Page 125 of Always Red (Chasing Red 2)

I had never done anything so…shocking in my life.

Especially after he’d acted like an asshole. It was a little overwhelming to realize how much power he had over me, but then again, in the back of my mind, I’d always known he did.

My throat tightened as he looked at me with tortured eyes, but I refused to let him see my emotions. I kept my face blank.

He rubbed a hand over his face, exhaling a short, sharp breath as he rose and sat on the edge of the bed, his back to me.

“Fuck me,” he said quietly.

The muscles on his back and shoulders stood out as he leaned forward, propping his elbows on his knees and lowering his head into his hands. He looked miserable, and I wanted to reach out to him, comfort him, but remembering the way he’d let his jealousy control his actions earlier held me back.

Oh, so now you’re holding back, my subconscious lashed. You definitely weren’t holding back when you were on top of him. Or when he was on top of you.

I closed my eyes, ashamed of my actions. I had let myself succumb to my desire for him. And look how we both felt now: still heartbroken. The sex had taken out some of the aggression we had both felt a few hours ago, but it didn’t solve anything.

Maybe if I were the old me, I would have run away the second he grabbed my hand and dragged me away from that gazebo, but I had learned a lot since Caleb came in my life.

I had learned that there was no perfect relationship. It was up to you to make it work, to keep fighting for that one person and never give up because that person was worth your effort and love.

Everyone possessed darkness and lightness inside them. Caleb had always shown me his light, but I’d only seen glimpses of his darkness. Tonight, he had revealed it. I wasn’t going to run away from it.

Loving a person was never easy. I knew that from the start. Caleb had shown me that loving the right person was worth the pain. And he was definitely worth it.

That didn’t mean I would let him step all over me. It just meant I was willing to stay and work things out.

I would fight and argue with him, even drive us both insane until we’d cleared up the heaviness we both felt inside. This time, I wouldn’t walk away without a fight.

“When I saw you with him—”

“Choose your words very carefully,” I warned him. “If you think I’m cheating on you—”

He turned to look at me. “Never,” he said strongly.

“—you better think again because… What?”

“I never thought you were cheating on me,” he continued. His jaw was tight, his mouth a straight line of displeasure.

“Then what the hell, Caleb?”

“I know you, Red. I know you’ll never cheat on me. I’m sorry I acted like an asshole. You deserved to be treated better. And I…”

The helplessness and pain in his green eyes pulled at me, the way his mouth curled down in remorse.

I closed my eyes, blowing out a breath to help relieve the ache in my chest. It felt a little lighter now that I knew he didn’t think I was cheating on him, but the ache was still there.

His eyes were still on me, and I could sense him waiting for me to answer.

When I felt him move, I finally opened my eyes. Naked and completely unselfconscious, he stalked to the window and looked outside. His back was to me, but I could tell he was angry by the unyielding set of his shoulders, the way he bunched his hands into tight fists.

“Did I hurt you?” he asked, his voice hoarse. “I was too rough again, wasn’t I? I can’t seem to help it with you.”

He raked his hands through his hair, dragging his hand down his neck as he lowered his head in shame.

“I…want you too damn much, even when I’m so mad. Mad at you. Mad about you. You drive me fucking insane. Why in the hell would you tell him and not me?”

I could feel the hurt and anger in his tone. Most of mine had subsided when I realized why he was angry. It wasn’t because he thought I was cheating on him with Damon, but because I’d told Damon about the fire.

Caleb had b

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