Page 91 of Verses Of Us

“Why, so you can keep ignoring what’s happening?”

She bowed her head and shut her eyes. “I mean it. This isn’t the time for—"

“No, I feel it,” he insisted, cupping her hand in his. “You’re about to make a run for it.”

“What, you mean like you did?” she spat back, wrenching her hand away. She saw how her words slapped him, how he recoiled as if stung, and she hated herself for it.

He exhaled a long, tortured breath as he threw the blanket off and stood up. “Christ, Lex. You’re never going to move past that, are you?”

The sun was bright, the sky clear and blue. The morning was glorious, but Alexis knew it held no promise of being a great day.

“It came out wrong, but it’s still true.”

He shoved his hair from his face, looking up at the sky. “I know I made mistakes, Lex, and I’m trying to make up for it, but—”

“Can we not talk about this now?” She slid her fingers through his, hoping to handle the conversation better after some food.

“Sure.” He didn’t quite jerk his hand away, but it slipped away far too fast from hers. Gooseflesh covered his skin, and he wrapped an arm around himself. “I’m going to take a shower.”

She watched him leave, wishing she’d been kinder with her words. When he was out of sight, she blew out the breath she’d been holding. No matter how her body buzzed with kinetic energy when they were together, the fractures left behind by their past hadn’t healed. She’d never meant to offend him and she saw he was trying to make amends, but still didn’t feel ready to accept them.

She had hoped to shake off the pain clinging to her heart, but she couldn’t surrender to his promises. Last night’s question resurfaced—did she trust him? The truth, she now had to admit, was that she didn’t. Not enough. She’d believed spending a few days with him was a good idea and that they’d reconnect on that common ground they used to unite on, but as hard as he was trying to move on, she was failing miserably.

She chucked the blanket to the side, storming inside to find her phone. Julie answered after a few rings, her voice groggy.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I just need to ask you something.”

“It couldn’t wait until the world was awake?”

Alexis glanced at the clock. “Jules, it’s nearly eight.”

“And I got to bed two hours ago!”

“Shit, night shoots.” Alexis cringed, remembering Julie’s work schedule. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Julie groaned. “Let me get some coffee.”

“No, don’t worry about that. This won’t take long.”

The bedsheets rustled as Julie moved around. “Alright, what is it?”

“Why did you give Ciarán my number?”

Her friend’s snicker was adorable and reflected her lightheartedness. “Why do you think, Lexi?”

“I’ve got my theories, but I need to hear it from you.”

Julie drew in a long breath. “This will need some coffee. Hang on a minute.”

Alexis sighed, but said nothing, knowing she was asking a lot from her friend at such an early hour.

She sat on a chair at the kitchen table and stared at the tiny bouquet of deep purple and bright yellow wildflowers she’d brought in the night before. Ciarán had placed them in a makeshift vase—a tiny glass that was much too short and let the flowers droop over the rim. It looked sad, but still made her smile. But then she remembered her garden back home and wondered how her plants were faring.

“Alright, let’s do this,” Julie said, groaning with a stretch. “You’re always in your own way, Lexi. You think you know what’s best for you, but you don’t. That’s why I’m here.” Julie chuckled, her spoon scraping the sides of her cup as she stirred. “I figured after fifteen years you might see that life’s short. I hoped you two would have pulled your heads out of your asses by now. That you’d see you’ve wasted enough time.”

“I’vewasted time?” Alexis asked, sounding far more offended than she was.

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