Page 39 of Second Goal

Even though she keeps begging me to talk to her, I leave, forgoing the elevator, I take the stairwell so I don’t have to stand there and see the desperation in her eyes, the hurt and betrayal, or worse, the disgust that I know I’ll cause if I open up completely.

My phone pings with a new text message as I race down the stairs. My feet falter when I read the message, and I have to grab the railing with my free hand to stop myself from tumbling down.

The message is from the same number Amy called me from, but I can tell by the way it’s worded that Cruz wrote it.

Alleyway behind Hogger’s Bar. 2:00pm. Bring 10k unless you want your mugshot on the front page of the paper.

He doubled the price, but I’m not surprised. I knew after the photos of Blake and I were leaked all over the media that it was only a matter of time before Cruz demanded more.

I know what I have to do.

When I’m in my apartment, I go straight to my bedroom and open the closet, shifting through the boxes on the top shelf until I find what I’m looking for. The cold steel feels heavy in my hand as I stare down at the gun. It’s not loaded. I don’t even own bullets. But I don’t need it to fire, only to scare.

“I can do this,” I mumble, my voice shaky.

One way or another, this ends today.

I take the envelope of cash from my dresser and shove it in my back pocket along with the gun, then pull on a heavy hoodie to hide the weapon. There are a million voices in my head, each telling me how dangerous, how stupid, how wrong this is. And when I step out into the hallway and see Blake coming out of his apartment, there’s a part of me that thinks about listening to those voices.

It’s so much easier to hide than fight.

But today, I need to face my mistakes head-on. And as much as I want Blake to be there with me, I can’t put him in the middle of this. I won’t put him in danger.

“Hey.” The smile he gives me makes my insides flip flop like it always does when he looks at me the way he is now. Warmth floods through me. Safe. Cherished. I want to fall into those feelings, fall into the protection of his arms.

Can’t.I need to end this.

“I was just coming to see if you want to grab lunch.”

I side step him when he moves toward me, afraid he’ll hug me and feel the gun. “I already ate.”

“Okay.” He gives me a puzzled look. “How about coffee?”

“Um... maybe later.” I move past him and push the elevator button. “I have an appointment.” I promise myself that’ll be the last lie I tell him.

He’s frowning at me when I step on the elevator, and he stops the doors from shutting but doesn’t get on. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah.” I force a smile, but I can feel it wobble. “I just... I signed up for those fashion and design courses today, and I’m a bit frazzled.” It’s the truth. Or a slightly altered version of it. “It’s going to be a big change.”

The muscles in his jaw bounce, but he just nods. “Okay.”

I press the Lobby button, but he doesn’t release the doors. “How about dinner?”

“Sure.” He’s still looking at me like he knows I’m lying.

“I’ll come over when I get back.”

“You’re sure everything is all right?” He knows me too well.

“I promise tonight, I’ll tell you everything. Okay?”

“Kiley, if you’re in trouble—”

“I have to do this alone.”

“Do what?” he growls out, glaring at the elevator doors when they try to shut again.

I place a hand on his chest. “You want me to trust you. Then trust me. Okay?”

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