Page 40 of Prove Me Wrong (The Sunburnt Hearts #5)

Chapter Thirty-One

NOAH

“ I lost a life and gained another that night,” I squeeze out, torment tightening my chest, air getting wedged in my oesophagus and burning like reflux.

Mia’s stormy eyes glassed over in tears stare up into mine, framed by dark lashes and messy eyeliner, top lip shadowing her bottom as her mouth parts.

“You don’t need to say anything, Grey,” I admit kindly, running my tongue along my lips and pulling her against my defined chest, hand itching to run through her long, brunette hair.

“I’ve had time to deal with it internally, and I’m okay now.

It hurts to talk about. But I have Jade.

She’s all I wanted. Until I saw you, Mia. ”

Mia’s shoulders vibrate, and I pull her tighter, ensuring that she feels comfortable without being suffocated.

I want her to open up to me, to tear down those walls she’s put up between us to keep her safe.

I want her to know that she never needs to keep anything guarded from me, that I’ll understand whatever it is she’s keeping locked up and smothered deep inside of her.

“I was hurt really badly by someone I thought I could trust.” Her voice is suddenly devoid of emotion, as if it’s easier for her to talk about when her feelings are shut off.

Pain stabs at me when I realise how wounded she must feel if this is the only way she can tell me.

I understand why she has kept it buried for this long.

The agony is too much for her to bear. “I met him at uni four years ago, with a group of people who I thought were my friends, but now I know that they never intended on keeping me around. I guess I wasn’t good enough for them. ”

My chest feels weighed down by her sad admission, and if I could see her face right now, I have a feeling it would be distant and cold, just like her tone as she recalls the demons she’s been fighting.

“I never wanted to date him, but for some reason they pushed us together, and I agreed to be with Ryan to fit in with them. I don’t normally struggle with making friends, but there was something about them that drew me closer, needing to be a part of their clique.

It was a huge mistake, though. I regret befriending them every day.

” Her words are hollow, cutting through my heart.

“He started off by persuading me that he cared, that I should trust him, but it was only so that I would sleep with him. I caught on when I found him texting other girls, and I realised that he never really wanted me, or if he did, it wasn’t to love me. He just wanted to use me.”

I readjust my posture against the couch, suddenly feeling uncomfortable with where this story is going.

I’m understanding why Mia has been so hesitant with me and other men.

If I’m feeling this unnerved just listening, I can’t begin to imagine how she must feel as someone who has been used and cheated on.

My lungs ache as I try to reign in my anger, but I can feel it intensifying.

Mia’s hands start rubbing at her elbows, and I let her, knowing that it’s her coping mechanism, just like how I used to hit things when I was dealing with my own pain.

“When I tried to leave him, he would threaten me, saying he would go after my brother or parents. And if I told anyone what he did... I was frightened that he would stick to his word. I never knew he was capable of being so horrible. Ryan always seemed fine before we got together, but I saw the evilness in his eyes and knew that he wasn’t kidding around.

” Swallowing heavily, I hear her gulp. Fear licks up the back on my neck as I wait to learn what happened.

“That’s when he started forcing himself onto me when I refused to sleep with him. ”

The sparks heating my blood springs into a full-on wildfire as my eyes burn red with rage. The fact that this Ryan guy would cheat on her is insanity in itself, but to use her and rape her is a step too far that makes my teeth grit so hard they may shatter like glass.

“He did what ?” I seethe, hands fisting.

Mia wipes her eyes, sucking in a deep breath, trying to keep herself from crumbling in my intense hold.

“He assaulted me. More than once. Held me down and forced me underneath him. I screamed and tried to fight him off.” Her voice breaks, and I know her strength is disintegrating.

“I finally got away one day and ran all the way to Sinnett’s.

I didn’t leave my brother’s apartment for weeks, and I didn’t speak to anyone else for months.

It took me ages to even walk outside on my own, with fear constantly constricting my breath, making me panic until I bolted back home behind the safety of my locked door.

I felt like I was trapped, even though Ryan never came after me again.

He never bothered finding me. Left me to overcome everything.

I felt just as suffocated living in that apartment as I did under his control.

Every day I woke up with the fear of the unknown.

I avoided men, not going anywhere they might be.

I even shook just speaking to a worker in a store. ”

Mia breaks down into tears, and I pull her onto my lap.

Legs flanking mine, arms wrapping around her waist, I rest my chin on her shaking shoulder as she cries into the crook of my neck.

They’re hot tears that slide along my goose bumped flesh, but I ignore the feeling, withstanding the fury that licks at my skin uncomfortably.

Grey needs me, and I am not going anywhere.

“I hate him.” Her words are barely a whisper, but they’re heavy with pain and aversion.

“I hate him, too,” I murmur against the shell of her ear, tilting my face to kiss her temple. “I’ll kill him if I see him.”

She chokes out a thick sob, nodding. “Please do.” She sniffs, adding quietly, “He ruined me.”

Her words feel like a serrated knife to my chest. Mia feels broken, and exploited, like she’ll never be good enough, and it makes my throat burn.

“You’re not ruined, Grey,” I utter, and she lets out another husky cry.

Gently, I cup her face in my hands, moving her to look down at me, tears falling down her reddened cheeks like raindrops.

