Page 134 of Light Up The Night
Yeah, I knew he was cheating on me. It was the fact that his latest side piece was fuckingnineteenthat was the last straw.
That, and the slap.
No sir.
You only hitthisbitch once.
I watch the happy couple whisper and kiss and cry together. Oh, god. Fuck me, so sappy. He's crying?
Deep down, though, I admire that.
Up top, it's easier to let myself feel bitchy and cynical, because I'm angry at him and myself and the whole world, and I feel like a fool.
And then there's a crowd of people I recognize—the Cartwright twins, who have aged very, very well, indeed. Cody Nyx, the silly fuck, who doesn't seem to have changed a bit. A giant red-haired guy I don't know with Noelle…something—I didn’t know her well—who seems to be with the ginger giant. A blond woman who must be Felix's wife, since Felix is behind her with his hands on her hips. There's another woman who I don't know, too.
Andhim.
Cole Mannix.
All six feet two inches of him, in a Sheriff's uniform, wearing a knit cap.
My heart stops.
Cole.
MyCole.
I whimper as my heart drops out of my chest. I can't be here. I can't be near him. I can't see him. And god fucking forbid he sees me.
I whirl and flee—or at least, that's the intent.
Instead, I slip on a patch of ice hidden under a layer of snow and face-plant.
Nose? Definitely broken.
I groan and push to my knees—which are bruised and aching and now getting wet as I kneel in the snow.
"Fuck me," I mutter. "Fuck myentirelife."
Eddie hates my cursing. It's not 'demure,’" he says. Yeah. Demure and mindful I am not—ha fucking-ha.
Fuck you, Eddie.
I try to get to my feet, but I slip again, and I would hit the ground again if not for a strong, hard hand steadying me.
"Hey, whoa. You okay, ma'am?"
No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
His voice isnotgravelly and rough and deep like that. Not warm and concerned and friendly.
"Yeah," I rasp, my voice hoarse and tight. "All good. Thanks." I keep my hood up and turn away from him.
His hand is bare, despite the cold. He has my arm. "You took a pretty bad spill, there. Sure, you're not hurt?"
My nose is sluicing blood all down my mouth, chin, neck, and chest. "Yup. I'm good."
He hears the lie, though. He always could. "Hey, you're bleeding. Ma'am, let me help you, please."
