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She had to let Dane go.
It had gutted her. To her very core. Right down to her soul.
It had been one long week of roaming her apartment, with visits from Jaxson and Mia, while they waited for the shooting investigation to be complete. Then another long week of working, of trying to get back into a normal routine.
She didn’t even want to see what next week would bring. More short tempers, little patience, and a lack of care for the disorganization going on. Who knew how long she’d act this way? She didn’t want to act like a pitiful woman like she was the scorned one. She wasn’t. She left him. But her battered heart felt like she was the victim. Like she’d never recover.
Well, the break up did bring one good thing in her life.
A distraction from the shooting.
Her mind had been on Dane more than it had been on the investigation. She didn’t like to think about the fact she had to shoot a man even though he had shot first.
She heard her front door open and close.
Odd.
She swore she had locked her door because she didn’t want anyone to bother her. She had wanted to wallow in her self-pity for the entire weekend, and by the end, maybe she’d be ready to get back to some sort of normalcy.
Her entire body jerked when Dane stepped into view. He looked handsome yet sad. His hair, although not long enough to mess up, stood slightly on its end, as if he had been running his hand through his hair a little too much. Deep shadows rimmed his brown eyes. Wrinkles manned his forehead as a severe frown marred his lips. But his clothes looked pristine, as always.
She stood up.
He continued to stare at her.
Neither said a word.
Then he held his hand out, palm up. Her apartment key rested in the middle. She knew she had locked her door. He let himself in. Her damn fault for not getting her key back. It had slipped her mind.
“Do you want it?”
She eyed the key, then glanced at him. No, she didn’t want it. She wanted him.
Instead of answering with the words that ached to escape, she stepped closer and took the key. That was about all she could answer with.
It felt warm in her palm. As sad and pathetic as it seemed, she squeezed the key tighter as if she could soak up the warmth from his touch. Pretend he was touching her and not the tiny key.
“I had a lot of different things I thought I’d say to you, but now…” he shrugged.
Now, what?
What sorts of things?
By his sudden silence, she didn’t think she’d be hearing any of it.
Of course, she wasn’t acting much better. Her silence was grating on her own nerves. But she couldn’t seem to find her voice. Because once she spoke, she might beg him not to leave. To give her one more chance. She didn’t deserve another chance.
“Jaxson said you lied to me. Let’s start there.” His jaw clenched, a few muscles ticking in his cheek.
She flinched. “When did you talk to Jaxson?”
“Answer my question first.”
She didn’t want to. Mostly because it wouldn’t help her already strung emotions.
“Gabriella—” he started to say as he took a step forward. But he stopped when she took a step back.
Enough was enough. She had to put her big girl panties on and tell him the truth—kind of. Then kick him out of her life once again before she broke down in tears.
