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The sound of the door opening has us both freezing. I’ve committed the ultimate rookie error. I didn’t lock it in my haste to get information. Flexing, I feel my gun tucked in its holster.
I’m not willing to die for a slip of memory, and nor will Holly.
She turns to me with panicked eyes. “Chase, kiss me,” she hisses.
“Absolutely fucking not,” I reply. “Why the hell would I do that?”
“God damnit Chase, I don’t have time to explain!” she frantically whispers. “Just play along!”
I narrow my eyes at her, also dropping my voice. “Not until you tell me what’s going on.”
Holly’s eyes swing between the door and me, then she sighs and rolls her eyes. “Oh, for fuck’s sake—”
I don’t get to utter a word before Holly’s lips are on mine. The kiss is bland, close-mouthed, as if I was kissing a child goodnight. Yet the glimpse of chestnut hair and emerald eyes staring at us, shocked, full of horror, tells me Holly’s made a grave mistake.
“Chase?”
I’ve never heard my name said with such broken devastation. I leap back, spinning to face Aria. A whirlwind of emotions course through me, and I don’t know which one is going to rip my heart to shreds first.
Sheer and utter panic wins.
“How could you,” she gasps, tears pooling and making her eyes shimmer with pain.
I’m filled with fear, fear so intense it’s the most overwhelming thing I’ve ever experienced. "Aria, wait. Let me explain."
Her face shutters. "Both of you. Holly, how could you?" she says, taking a step back.
"I didn't know it was you coming up the stairs,” Holly says, her voice weak, as if she’s weighed down by the damage she’s done. “I would have never done that.”
Something twists across Aria’s face. Something painful.
Fuck, we do not need this to happen right now.
"I don't want to hear it," she says, her voice wavering. “I trusted you both…”
She spins on her heel and dashes back downstairs. I’m left standing in the bathroom, beside the woman who just kissed me, watching Aria leave.
Ripping my heart out with her.
It takes me too long to move. Too long to realize I have to fix this. But when I do, I’m vaguely aware of Holly calling my name, I’m vaguely aware of my heart beating sluggishly in my chest. All I register is running. Screaming Aria’s name until my voice is hoarse, until my throat feels like it’s going to collapse. But I don’t stop.
I have to find her.
I must find her.
I need to find her.
* * *
Icheck her apartment, but it's empty, her belongings untouched, a stark reminder of her absence. The void is chilling, and I refuse to accept I won’t find her. Wild Heart, the one place she may have considered a safe haven, offers no solace. Panic gnaws at my insides, but I won't give up. I have to find her, explain everything, and make things right.
My heart races, the urgency of the situation coursing through me like a wildfire. Fueled by the overwhelming need to mend this perceived betrayal, I retrace my steps, ending up back at the club where our love story began. The pulsating music and flashing lights feel like a mockery as I scan the crowd, searching for any sign of her.
I step back out, the sights and memories too much. I can’t have destroyed the one good thing I’ve found. I may not deserve it, but I don’t give a fuck. I’m not losing Aria.
As if to give voice to the way my life is progressively slipping between my fingers, the skies above open up. There’s one raindrop, then two, then a deluge. I’m instantly saturated, my suit plastered to my skin. I’m actually glad. It mutes the sounds of the club, blurs the garish lights.
Washes away the scent of cheap perfume and liquor that seems to seep from the very walls.
