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"No, thank fuck. She kept her distance this week."
The sound of kissing at the other side of the firepit drags my eyes over once more before Cole stands with Hadley in his arms.
"We're gonna call it a night," he states before marching into the house without a backward glance.
"Fuck's sake," Alex mutters, grabbing another beer and knocking the top off.
"Quit being a pussy. You wanted to spend time with your sister. Here we are."
"Yeah, I just didn't plan on you both getting balls deep while I sit here alone with a bottle for company."
I shake my head at him and stare out at the water. This weekend was a good idea. Exactly what Mia needed. Hopefully, after a decent night's sleep, she'll be feeling a little more like herself.
I check on her a couple of times when I slip into the house to use the bathroom or to grab more beer, and each time, she's sound asleep.
When I finally call it a night and head upstairs to bed, I forego my allocated bedroom—the one I chose in the hope that we'd be able to share it—and instead slip into her room.
Toeing off my sneakers, I strip down to my boxers and climb into bed behind her, wrapping my arm around her waist and burying my face in her hair, losing myself in her familiar floral scent."I love you, Mia," I breathe.
She doesn't react—not that I expect her to.
One day soon, though, she will. I know we've got a long journey ahead of us to rediscover the couple we were before—if we were ever actually a couple— but I know it'll be worth the wait. If I know one thing for certain in this whole mess, then it's that she's the one for me, and we'll come out the other side. Together.
13
Mia
For the first time in what feels like forever, I sleep peacefully. The nightmares hover on the edge of my consciousness, trying to find a way in. But Bexley chases them off, his big warm body like armor.
When I wake, the sunlight is pouring in through the blinds, but I’m still not sure how I feel about last night. Bexley was right: for those few minutes, he’d distracted me. But it wasn’t a permanent fix.
I lay here, listening to his soft snores. He’s laying on his back with one arm tucked behind his head and one draped over my hip. Every time I woke in the night, some part of him was touching some part of me. I spent so long craving this intimacy with him, and now we have it. We have the chance to be together without the need for all the secrets and lies.
But it’s tainted.
I watch him for a second longer before slipping quietly out of bed. Pulling on a hoodie, I go in search of coffee. The beach house is silent other than the gentle hum of the refrigerator and the whir of the ocean beyond the windows.
Turning on the coffee maker, I grab a mug and stare out at the beach.
“It’s beautiful, right?”
I startle as Hadley enters the kitchen. “Sorry,” she says. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“It’s okay,” I murmur. “I’m still a little jumpy after…”
“I get it.”
“Coffee?”
“Sure.” She perches at the breakfast counter as I set about making our drinks. “Did you manage to get some sleep?”
“Yeah, I did, actually. Bexley, he…” My cheeks heat as I remember him climbing into bed with me last night.
“He cares about you a lot.”
“I know. But what happened… it really isn’t about him. It’s about me.”
“You know, after the abortion, I was a mess. I couldn’t ever imagine meeting someone who could love me. Until I met Cole.” Her eyes glitter with adoration.
