Page 92 of Dirty Little Mistake

His eyebrows lifted. "What?"

"Uh." My teeth caught my bottom lip as I edged around him. We'd promised no more secrets, and I couldn't lie to him, even knowing it was going to be a fight. "I need to talk to Owen." I squared my shoulders, lifting my chin. "And I need to do it without you."

His smile died, replaced by something dark that turned his usual warmth to ice. Each step toward me was deliberate and measured.

"Oh, hell no." The words came out low, each syllable sharp enough to cut. "No fucking way."

"Trystan." I pressed my palm against the doorframe. "I don't want to fight with you about this."

Trystan's nostrils flared, his body coiling like a spring. "Camryn, if he talks to you like he did this morning, I will kill him."

"He was angry..." The words sounded weak even to my own ears.

"I don't give a fuck if his dog just died." Each word came out clipped as he crowded closer, the veins in his neck standing out. "He will never talk to you like that again."

My palm found his chest, feeling his heart hammering beneath my fingers. "Trystan." His name came out somewhere between a plea and a command. "I need you to trust me and get out of my way."

His jaw worked back and forth, hands opening and closing at his sides like he was fighting the urge to reach for me. "I do trust you, Cam." A muscle jumped in his cheek. "I do not trust him, and if he does something stupid..."

"He won't," I said. "Everyone's had time to cool off now, and I need to clear the air with him. I need to fix this so we don't ruin this weekend. So I don't ruin everyone's friendship."

"Every muscle in my body wants to stop this. I want to throw you over my shoulder and keep you from going out there, but..." The corners of my lips lifted softly. "But if you really need to do this, then I won't stop you."

"Thank you." He stepped to the side, and I rushed forward, only stopping when he tugged my arm.

"Cam, if he..."

"He won't..." I said more confidently than I felt. The truth was I had no idea how Owen would react to me, but I needed to try. We needed to talk.

Chapter 45

Camryn

Ipractically ran to the beach. I ran until my feet sank into the sand, and my gaze landed on Owen's shirtless back.

As if sensing me, he twisted, looking over his shoulder. "What do you want, Cam?"

"I think we need to talk." I stepped up beside him.

Sucking in a deep breath, he slowly exhaled without taking his eyes off the endless ocean. "Yeah, I guess we do."

"Do you want to take a walk with me?"

His bare toes dug into the sand. "I don't know. Is your boyfriend going to jump out and attack me?"

"Come on, Owen." I wrapped my arms around myself, the evening breeze raising goosebumps on my skin. "You were way out of line this morning."

His gaze locked with mine, salt spray misting his face. "Yeah." He dragged a hand down his stubbled jaw. "I was."

I jerked my head toward the pier. "Walk?"

He fell into step beside me, shoulders hunched against the wind. "Why did you come into my room this morning?"

"Because I wanted to apologize again." The words came out barely louder than the crash of waves. "I couldn't sleep. I felt terrible about hurting you, but—" He swallowed hard. "I didn't. Did I?"

"Of course, it hurt me, but..."

"But I was only a rebound."

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