Page 51 of Don’t Go Breaking My Heart

Kannon always had a temper, but it had never been directed at me before. Not like this. The anger rolling off him now was like a storm crashing down on me. I was caught right in the middle of it.

He glared at me. I immediately regretted prying into his life. It was stupid. And none of my business. Cooking him dinner in an attempt to butter him up was a mistake. He was not going to soften up and tell me his story. It made me rethink last night. I shouldn’t have let myself get caught up in the moment.

I was afraid we had irrevocably damaged our friendship. “Kannon⁠—”

“Explain.”

My eyebrows shot up. “Excuse me?”

“What the hell were you and Riggs doing, talking about my personal life?” His voice was low and tight, the kind of tone that usually sent people running for cover. If I was smart, I would be running instead of standing here in front of the man that was clearly very pissed at me.

“I—” I didn’t know what to say and shut my mouth.

“Where do you get off thinking that’s any of your business? If you wanted to know something, you should’ve come to me. Not gone behind my back like a coward.”

I opened my mouth, then shut it once again. I felt like a fish out of water. I hadn’t expected this, not from him. I really thought he would be fine with it. We were friends. And last night, we were lovers. “It wasn’t like that⁠—”

“Then what was it like?” he snapped, cutting me off. “You think you can just waltz back into town, dig up whatever you want about me, and I’m supposed to be okay with it?”

My own temper started to flare. I stepped toward him, facing him head on. “It wasn’t some premeditated thing, Kannon. I wasn’t scheming or plotting, alright? I was spiraling after last night and trying to figure out what the hell my next move was. I needed some context, and Riggs happened to be there.”

His mouth twisted into something that was almost a sneer. “Context, huh? And you couldn’t just ask me?”

“And what was I supposed to say to you?” I shot back, glaring up at him. “Hey, you fuck like a god, but I need to know what made you all twisty inside before I decide whether I want to keep going with you or just call it quits and be friends?”

His laugh was harsh and sharp, cutting through the air like a knife. “We haven’t been friends in a long time, Merritt.”

“That’s not fair⁠—”

“No, what’s not fair is you conveniently deciding you need my friendship now that you’re back in town and in need of fixing again.” His jaw was tight, his teeth gritted. “You use me, Merritt. Always have, always will.”

That stung. My throat tightened. “That’s not true.”

“No?” He stepped closer, his voice dropping to a dangerous level. “I’m glad you enjoyed yourself last night. So did I. I’ve been dreaming about it for fucking years. But let’s be honest here. If the car accident hadn’t killed my wife, the memory of you would’ve destroyed us anyway.”

The words hit me like a punch to the chest, stealing my breath. “Kannon! You can’t say that!”

His eyes hardened, his anger never more palpable. “Can’t I?” he asked with a bitter smile. “Because it’s the truth.”

“No,” I whispered, but I was struggling for breath. His words were bouncing around my head. They hurt more than any physical blow could have.

Kannon’s shoulders shook slightly as he laughed without joy. “You’ve always had the luxury of running away, Merritt,” he said with a sneer. “The rest of us don’t get to do that. I was here. Right where you left me.”

I could feel the tears burning the backs of my eyes. “I went to school,” I said.

“Yeah, I know. Everyone knows. Your father was proud of his daughter. He talked about you all the time.”

“He told me about you,” I said, as if that made it better.

“I don’t care,” he hissed. “That doesn’t change anything. You have no business prying into my life. You’ve been gone a long time, Merritt. You lost the right to know anything about me. Or my marriage.”

The words felt like a slap. I blinked, forcing back the tears. “You’re wrong,” I said, my voice a hoarse whisper. “I never stopped caring about you.”

“And what use is that?” Kannon shot back. “Where was your caring when I needed it most?”

“I wanted to reach out,” I admitted, taken aback by the raw pain in his words. “But I was scared. Scared you’d push me away. Every year I was away from here made it that much harder to reach out. I assumed you moved on. I didn’t want to get in the way.”

“Seems like your fear hasn’t stopped you from pushing into places you’re not wanted now.” His voice was cold.