Page 43 of The Hero I Can't Resist
She cuts me off. “Get out.”
I plant my feet on the floor. “I’m not leaving you like this.”
She glares at me. “Get out, Zach. I want you out of my house.”
She’s so angry, and I can’t say I blame her. More than anything I want to hold her to me and never let her go, but she deserves more. Since the moment I saw that guy holding the knife to her neck, I’ve been lost. I was on a mission. I went through the motions and neutralized the attacker, but this mission was like nothing I’ve ever felt before. It was the most important one to me, the most personal one, the one I couldn’t fail at—and I did. I failed, and I did it royally.
I want to explain to her and make her understandwhy we can’t be together, but she’s not going to listen. I have to try, though. “Sky, please.”
She glowers at me. “Go, Zach. I don’t want you here.”
I put my head down and walk out of the room. The whole way down the stairs and to the front door, I want to stop and beg her to forgive me. I don’t want to let her go, but I know that in the end, she’s going to realize she deserves better than me. As soon as I get downstairs, I type in the code to set the alarm and then close and lock the door behind me. I sit on the stoop and call Aria, Penn’s wife.
She answers tentatively. “Hello?”
“Aria, this is Zach. Uh, can you come over and stay with Skyler?”
“Sure, absolutely. Let me pack a bag and I’ll be right there. Is she okay?”
I swallow. She’ll be okay. She’ll forget about me in no time. I’m the one that doesn't know if I’ll survive this. “Yes, uh, she asked me to leave, but I don’t want her to be here by herself.”
Her silence is telling. “What did you do?”
I blow out a breath. “I didn’t protect her.”
More silence. “What? But she’s okay… you saved her.”
I practically choke out the words. “He had a knife to her throat. He almost…” I let my voice trail off. “Look, she’s better off without me. She’s not in danger anymore, but she needs to be monitored with her concussion, and she doesn’t want me here. I’m just upsetting her.”
I prepare myself for her to tell me off or to give me a piece of her mind. She does neither. “Yeah, okay, I’ll be right there.”
She hangs up, and I put my phone in my pocket. I stand up, pacing around the yard of Sky’s house. I check the doors. I lock the gate to the backyard. I check the windows on the first level, and then I go back to the front yard to pace some more.
It doesn’t take long for Aria to get here, and when she does, she looks at me curiously, shaking her head. “I don’t know if I need to throat punch you or if I need to talk some sense into you.”
She looks at me with hope, but I avoid her gaze. I’m barely holding it together. “It’s better this way. She’ll forget about me.”
Aria opens her mouth and then closes it. She shakes her head and then puts her hand on her hip. “I know my sister-in-law, Zach, and she’s not going to forget about you.” She tips her chin at me. “But if you’re just willing to let her go, then maybe she should.”
Aria throws her bag over her shoulder and turns to walk into the house, but she stops only a few feet from me. “Zach, you think you failed her, but she thinks you saved her. Don’t twist this into something it’s not.” She points to her head and then to her heart. “Don’t let whatever you got going on up here mess with what’s in here.”
She doesn’t get it. She doesn’t know. I go to my truck and get in. I tell myself that I’m sitting here just to make sure Aria gets inside, but in truth, I’m hoping to get just one more glimpse of Skyler.
CHAPTER 20
SKYLER
I hit pause on the recording and walk over to sink into the chair at the kitchen table. I feel drained, but I’m doing my best to not act like it. It was a rough night last night. I tossed and turned for most of it, and I can easily blame it on the stalker, but that’s only half of it. I miss Zach. I don’t want to, and heck, I wish I could turn off whatever this is, but I can’t.
Aria sips at her coffee, munching on the banana bread I made this morning. “If I stay here much longer, I’m going to be ten pounds heavier.”
I laugh, trying to act as if my heart isn’t breaking in two. My family is worried about me. I’ve heard from every brother except for Logan, but he’s supposed to be getting back into town today.
“I’m sure Penn is missing you at home,” I say lightly.
She shrugs but doesn’t agree with me. I’m about to ask her again about what’s going on with my bonehead brother, but I save my breath. She’s tight-lipped about it, and no matter what I say or ask, she’s not telling me. Hopefully, they’ll work things out. They have to because if there’s ever two people that love each other, it’s them.
She smiles softly. “Are you tired of me already?”
