Page 89 of Burning Bridges Duet

“Liv! Are you okay?” I ask her, but we all stand there, frozen in place, no one daring to get to her. Her expression is haunted.

“What do you mean, the lesser evil?” Jaxon asks and Liv’s head turns to him.

“I’d just lost my parents. I watched my little brother in pain and terror before he bled out in my lap.”

I suck in a breath, feeling bile rise in my throat, before she continues.

“Liam told me he had plans for me, that he would take me away.”

“He’s a fucking psychopath,” Ryder spits out in disgust.

“He is,” Liv agrees. “I couldn’t stand the thought, so as soon as he left the room for a second, I jumped.”

“But you could have died!” Jaxon nearly yells.

“I think she knew that” Chase says sadly, his voice rough. It’s the first thing he’s said in a long time.

“I wanted to tell you guys everything before I left, but it seems you found out yourselves,” Liv says, looking at the floor, wringing her hands. “I understand if it’s too much baggage to handle. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before, but I’m still struggling with a lot. I found peace with you that I didn’t want to end. I was selfish, and I’m just so damn sorry.”

We all stand there in silence, processing what Liv just told us. My heart breaks for her, and I can feel the weight of her pain in the room.

Jaxon is the first to move, walking over to Liv and pulling her into a tight embrace.

“Never do that again to me, sunshine, you hear me?” he whispers against her temple. “Give us all your pain, we’ll help you carry it. Rage, cry, mourn—we’re here for everything, but never leave us again. I can handle your trauma, but I can’t handle you leaving me.”

Liv clings to Jaxon, tears streaming down her face. “I won’t,” she whispers, her voice breaking with emotion. “I’m sorry, I won’t.”

We all gather around her and Jaxon. Ryder is petting her back, while I kiss the side of her head. Only Chase is standing awkwardly beside us, unsure if she’d welcome his comfort. It’s clear that Liv’s strength and resilience have kept her going all this time, but it’s also obvious that she needs us now more than ever. I look at Chase and then tilt my head towards Liv. This isn’t the time for him being unsure. She needs to know that we’re all here for her.

Chase steps to her side, interlocking their pinky fingers. She turns her head on Jaxon’s chest to look at him, her eyes filled with questions.

“Liv, about what you saw the other day—” Chase starts, but she cuts him off.

“Don’t worry, Chase. You never promised me anything, and how could I expect you to only want me when I want all of you? We haven’t talked about boundaries or what this is. It hurt me, but my feelings are my problem, not yours.”

Jaxon lets go of her, and Chase pulls her to him. He takes her other hand and places it flat on his chest, above his heart.

“Liv, I swear I haven’t been with anyone else since I met you. My entire world shifted, and everything that was important to me no longer matters. What we share is too precious to risk, and I think I can speak for all of us when I say that we only want you. There will be no one else but us.”

“Just us,” Jaxon affirms, his commanding gaze locked onto hers.

“Just us,” Ryder and I say, echoing him at the same time.

“That girl came onto me, but I pushed her away. I would never do that to you. You mean too much to me,” he tells her, cupping her cheek.

“He’s telling the truth,” I say, and Liv looks at me. “I have proof if you need to see it, but I wouldn’t let him talk to you like that if he really did what you think.” Liv nods slowly, and Ryder chuckles beside me.

“He even punched Chase for what happened,” he reveals, and I elbow him in the ribs. Liv inhales sharply as she looks from me to Chase and back again.

“You did?” she asks, and Chase’s mouth turns up slightly.

“He did, and he got me good, but I deserved it. You wouldn’t have left if it wasn’t for me.”

She pulls her shoulders toward her head. “Actually, there’s something else I need to tell you guys,” she says, and we all look at her curiously. “When I left the studio after seeing you and her…” She pauses, and I bite my lip. “Chris had a letter for me at reception. It was from Liam, and I panicked.”

“What the fuck?” Jaxon erupts. “How does he know you’re here?”

“I have no idea,” Liv says, her lip quivering. “He used to send me letters from the institution he was in back in Toronto, but I only opened the first one. I haven’t told anyone where I’ve gone, only our old manager who helped me get out of there, and he would never tell him where I am.”