Page 149 of Faking It With the Small-Town Bad Boy

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for that. Holding her tighter, I pull her off the porch and off her

knees. She straddles my lap, getting so close our bodies are now

firmly sandwiched together.

“I’m sorry you had to see that.”

“What are you talking about, Percy? It’s not your fault. She did that.

She decided to… It was wrong. All of it was wrong. You did nothing at

all, and she took it out on you.”

I bow my head slightly, inhaling the old car scent that clings to her

shirt. It’s calming. “I know she did. She used to do that a lot.”

“It’s not right. You should press charges or—”

“Governor’s daughter perks. Wouldn’t matter if she shot me in the

stomach, she’d get off easy, I’m certain of it.” She twitches in my

arms, and I can see I’m not making matters better right now. I kiss

the side of her neck, the spot warm and sparking with chills that

ignite from the contact of my lips. “Let’s go inside the house, okay? I

need a break.”

“Okay,” she whispers, wiping her cheeks as she climbs off my lap.

Her hand finds mine, and she leads me upstairs to her bedroom,

both of us collapsing in bed together. “Come closer.”

I inch forward, our legs and arms tangled as she buries herself into

my chest. I hold her there for a long time, staring up at the ceiling I

imagine is the sky. The sun and moon and stars all watch down at the

same time, as though that’s possible, and line up for the perfect

cosmic lottery of luck.

If I was to be so lucky, I’d wish to be rid of my pressure, of my pain.

But the longer I hold onto Leah, the more I realize how I just want

her pains and her struggles to be released.

I never thought I’d put another woman before myself again, but here

I am.

My demons unbury themselves from their perspective graves, ready

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