Page 98 of Sinners Atone
“If this were a movie theater, I’d be allowed to eat popcorn?—”
A heavy knock lands on the front door, slicing my sarcastic comment in half. I bolt upright, my stomach flipping, because for one dizzying second, I think it’shim.
Finn tuts, twitches the curtain, then turns his attention back to the screen. “Tell Tayce if she breaks my door, she’s paying for a new one.”
Oh jeez. Not Tayce. Suddenly, finding Gabriel haunting Finn’s front porch seems like a less scary alternative.
I pad down the hall, collecting my excuses as I go. When I crack the door open, Tayce is standing beneath the porch light, her arms crossed and her eyebrow hitched up to her hairline.
“Tayce?” I whisper, squinting out into the night. “Is that really you? My fever’s so high, I think I’m hallucinating.”
Her gaze narrows. “Stop it.”
“Don’t come any closer,” I croak, holding up a feeble hand. “I’m contagious.”
“If bullshit were contagious, you’d wipe out the entire Coast.”
“Honestly, I’m sick.”
“And I’m sick ofyou.”
Pressing the back of my hand against my forehead, I let out a weary sigh. But she’s still standing there, stone-faced, so I launch into a coughing fit instead.
I peek up at her. Nope. Zero sympathy.
She purses her lips. “You done?”
“For now,” I whimper, clutching my chest.
“Good. Now, do your makeup, put on a cute dress, and?—”
“I’m not going and you can’t make me!”
The words shoot out harsher than intended, all desperation and no croak.
Tayce blinks. Cocks her head to the side, and sweeps a wary eye down my crumb-flecked robe.
“What’s really going on, Wren?”
The sudden softness in her tone makes my throat feel all tight. Guess the age-old warning to be careful what you wish for is true. I wanted Tayce’s sympathy, but now I realize I’m too weak to handle it.
I fiddle with the door’s safety chain and try to stop my bottom lip from trembling. “Nothing’s going on.”
“Well, you’ve been acting weird all day. You haven’t been answering your phone or replying to my texts. Not even when I sent you that video of the puppy having a spa day.”
My lips tilt. “That was cute.”
She lets out a breath of a laugh. “Looked more like animal cruelty to me, but hey, I knew you’d like it.”
For a moment, neither of us say anything. Tayce studies me like she’ll find the truth if she looks hard enough. I look down at the fresh manicure I had done especially for tonight instead.
Eventually, she breaks the silence. “Sure you don’t want to talk about it?”
I open my mouth, then close it again. Because it’s not even a question of where to start, but where to end. If I told her about the incident in the garage or on the tender boat, I’d have to tell her about the lessons. Why they exist in the first place. It’d lead to the night we met, and the lessons, and the dark.
It’s a whole can of worms not worth opening.
I shake my head, small and tight.
