Page 99 of Ruin
“Jesus fucking Christ,” he says, shaking his head and pulling me to him tighter. “If I had known—”
“You didn’t.”
“But if I had—”
“It doesn’t matter. You didn’t know, and nothing we do now can change what happened.”
“Kolton…”
“Don’t do that, Lucian,” I say, throwing the blankets off and getting out of bed. He looks up at me, confused. “Don’t look at me like I’m broken now. Don’t treat me like I’m different because you know. I’m still the same person.”
“That isn’t what I’m doing.” He shakes his head, sitting up and leaning against the headboard.
“It’s exactly what you’re doing.”
“Just because I have sympathy for what you’ve dealt with doesn’t mean I’m looking at you differently. I just care.”
My brow furrows.
“I can care about you and worry about you without judging you, you know. Maybe you need to get used to that, and if that’s the case, you should because I’m not going to stop.”
He throws the blankets off and gets up, taking my face in his hands.
“You are not a weak person. I’ve never once thought that. And I will never look at you like you’re fragile. But I will care about you, and sometimes that means I’m sad for you. There is nothing wrong with that.”
I sigh, my head dropping forward. “I’m sorry.”
He pulls me into a hug. “Don’t be. Just get used to it.”
“I’ll try.”
“I know you will.”
Chapter Forty-Two
Kolton
Community Day.
I’m not sure if this is going to be an annual thing or what. Coyote didn’t give me a solid answer on why I was putting this thing together, but it’s in full swing now and he’s smiling a mile wide. I feel like he has something up his sleeve, something he isn’t telling us about. That could just be my hatred for him talking. Who knows? We’ll see soon enough. Secrets don’t stay hidden forever.
“What actually is going on here?” Grizz asks from beside me.
I glance at him because he wasn’t there a second ago. I do a double take when I see him wearing a baby carrier with the baby in it.
“That suits you,” I mutter.
It’s meant to be an insult, but he grins.
“Thanks, man. I was thinking the same. Though, I do wish it was pink.”
I roll my eyes. “I don’t know,” I say, answering his question. “He hasn’t told me shit.”
Grizz grunts. “Hasn’t said a thing to me either.”
“I’m not surprised, though I am growing more and more concerned.”
“I think we all are, but of course, no one will say it.”
