Page 99 of Falling Like This

“What did you do?” Joel asks.

“Stay out of this.” My voice is deep and angry as my eyes flare, daring him to challenge me.

My gaze softens as I turn back to her. “I know you’re angry. I know I shouldn’t have done that without talking it through first, but—”

“Of course I’m angry! But I’m also…” She takes a shuddery breath. “You’ve always been my safe place. I trusted you. I let you touch me in a way no one else has since…” She shakes her head.That’s exactly why I stopped,I think.But the words don’t come out.

“Your hand was between my legs,” she whispers. “And then you changed your mind.” Tears pour from her eyes.

“You what?” Joel steps in closer to me.

“I handed you my heart, Aaron. I was ready to give you all of me and now… now…” She sputters for words through her tears as I try to figure out what to say. How to stop the spiral. “I trusted you. I love you. And now you’re breaking my heart.”

“No… Rae… please. I would never—”

She looks at Sarah. “I need to go. Can we go?”

“Hell yes we can,” Mackie says before Sarah answers.

“Of course, baby.” Sarah loops her arm through Rae’s, though she glances back at me in concern as Mackie leads the way back to Sarah’s Durango.

Feeling desperate, like my heart is being ripped from my chest, I move toward her, calling, “Don’t do this. Don’t walk away from me. Don’t leave. Please don’t leave me.”

She spins around, eyes full of tears and vitriol. “No! You had your chance! You had me. I’m done, Aaron. I don’t want to talk to you. There’s nothing left for you to say that I want to hear. Just get away from me!”

“Rae, please listen…”

Sarah pulls on her arm, trying to drag her toward the car. I’m really going to lose her over this? I was trying to do the right thing. I don’t even realize my feet are moving—my body trying to get to hers. One touch, my skin on her skin, my lips on her lips, and she’ll know. But before I can get to her, Joel steps between us.

“I told you to stay out of this!” I hiss.

“No fucking way. She doesn’t want to talk to you!” Joel shoves me back a step.

Seriously? When did I become the bad guy?

“Fuck you, Joel!” I shout, shoving him back. Might as well lean into this.

Miles takes a step forward, eyes narrowed, ready to go dad mode on us.

Before I know what’s happening, Joel’s lunging toward me, fist flying at my face.

Fucker.

I’m knocked back a couple of steps, but dive forward, shoving him into the snow until we’re both on the ground, hitting each other.

“I’ve got this, Rae. Go.” I hear Miles say, and I realize I’m losing the girl I love and punching my best friend.

I stand up, but Joel tackles me again.

As I try to shove him off, Miles’s deep voice cuts through everything.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” He grabs Joel by the neck and yanks him off me, then he extends his hand and helps me up.

Joel charges forward again, but Miles steps between us. “You gonna hit me too?”

“He—”

“He and Rae had a fight. A fight that is not ours to deal with. It’s one thing to support a friend. It’s another to throw yourself in the middle of a relationship you’re not a part of and risk ruining one of the most important friendships in your life in the process.”

---