Page 77 of More Than Words
I’d wanted to pull Delaney into my arms and kiss her more than I wanted to take my next breath, but that was no longer an option.My heart ached with the loss.
“She looked like she was about to cry, and you…well, you looked like a bit of a jerk.”
“A jerk?”
She nodded but didn’t back down.“So, what’s going on?”
I shoved my hands deep into my pockets.“It’s nothing.”
“Nothing?It sure didn’tfeellike nothing.”
I exhaled through my nose and started to move.“We’re fine.”
“Now you’re lying.”
“Quinn,” I said a little sharper than I intended.“It’s adult stuff.”I softened my voice.“Don’t worry about it.”
She stopped walking.“Wow.”
With a sigh, I turned to face her.
She crossed her arms and glared at me.“Since when do you pull that card?”
I hesitated.“I didn’t mean it like that.”
“Yes, you did.That’s why you said it.”Her jaw clenched the way it always did when she was trying not to cry.Only, it wasn’t usually me who was making her upset.
“I’m sorry,” I said genuinely.“It’s just…” I glanced to my right.“Let’s stop by the Sugar Shack and grab some chocolates for family dinner.”
Quinn narrowed her eyes as if she were trying to decide between trying to push for more or the lure of chocolate.“We don’t usually take chocolates.”
“I thought it might be a nice treat.”
“Is Delaney coming to family dinner?”
I froze mid-step and exhaled in a huff.“Drop it, Quinn.”
“So there’s something to drop?”Before I could respond, she continued.“You’re just trying to distract me with chocolate.”
“I’m not.”
“You are.”Her voice rose.“You don’t want to talk about what’s really going on with you, so you’re going to buy me off with chocolates and pretend everything’s fine when it’s?—”
“Enough!”
The word hit the air like a sharp slap.
Quinn took a step back and stared at me.Her bottom lip quivered.
We didn’t do this.
We didn’t snap.We didn’t raise our voices.And we definitely didn’t shut down.
But now, here we were.
And for so many reasons, I hated it.
She turned away without another word and started to walk ahead of me, arms crossed and chin tucked down.
