AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My eyes were downcast to avoid seeing the truth of it in his.
“I promise you. This wouldn’t be the right time, not like this. But our time will come.” A finger lifted my chin, bringing our eyes to meet, and what was in Callum’s was nothing like rejection.
* * *
I had wanted him.
All of him. And I could feel he’d felt the same way. His promise had been hollow. With everything that had happened in the following weeks, there was never going to be a magical time for Callum and me. I had been naïve to think his promise was meant to be kept.
There was no satisfaction in pushing the letter through the mailbox slot. Not when seeing Callum had stolen the impending victory I was expecting, and the memories had returned to plague my mind, reminding me of the person I had tried so hard to escape from.
* * *
A repetitive rap on the front door woke me. A series of three knocks before silence fell again. I laid still, eyes fixated on the ceiling and ears straining, hoping whoever it was at the absurd hour would just go away.
No such luck.
Another series of raps.
Frustrated, I pushed back the covers and slid my feet to the floor. I’d suffered through the restless night, unable to fall asleep until the sun had already started rising, cracking like lava glowing on the horizon.
Pulling open the door with a glacier-like stare at the unwelcome visitor, I saw a truck disappearing between the trees and discovered my new mattress abandoned, resting against the side of the house. It had been left balancing precariously for me to tackle inside by myself.
Marvelous.
I had already attempted moving it up the stairs three times in three different ways, and every attempt proved to be as fruitless as the last. I was frustrated, sweating, and cursing the lump of a mattress that wouldn’t budge any farther. There was no way I’d get the blasted thing upstairs on my own.
Tears prickled the back of my eyes, feeling completely useless as I slumped down against the wall on the first step, defeated. How had she done it? How had my mother lived in this house with a child to raise all on her own?
I let out a frustrated scream, screaming at the mattress, the house, and the universe for dealing me such a shitty hand in life. “I hate you.I fucking hate you!”
I stopped only when my breath was drained from my lungs and burning for air. Balling my fists, I inhaled, preparing myself for round two, when the front door swung wide with urgency. A dark figure silhouetted by the daylight practically filled the doorframe.
Startled by the intruder, I screamed again, scurrying to my feet for flight.
“Alina, sweetheart. Are you okay?” Huge warm hands cupped my cheeks, holding my face level with his, his eyes filled with fear. “Talk to me, Alina.”
My tongue felt thick in my mouth, and my throat burned hoarse, both roadblocks to forming words. The unmasked tenderness of his expression caught me off guard. The look in Callum’s eyes held me silent, even if it had been possible to get a sentence out.
“Water,” I croaked.
He frowned for a flash, his brows descending just as quickly as it took for his face to relax again. “Okay.”
For another beat, we stood mesmerized.
ChapterTen
Callum
My heart leaped into my throat, and my feet couldn’t move fast enough, hearing her screams piercing the air.
I was ready to launch into battle, beat the ever-living shit out of whoever had sparked Alina’s rage.
Pushing the door wide while my heart was racing and my fists clenching, Alina was all I could see, her eyes wide with shock as she prepared to flee.
After my heart slowed to a normal pace and she broke our intense stare, Alina allowed me to lead her by the hand into the kitchen before sitting at the table while I filled a glass with water for her.
She greedily swallowed it down, not taking a breath until the glass was empty. The whole time, her eyes avoided mine as I watched her.
