Page 112 of Reckless Hearts

“Oh my god, I can’t believe you’re here,” she says. “I didn’t expect you to come all this way.”

“Of course,” Marcus says, his eyes sliding to mine, his arms still around my sister. “There’s nowhere else I want to be right now.”

My stomach lurches, a dizzying mix of relief and panic washing over me. I grip the arms of my chair, resisting the urge to rush into his arms.

“How did you get here so fast?” Saskia asks as she pulls back from hugging Marcus.

“Private jet,” Marcus says. “I called in a favor.”

She breaks into a watery smile. “The benefits of being a Hollywood star, eh?”

“Borrowing private jets is definitely a perk,” he says.

He glances over at me, and I can see the question on his face.

Oh god.

He’s here for me, but Saskia thinks he’s here for her, and Marcus is asking me for guidance on what we should do.

But I can’t do this to Saskia. I can’t drop this news on her now.

Suddenly, I realize the damage I’ve caused by insisting we hide our relationship from Saskia.

Now, when I need Marcus the most, I have to deprive myself of him or else hurt my sister.

I want nothing more than to have Marcus’s arms wrapped around me, to cry into his chest, to feel his steady heartbeat against my cheek.

But that can’t happen.

Saskia sits back down, and Marcus perches on the arm of Saskia’s chair.

“I’m so glad you’re here.” Her voice is thick with unshed tears.

She starts to fill him in on what has happened so far. Marcus’s eyes flick to mine, a storm of emotions swirling in their depths. I curl my fingers into my palms, my nails biting into my flesh.

Silence descends after Saskia finishes talking.

I shift in my seat, the plastic creaking loudly in the quiet room.

Marcus clears his throat. “I think you could all use some caffeine. I’ll see if I can track down some decent coffee.”

As he walks past me, his hand brushes my shoulder—a fleeting touch, gone too quickly.

As soon as he’s closed the door behind himself, Saskia turns to me, her eyes blazing.

“I can’t believe you were so rude to Marcus when he turned up. You’ve made him feel awkward.”

No, Saskia, I was actually just surprised that my boyfriend put his extremely busy life on hold and came all this way to comfort me. But I can’t tell you that because I’ve always been worried about your reaction to our relationship and afraid you’ll make him choose between us.

I rub my forehead. “I was just surprised to see him.”

“Marcus has been my best friend for over a decade. He’s always been there for me through everything. And at the time when I need him…” Her voice chokes off. “When I need him the most, you’re acting like he doesn’t belong here.”

“I’m sorry.” My words feel weighted down by secrets and guilt. Like I’m apologizing to Saskia for more than she realizes. “I didn’t mean to make him feel uncomfortable.”

“Well, you did,” she says.

Shit. Saskia’s not going to back down from this.