Page 59 of Splintered Memories
I couldn’t break. I couldn’t cry. I forced air into my lungs, and I fought down the unexpected surge of emotion until I could straighten my spine again.
My eyes locked onto the small desk, and I started for it. I was already mentally making a list of things I needed to get done tonight, when he knocked on the door. Three soft knocks.
He said my name, and I heard the tension in his voice.
I looked from my computer to the door, and back again. I didn’t have to let him in. I knew he wouldn’t force himself into my space if I didn’t want him here.
But when he said my name the second time, there was a brokenness in his tone that I couldn’t ignore.
“Come in,” I said.
I didn’t move as he opened the door and stepped inside. He looked more tired than he had two minutes ago. Maybe I looked more tired, too.
He closed the door behind him, his eyes never leaving mine. “I thought you’d enjoy dinner.” He put his hands in his pockets.
I frowned, confused. “I did.” It had been the best part of my entire week.
He leaned against the door, tilting his head back as he stared up at the ceiling. “I can’t do this anymore, Emersyn.”
The sadness in his tone had a spear of anxiety shooting through me. My hands curled into fists. “What are you talking about?”
August didn’t answer right away. He continued to stare at the ceiling, his hands buried in the pockets of his jeans. His throat bobbed as he swallowed.
Slowly, as if every movement took effort, he moved his chin down to look at me. I couldn’t read his expression, but my gut twisted sharply.
“I can’t watch you struggle like this.”
My eyebrows screwed together. “I—I’m not struggling. I’ve had a lot of work to do. It takes longer without all my equipment—”
He cut me off with a raised palm, shaking his head. “Don’t give me all of that bull crap.”
I bristled, my teeth clipping together as I glared at him. He had no idea what this had been like. He didn’t know what it was like to lose everything in one damned night. I thought I had been dealing with everything in stride. “August, I don’t—”
But I didn’t finish as he pushed off the door and strode toward me. His eyes flashed like hot steel. He halted a breath away.
“I know you, Emersyn,” he said, his voice a growl that rumbled through my chest. “I know you enjoy your work, but you have been burying yourself in it this week. You’ve been hiding in this room since the moment you got here. And I let you, because you need your space.” He leaned forward; the heat from his body washed over mine. “Don’t you think I understand what you’ve lost? That house was more than a building to you, Emersyn. We still can’t find your brother, the person you love most in this world, and I haven’t seen you shed one single tear.” He held up a finger, so close it almost touched my lips.
My breathing hitched as I took in his words and his proximity. I’d never seen him so…upset. His breaths were as fast as mine. Those steely-gray eyes bored into me, pinning me to the spot.
I shook my head. “I don’t know what you want from me,” I whispered in a broken breath.
He lowered that finger, his features softening. He took another step toward me, but that made him too close. Instinctively, I stepped back. Hurt flickered across his face.
“You have always been strong, but no one can withstand storms like these forever.”
He chanced another step, but I backed away again. He didn’t know what he was talking about. He didn’t understand.
But he didn’t stop.
August kept walking toward me, and with each stride he took, I retreated from him. I stumbled away from him until I hit the wall. My teeth clattered with the force of it. I looked around wildly, but there was nowhere to go. The bed was to my left, the desk to my right, and August at my front.
My throat felt thick, closing up with the emotion I didn’t want to feel. I had to fight it, but August pressed his body against mine, warm and strong.
“It’s okay,” he said, his voice low. He was so close, his breath caressed my cheek.
That ball of fire flared in my chest, so hot it scalded my insides. I shook my head and tried to take another step back but I couldn’t. He had me caged against the wall. I couldn’t run.
“Let go, Emersyn,” he whispered, an undercurrent of fervor behind those words.