“You’re beautiful, and caring, and none of this makes me think any less of you.

” My gaze watches a tear drop down to her parted mouth.

Swallowing, my fingers brush loose strands behind her ear before holding her face, guiding it towards mine.

I’m craving her lips, wanting to feel her touch.

My mouth grazes hers lazily. Fingers twisting in my shirt, Mia falls against me, connecting with mine like two puzzle pieces linking together after spending ages apart.

My hands slowly trail down her sides, stopping to hold her waist as my pulse thrums wildly in my veins.

Head swimming, mouths moving, blood pooling in my jeans, fear flickers through me as I realise she might pull away.

I don’t want to stop touching her, feeling her against me like a piece of me that’s been absent this whole time.

She must feel my pants tightening because her hands start to shake in the fabric of my top, and I stop the kiss before her anxiety increases .

Breathing heavily, chest moving quickly, Mia dips her chin, resting her forehead on mine, eyes fluttering closed. My pulse drums loudly, and my fingers tighten on her side as I feel her sugary breath on mine.

“Grey, we don’t?—”

“I know.” Her lips are so close to mine, thick and soft, and I want more of them. Swallowing, her fingers grip the bottom of my shirt, lifting it up, exposing my muscular abdomen. She raises it to my defined chest before looking me in the eyes, silently asking for me to remove it.

I do.

Sitting up, I pull it up over my head before leaning back on the couch, taking all of her in. Sitting on me, face wet with tears, eyes round and stained with mascara, I still think she’s gorgeous.

Hands holding onto her sides, my gaze drops to the small teal flower hanging on her necklace. It’s small but delicate, coated in silver. My fingers rise and graze the pendant, forcing Mia to look down at it. “What is this?”

The corner of her pouty lips quirk to the side as she pushes it towards me, giving me a closer look. “It’s a lotus flower. It’s the flower for sexual assault victims, and teal is the chosen colour.”

I frown, and her silver reddened eyes find mine. “Do you wear it as a reminder of what happened?” My voice is thick.

She shakes her head, letting go for it, allowing it to fall back against her collarbone.

“My therapist gave it to me to wear as a reminder that there’s more to me than what happened.

That even though I went through something awful, it’s only a small part of my life, and that I should be able to move on from it, however long that takes. ”

My eyes glaze over with tears as she stares at me, eyes heavy with affliction, but there’s a spark of hope running through her wide pupils. “Grey… ”

Mia shakes her head again, and I stop, my mouth slightly parted. “I’m working through it, but slowly, and I hate that it still controls my life, but since I met you, Noah, it’s been getting easier.”

My mouth curls faintly as her hands glide up my obliques, to my chest and then the small tattoo on my bicep. I almost forgot it was there; I haven’t looked at it in months, but the reminder feels like a rock in my heart.

“It’s the date Em died, and Jade’s birthday,” I murmur.

I hear her breath hitch as a fingertip moves along my rough skin like silk. Her touch is like nothing I’ve felt before, soft and meaningful, like Mia sees more of me than just my body. She can see down to my soul, holding whatever I have left in her palms as if it’s precious.

Her tongue swipes her bottom lip when she asks, “Did you name her Jade after Emerald?”

My chin dips. “Yeah. As a way to remember her that wasn’t Jade’s birthday.”

Mia sniffs, glassy eyes colliding with mine.

My hands grab her face, bringing her to mine once more.

Kissing her feels abating and fervent. I could do it all day if she’d let me.

Lips moving with mine, tongues mingling, fingers gripping and exploring, I inhale the jasmine of her perfume that tingles my nose pleasantly.

Hands digging into her narrow waist, mouth loosening, eyes shut, I enjoy the feeling of her against me, knowing that her guard is finally down.

That Mia finally trusts me enough to share the ghosts of her past with me.

And even though her thoughts have overpowered her into believing that nobody will want her, that men will see her as weak and broken, I have never wanted her more. To hold her close and never let her go .

My hands run down her legs, feeling the smoothness of her thighs like satin. I hear her breathing pick up once more. Movement stilling, chest skipping a beat, my eyes open to see hers watching me.

I move my head back, breaking our kiss. “I won’t touch you until you’re ready, Grey.”

Nodding, her fingers wipe under her eyes, dragging makeup and tears away as her lips keep trembling. “Why are you being so patient with me, Noah?”

My burning throat is quenched as I swallow, mouth twitching to one side. I push hair out of her stunning face. “Because I love you, Mia.”

I feel her entire body stiffen on top of mine, her breath hitching. Mia’s charcoal eyes stare into mine, lips parted with shock.

“You don’t have to say it back,” I let out quickly before she slips away from me. “But I wanted you to know that I want to be with you, if you want to be with me.”

Her throat moves, eyes dancing between mine as if she can’t grasp the fact that someone could love her without using her, without touching her body.

Mia’s face breaks, just like my chest, but not because she didn’t say it back.

It’s because she’s finally realising that I’m nothing like that prick of an ex.

That I want to be with her despite her fears and reluctance.

I’ll always be patient with her, for as long as she needs me to be because I have well and truly fallen for this girl. I just hope that I’ve proven her wrong that I’ll love her until my heart stops beating.