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The second I step into her new bedroom, my heart jumps into my throat at the sight of her thrashing around on the bed, lost to her nightmares with Sasha sitting beside her.
"It's okay," I say, climbing onto the bed with her. "I'll take it from here."
7
Mia
“No, no,” I cry, thrashing against Cade.
“Shh,” he whispers against my cheek. “Shh.”
I blink rapidly, the darkness shifting and stretching into something else. “B-Bexley?” I croak, relaxing against his body.
“Shh, I’m right here, Mia. It’s me,” he says thickly. “You were having a nightmare.”
Instinct makes me try to recoil from his embrace, but his arms tighten around me.
“Please, let me do this. Let me be here for you.” Pain laces his words. “I’m not asking for anything in return, I just… I need to be here for you.”
“O-okay,” I reply, shuffling back into his warm body. Silence falls over us, thick and oppressive. Cade might be gone, but he’s still here in the room with us, wedged between us like a glacier.
I inhale a shuddering breath, exhaling slowly. Bexley’s hand splays over my stomach, but his touch remains innocent.
I meant what I said earlier. I’m broken. Something inside me died that night in the woods. But I can give Bexley this.
I can givemyselfthis.
Because if there’s one place I’ve always felt safe, it’s with him.
“I wish I could make this all better.” His sincere words flutter over my cheek. “If I could take all your pain and heartache away, I’d do it. I’d do it in a heartbeat, Mia.”
“I know.”
But that’s a fantasy. And this is reality.
“It’s the funeral the day after tomorrow,” he says, and I go deathly still.
“We were going to tell you earlier but—"
“Who… Quinctus.” She answers her own question.
“They’ve handled everything, yes.”
Tears trickle down my face. “I didn’t even get to tell them I loved them.” I’d been so angry at them both. It felt justified at the time, but now all I want to do is rewind the clock and hug them.
“They knew, Mia. You were their daughter. They knew.” I release a thin breath, and Bexley hugs me tighter. “You’ll get through this,” he whispers.
“How can you be so sure?” Because I feel like I’m never going to be whole again.
“Because you’re one of the strongest people I know. And I love you, Mia. I love you so fucking much.”
The words teeter on the tip of my tongue, like an old habit you can’t quite kick. My heart remembers, even if it’s too damaged to care.
I love you too.I don’t say it out loud.
I can’t.
Because loving Bexley won’t bring my parents back.
