Page 53 of Unwanted

I’m sorry.

I missed you.

I still love you.

Using his own body to hold me in place, Arlo slowly drags his mouth away from mine. He fixes his gaze on me and cups my jaw, his thumb softly brushing my cheekbone.

“I don’t know if I can give this up a second time,” he says, his eyes brimming with heat and heartbreak.

I was sure there was no way I could either, but I couldn’t promise him the future. I couldn’t promise him anything. Not just yet.

All I had was this.

A kiss for a kiss.

A touch for a touch.

A heartbeat for a heartbeat.

18

ARLO

Ihad managed to stay late at work the last three nights, avoiding Frankie after our kiss.

It wasn’t that it was awkward or that I had any regrets. I just didn’t know what was next.

Was it going to happen again?

Had he told anyone?

And more importantly, what did all this mean?

I felt like an overwhelmed preteen. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt so uncertain and anxious. To be honest, it’s been a long time since I felt this muchat all.

For years I’ve been on autopilot.

Wake up. Avoid thinking of using. Work. Avoid thinking of using. Home. Don’t think of using. Sleep. And then rinse and repeat.

There was no time for anything else to fall in between the cracks. I made sure of it.

So while all my feelings for Frankie weren’t new, everything else was foreign to me.

Rhys and I get out of my car and walk up to Frankie’s front door and ring the doorbell. Now that he, Samuel, and Lennox seemed to be inseparable, it meant that we spent a whole lot more time together. He came to the gym every day and we’d hung out with everyone at Frankie’s every other night.

A smiling Frankie opens the door, every part of him looking more relaxed than I’ve seen since he arrived.

“Hey,” he greets. His eyes dart from Rhys to me and stay there. “No work tonight?”

I shake my head, well aware that this is Frankie’s way of letting me know my absence was noticed.

“No, I’m back on days,” I lie.

He nods and pivots out of the way to let Rhys and me inside. Rhys literally bounces over the threshold and I try to hide my apprehension as I amble on in.

Frankie’s hand brushes mine as I pass him, his fingers dancing along mine.

I tilt my head to look at him, and his smile has turned soft.

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