’re right. It’s not deep at all.” Her smile falters for a split second, so fast I almost miss it. Then it’s back, just as bright as before.“Thanks for the offer. It’s sweet of you, but I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

Tilting my head, I study her, trying to get a read on this odd and sudden change of behavior. “Is that a no?”

---