Page 74 of Memories with Fire

Quinn studies me for a moment, sizing me up. I wonder if she’s contemplating if she can trust me or not.

Finally she offers, “My parents screwed me up. My mom took off when I was seven and my dad was a drunk. Still is.” She gives a shrug like it’s no big deal, but it’s easy to tell it affects her more than she tries to let on. “I’ve been taking care of myself since I was a little girl. I don’t plan on that ever changing.”

“Just because you’re in a relationship doesn’t mean you have to let the other person take care of you,” I point out. “You can still have your independence.”

Watching as she shifts uncomfortably, she tries to play it off by taking a drink of her coffee. “Maybe,” she concedes before falling silent for a few moments. When she speaks again, there’s an air of melancholy around her. “I gave up hope in people and relationships, though. When I was twelve, my dad got this girlfriend I thought was amazing. Things were great for a while. I thought maybe they’d even work out, but I should have known by then they never do for me.”

When she drifts off and doesn’t continue, I prod. “What happened?”

“She left,” Quinn says, waving her hand dismissively. The movement seems to pull her out of whatever mood she sunk into. “It was just my dad and me again, and he was worse than ever after that.”

“I’m sorry that happened to you,” I tell her earnestly.

Shrugging it off like it doesn’t make any difference to her, she brings things back to me. “Why aren’t you fighting for her?”

Putting my coffee on the nightstand with enough force it sloshes out the top, I scrub my face with both hands, blowing out a breath. “Because she’s not going to believe me. If I tell her how I feel now, why would she believe it?”

Quinn gives a snort laced with derision. “That’s rather presumptuous of you.”

My eyes widen with incredulity. “I withheld the truth from her, why?—”

“Wait, wait,” she interrupts, her legs flying out from under her to land on the floor. She pulls herself closer to the edge of the bed. “By not telling her how you feel, aren’t you withholding the truth again?”

I blink, then shake my head. “I tried to tell her. She didn’t want to hear it.”

Quinn laughs, but the sound doesn’t carry any humor. “You told her how you felt in the past, you didn’t tell her a single thing about how you feel now, you dope. Right now, she has no idea how you feel, she just thinks you couldn’t trust her.”

My lip curls in a snarl. “How the hell do you know what I told her?”

Quinn’s head tilts to the side, giving me a look like I’m a moron. “Who do you think has had a front row seat to her tears?”

The numbness in my heart moves aside for a moment, making way for a sharp, stabbing pain to sear it. The thought of Hailey crying, especially because of me, physically hurts, but a part of me welcomes the feeling. It’s the first I’ve felt something besides my own numbing pain in days.

“Good. I’m glad she has you. She needs someone in her life like you,” I tell her, reaching to grab my phone. Solitaire is sounding pretty frickin’ good right about now.

“Oh Jesus, Luke, get your head out of your ass. What she needs isyou. And one of you needs to stop being stubborn as hell and figure it out.”

“Get out, Quinn. I’m done talking about this.”

She stands between the beds. “You know, you’re not the guy I thought you were if you’re just going to roll over and let this happen. Do you really want her to end up with some boring ass imbecile that won’t challenge her or push her or?—”

“No!” I shout, throwing my phone on the bed. Two seconds later, I’m on my feet, challenging Quinn face to face. “Of course I don’t want that. I want Hailey to wantme. I want her to trustme. I want her to believe inme.” My hand thumps against my chest with every declaration.

Quinn doesn’t back down. She doesn’t even flinch. “So then do something about it. Stop being a coward and tell her how you feel. Give her a chance to give you one. A real one. Now that everything is on the table.”

I drop down to the mattress, my head falling into my hands as I lean forward with my elbows on my knees. “She doesn’t want me.”

“You stupid man,” Quinn chuckles lightly, and her weight sinks into the mattress beside me, a hand coming to rest on my shoulder. “She does. It’s like I told you a while back—she’s just scared of you. You aren’t her safe option, but you are her best one, and all the others don’t even come close.”

Turning my head to find her smiling at me over my shoulder, I release a deep breath. “You really think she wants me?”

“As much as I want a monster cock every single night of my life,” she nods with confirmation.

Bursting out with an unexpected laugh, I shake my head. “Gosh dang, Quinn. Really?” I pause for a brief second, contemplating, then add, “I’m not sure if that’s a yes or no.”

She pats my shoulder. “Bring on all the monsters.”

“Sharing isn’t always caring, you know,” I tell her, sitting up straight.

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