Page 79 of The Sinner (Haven Grace Prep 1)

“I love you, so fucking much,” he tells me, and I don’t think I’ll ever tire of hearing him say it. “You really forgive me?”

I nod. “But I have one condition.”

“Anything.”

Taking a step back, I keep my eyes locked with his. “I want you to explain everything.”

26

Grayson

Holding Savannah’s hand in mine, we navigate through the woods to the one spot I can really call ours—hidden away from the prying eyes and ears of everyone else. If there is any place we should have this conversation, it’s here. She deserves to know the truth. I just fear the fallout.

“Do you remember the first time I brought you here?”

She looks up at me and smiles. “How could I not? You’re not taking me out here to kill me, are you?”

“Don’t be stupid,” I tease, reciting it back to her with a nudge.

As we walk through the clearance, I can tell by her expression that it’s been a while since she was last here. She runs her hand gently across the tree we carved our initials into. You can barely see them now, but we know they’re there. Once she’s done looking around, she comes over to sit beside me and takes a deep breath.

“Okay, I’m ready.”

I reach out to hold her hand, knowing that telling her this could change a lot for her. How she sees her father, though he’s done most of the damage on his own. How she sees herself. This conversation could break her even more than she’s already been.

“Are you sure? There are things you don’t know. Things that maybe you shouldn’t know.” I warn, but she remains firm and shakes her head. “Alright, where do you want me to start?”

“The day you left.”

I watch as the rain drips down the window, the weather looking like exactly how I feel. Not only is Savannah gone this weekend, but I can’t play outside. Even sitting on the roof is off limits until it dries up and it doesn’t look like that’ll be happening any time soon.

Savi will be coming home tomorrow, though, and I can’t wait. Since we had our first kiss on Thursday, I’ve been even more excited to see her than I normally am. If our parents knew, they’d probably say we’re too young to have feelings for each other, but what do they know?

“Grayson, dinner!” My mom calls.

I pull myself away and head for the stairs, using the banister to slide down. My mother stands at the bottom with a disappointed look on her face.

“One day you’re going to fall doing that, and I don’t want to hear you cry about it when you do.”

Something I’ve learned about my mom, is that she’s a sucker for how cute I am. So, I smile sweetly and give her a hug. Just like I planned, she caves. The two of us go into the dining room where my dad is already waiting.

“Hey Gray.” He greets me. “You’ve been spending all weekend in your room. You sure you’re okay?”

I nod. “I’m just bored, and I really miss Savi.”

“Well, how about tomorrow we go down to the indoor batting cages? Would that cheer you up?”

Just the idea has me instantly in a better mood and I lunge to give him a big hug. “Can we play a game after dinner?”

“Sure. How does Uno sound?”

“The one that regular one or the one that spits cards at you?” The difference matters.

Letting out a light laugh, he and I both know we each want the one the other doesn’t. I eye him intently and wait for his decision.

“The one that spits cards at you.” I start to celebrate when he stops me. “But only if you promise to take it easy on your mother.”

“Deal.”

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