Page 31 of Don’t Break My Heart (Secrets of Ravens Hollow #3)

I grit my teeth as the plane moves slowly down the runway, tears falling down and over my cheeks.

Fear, pain, anger, helplessness all blur into one.

My body is so on edge I don’t know what to do.

I never ever thought a man could make me feel so broken, but I trusted them, all of them.

They made me want more for my life than I ever thought possible.

I was imagining a life with all four of them.

How could I have been so stupid to have let their handsome faces and false promises blind me.

I’m supposed to be smarter than this, but maybe Daisy was the smart one, keeping her heart locked up tight and never letting anyone in.

What’s that saying? It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all . Well, it’s bullshit. I wish I listened to Onyx and never got involved with any of them in the first place.

The jet lifts off, and my stomach drops.

Romeo takes my hand in his, giving it a squeeze.

I can’t even shove him off. All I can do is keep my eyes locked up tight and try to take myself away from here.

Try to pretend the man holding my hand isn’t the same asshole who just devastated me.

For what feels like forever I keep my eyes shut up tight, blocking it all out.

The fear of flying lessens in comparison to what I have just been through.

A chime cuts through the silence, and another announcement tells us we can remove our belts and move around the jet. I open my eyes and turn to Romeo like I’m possessed. “Get these fucking cable ties off me.” I don’t even recognize my own voice it’s so filled with animosity toward him.

He assesses me with caution. “Sloane, you know this is for the best, we only wanted to keep you safe.”

I glare back at him, my nostrils flaring. I have nothing left to say to him. “Get them off or I will.” I tug at them again, ripping skin off my arms as the plastic digs in.

“Get them off her,” comes Reef’s voice from the seats across from me. But I don’t look his way; my glare is directed at Romeo.

Romeo slips a pocketknife out of his suit pocket, slicing through the plastic effortlessly.

I reef my hands away from him and massage life back into my wrists, feeling the burn of where the plastic cut into my skin.

I feel all their eyes on me, and I can’t stand it.

I have never felt so fucking trapped in my life.

I don’t make eye contact. I can’t, because if I do, I will lose it completely.

The way-too-flirty flight attendant, who looked after us on the way over, is back pushing her trolley toward us with a stupid smile on her pretty face. I can’t help but glare at her.

“Can I get refreshments for you?” she offers way too perkily.

The boys all answer her, but I have no words left for pleasantries, and I’ll be fucked if I’m taking a drink that could be laced from them again.

Nausea churns in my stomach. I knew what Orlando was capable of, but I thought we had moved past all of that.

I thought some trust was building between us.

I try to swallow the rising bile, but I can’t.

I unbuckle my belt and stand in a rush, shoving past the flight attendant and knocking the drinks she’s pouring out of her hand.

“Hey!” she calls over her shoulder at me, irritated.

But I fucking don’t care, I run down the back of the jet and throw open the bathroom door.

Dropping to my knees, I empty the contents of my stomach.

Over and over again until I’m dry-retching.

I grip hold of the toilet seat with white-knuckle force as I try to get my swirling head under control.

I have never felt so utterly broken, so hurt and sad at the same time. I was a fool.

“You okay, wildcat?” comes Reef’s soft, caring voice from the door.

I can’t even look at him. He’s hurt me just as much letting them do this to me. “Fuck off, Reef.”

“I’m here for you if you need me,” he says softly, and I know he’s still there behind me. Watching me at my fucking lowest point.

“Please just leave me alone,” I whisper cry, hopelessness overwhelming me.

“I’m so sorry, Sloane, we never wanted to hurt you,” he says quietly, and then he’s gone, leaving me alone in my own mess.

Eventually I pull myself up to standing, staring at the haunted reflection I see in the mirror. I’m not the girl I once was, and I will never be her again. She was innocent in a way I can’t get back.

I wash my face, scrubbing the cold water over my eyes and mouth until my hands feel raw. Blood mixes with water, staining my wrists all over again. It trickles down the sink, and I watch it, not able to look away. I take a cloth and wipe over my wrists, cleaning them up as best I can.

Then I move back into the jet, finding a seat away from the rest of them. I pull the blanket lying over the chair up and over my body. Curling my knees up into my chest, I hug them, leaning into the window and staring out at the sky.

I never wanted to fall in love with any of them.

All I wanted was a quick fuck to rid me of my problem, and one by one they got under my skin.

They knew what I wanted. They did their research on me and had me in their sights long before I knew I was their target, and I fell right into their trap.

And now I will be the one who never recovers.