“No.”
“Then it’s okay,” I say with conviction.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
After a few moments, he stands up, and I step back. He towers over me a little, and my eyes flick to the full drink still sitting on the side.
“Do you need to go to a meeting?”
Finn swallows harshly. “I-I think so.”
“Then home after?”
“As long as you’ll have me.”
“Home is where you and Skye are.”
Finn’s eyes glisten, and he flicks them between mine. “I really,reallyneeded you. I was too scared to call you and for you to see me like this, to hear you tell me we’re done.”
“I know, baby. I’m here now. I’m not going anywhere. And I want you to come home.”
He leans down an inch, and I push up onto my toes to press a small kiss to his lips. “I need help, Maya.”
“Then we’ll get you the help you need,” I say as I stroke his cheek. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”
When we turn to leave, JJ is standing by the door, holding out his arms, and bundles Finn into a tight hug. I watch them for a moment as JJ murmurs something into Finn’s ear and he nods, clutching onto his best friend tighter.
All I know is I’m not giving up on the man who has the brightest future ahead of him.
CHAPTER 53
FINN THOMPSON
The taste of alcohol is still on my tongue, no matter how many times I brush my teeth.
After going to a meeting last night and telling my sponsor what happened, I realised I need to put more faith in the people around me. I shouldn’t have bottled things up, I only made it worse.
When I got home, I couldn’t hold Skye. Maya tried to encourage me, but I felt guilty and dirty knowing I’d put poison into my body. I needed to sleep it off and start a different day.
Maya kisses my shoulder blade as she wraps her arms around me from behind.
“Morning,” she whispers sweetly. “How are you feeling?”
I shrug. “I don’t know.”
“That’s okay,” she says supportively. “We can take it one minute at a time.”
My eyes close as she kisses my skin until I’m numb and not in a way that alcohol can make me feel. Numb with love and security. It’s overwhelming, and despite battling my thoughts throughout the night and telling myself I didn’t deserve to feel that way, I forced those thoughts away.
They’re only going to make me worse if I allow them to fester.
“I know you said you had a bad session with your therapist,” she murmurs as she pushes herself up, and I glance over my shoulder at her. “But do you think you should ask for an emergency meeting? To let him know what’s happened and see what extra support you can get right now.”
I swallow around my dry throat. “Yeah.”
She smooths her hand down my bare arm, and I twist to face her, stretching my fingers through her long hair and enjoying the familiarity of it. I take in her face and every little detail, even down to the way she’s looking at me.
