Page 83 of Calling a Cease-Fire

I stood frozen in place. Part of me wanted to run to him and beg him not to leave, while the other half of me wanted to fall to the floor and cry because I knew I had to let him go.

He paused at the front door, looking over at me one last time, and then he was gone.

The sound of the apartment door slamming shut finally broke me. I collapsed to the floor, tears streaming down my cheeks.

“Why didn’t he listen?” I sobbed.

My chest felt tight, and I wondered if this was what a heart attack felt like. I couldn’t breathe, and the thought of not being with him made me sick to my stomach.

But ultimately, this was for the best. Because I could never give him what he wanted. What he deserved.

Chapter Thirty-One

ZACK

I didn’t want to be here. Thankfully, I’d been off the last two days, eating my feelings and barely getting out of bed. How had I been so wrong about Mia? It really felt like she was falling in love with me. Just like I was with her. It all felt so right. So perfect. But I was obviously so fucking wrong.

She’d warned me. Told me it would end like this. And I didn’t listen.

I really thought we were different. That my love for her would be enough. And because of that, I only had myself to blame.

“Why are we back to being mopey again?”

I paused after setting my duffle down on one of the bunks, and looked up at Adam. Did it even matter now if he knew the whole story? I hesitated, then finally purged everything that had happened since that night at the hospital.

“So you just left?” Adam asked, incredulously.

I frowned at him. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting from him. Anger, maybe? Or a snide I told you so. But I clearly wasn’t prepared for the you’re a dumbass tone.

“What was I supposed to do?”

“Stay.” His tone clearly said isn’t that obvious? “Fight for her.”

“She doesn’t love me.” Did he not get that from everything I’d just told him?

“Jesus Christ,” he huffed. “And you believe that?”

I shrugged, not sure of anything anymore. “I didn’t. But I guess I was wrong.”

“Or, she’s just scared and freaked out. From what Lyla’s told me, Mia’s never been in love before. Has never allowed herself to be.”

I already knew that about her. Or at least assumed it based on our conversations and the way she was so awkward with certain things at first. I thought about all the ways she made me believe she was falling in love with me too. The trust she willingly gave me. Becoming comfortable and happy with cuddling. The way she enjoyed spending time with me outside of just hooking up. How she softened from my touch. The way her eyes lit up when I called her baby. Worrying about my hurt feelings at the wedding when I was being a possessive jerk.

Not to mention the way her feelings for me shone in her eyes.

There was no way she didn’t feel the same. But regardless, did that change anything? I couldn’t make her embrace her feelings. Especially not when she was so hell-bent on denying and burying them.

“What if I can’t get her to admit she’s in love with me too?”

“You can’t walk away without trying.” He cocked a brow. “Unless she’s not worth it.”

My spine went rigid. “Of course she’s worth it.”

“Then there’s your answer, asshole.”

And it really was that simple.

Looking back at my duffle, I reminded myself I had twelve hours before my shift ended. Hopefully that would be enough time to come up with a plan to get her to realize how she really felt about me. Because she was definitely fucking worth it.