Page 54

HARLEY

P urchased confirmed.

I sighed and scrolled down the confirmation page on my phone. Two one-way tickets from Syracuse to Atlanta. Check.

I was curled up in my bed at Stephan’s house. My head hurt. My heart hurt. I’d wanted to find some other way to handle this, but there really was no other option. Stephan couldn’t keep us safe. He didn’t respect me. He wasn’t committed to me and Dylan.

I was a woman of my word. So, the next day, Dylan and I were going back to Atlanta.

I pulled the covers over my head, then dialed the number I knew by heart.

“Good morning,” Cassidy chirped as soon as she picked up. “Excellent timing, I just grabbed my post spin-class latte and I’m about to be stuck in traffic on the way to work.”

“Hi, Cass.”

“Everything okay? You sound terrible.”

The gentleness in my best friend’s voice made my heart finally snap. The floodgates opened, and I started bawling.

“Oh, no, Harley,” Cassidy said. “Cry it out. Then take a few deep breaths. Tell me what’s going on.”

All I could do for a few solid minutes was cry. Cassidy waited, patiently, until I’d made it through the worst of the tears and started doing my breathing exercises.

“You okay?” she asked.

“Not really,” I said.

Then I told her everything. How it’d been so good, how he said he loved me and talked about having more kids.

How I’d told him I loved him—how foolish that felt now.

How I’d been on cloud nine, and then how it all came crashing down.

I told her about his sketchy twin brother scaring me, how Stephan had yelled at me, and then, of course, that I’d found him in bed with Blakely.

“Jesus Christ,” Cassidy said. “The stuff with his brother is one thing, but he fucker around?”

“I know,” I said. “I couldn’t believe it either. Part of me still can’t.”

“He was like, obsessed with you,” Cassidy said. “So why the hell would he cheat? And with her ?”

“I don’t know. He says he doesn’t remember.”

“Men are such assholes,” she said. “Liars. Dickheads. How could he not remember? Did he blame the alcohol?”

“I’m not letting him,” I said. “He can’t use being drunk as an excuse. Not ever, but especially not for this.”

“Damn right,” Cassidy agreed. “Someone’s got to hold him responsible. I wish it didn’t have to be you.”

That made the tears well up in my eyes again. “I really thought… God, I thought—” The words were trapped in my throat.

“You love him. I know you wanted a real future with him, Harley. I really wanted that for you, too. You deserve to be happy. I’m really sorry.”

Again, the tears spilled over. Cassidy had been rooting for me and Stephan more than anyone else. She’d even job hunted for me. That made me feel like I wasn’t crazy—that there really was something between me and Stephan. Enough that other people could see it, too.

He’d thrown that all away.

I wished I knew why.

“I should fly up there and punch him in the dick,” Cassidy said.

That surprised a laugh out of me. “Don’t waste your money on the flight. I’m coming home tomorrow.”

“Good. I’ll meet you at your place. And I’ll bring ice cream and movies and sour cream and onion chips. We can bash anything with a penis. Except Dylan. He’s the exception because he’s amazing.”

“Thanks, Cassidy. I’ll let you know when we land.”

“Can’t wait to see you, girl. Take care of yourself.”

“I will,” I promised.

When I put my phone down, I felt a little better—a little more grounded. I knew getting out of here was the right thing.

I’d have to start over. Again.

Alone.

I got out of bed and took a few deep, steadying breaths.

I stepped into the hallway and listened for sounds of wakefulness from Dylan’s room.

It was quiet. I pushed the door open a crack.

Dylan was still dead to the world, sprawled on his comforter and drooling on his pillow. My heart warmed at the sight.

No matter what happened between me and Stephan, I’d always have my son. I had to do right by him.

I descended the stairs, ready to make coffee and pancakes and figure out how to tell Dylan we were leaving tomorrow…

Stephan was standing in the kitchen.

The coffee was on. Last night’s dishes were done. Eggs and bacon on the counter, ready to be cooked. Stephan was dressed, but his face was still pale, dark circles ringing his hazel eyes. Whether it was a hangover or exhaustion, I wasn’t sure.

“Harley,” he said. “I need you to know I didn’t sleep with her. I know I didn’t.”

I wrapped my arms around myself. My heart began to ache again, like it was one big bruise in my chest, and Stephan couldn’t stop pressing on it.

God, I was tired. I didn’t want to fight anymore.

“I don’t know how she ended up in the clubhouse,” Stephan admitted. “She’s completely banned. She shouldn’t even have gotten through the door. I never—it’s not only me that hates her, Harley, it’s my dragon.”

“Didn’t look like that was the case,” I muttered. I was afraid I’d never get that image out of my head: Stephan asleep with Blakely’s head pillowed on his chest like she belonged there.

“I’ll admit I don’t remember much of what happened after you left,” Stephan said.

“I kept drinking. I knew the whiskey worked, but it worked a little better than I anticipated. So, everything’s hazy.

But I remember the end of the night. Everything was winding down.

The only people around were the enforcers and…

” His brow furrowed slightly. “And Tori. But I know I went to my room alone. I know that.”

I sighed. He was drunk when I’d left the clubhouse. If he’d kept drinking after that, he’d probably blacked out. How could I trust his memory?

How could I trust him at all?

“I don’t know what you want me to say.”

Stephan’s face fell. Maybe he’d expected me to get angry again. But now, I was exhausted.

“I want you to believe me,” Stephan said. “I want you to believe that I wouldn’t do that to you.”

“I wish I could,” I said in a small voice. “But it doesn’t make any sense, Stephan. She was naked in your bed. All the explanations in the world won’t change that.”

“Let’s talk about this.” He poured a cup of coffee and slid it across the counter toward me. “Please.”

I stayed where I was. I felt like a stray cat he was trying to lure closer with treats. My heart wanted to trust him. I wanted to be closer, to lean against the strength of his chest and feel his arms wrap around me, to lose myself in his kiss and imagine that everything would be okay.

But that was a fantasy. It’d been a fantasy ten years ago, and it was a fantasy now.

“There’s nothing left to talk about,” I said. “I’m taking Dylan back to Atlanta tomorrow.”

Stephan’s face fell. “What? Tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow morning. I already booked our flights.”

“Harley, please.” Gold flashed in his eyes, and his expression was shattered, like I’d reached into his chest and pulled out his heart. “Don’t leave. Not like this.”

“I have to.”

“You don’t have to.” There was a desperate edge to his voice. “We can figure this out. I’m handling it. I’ll handle Blakely?—”

“You’re always handling it,” I said. I wasn’t angry anymore, but there was a steeliness to my voice that made Stephan fall silent.

“Blakely was a problem a decade ago, and she’s still a problem now.

Sean’s still a problem. The cops are still a problem.

And you’ve got this distillery business that looks like it could be a whole new problem.

Nothing’s been handled, Stephan. It’s too much.

” I pressed my fingertips to my temples, then closed my eyes to hold back the tears that threatened to start falling again.

“It’s all too much. We got through Dylan’s first shift.

That’s what he needed, that’s why we came here. And now we’re leaving.”

Stephan stared at me. His expression was still full of pain.

I hated seeing him like that. My heart wanted to fix it.

Wanted to give him another chance. But I couldn’t risk it.

I couldn’t risk my son getting wrapped up into this mess.

Sean had threatened us last time—what if he was planning something worse?

I couldn’t count on Stephan to protect us. Not anymore. Not after seeing him with Blakely.

“I’m not going to keep you out of Dylan’s life,” I continued. “You’re still his father. I still want him to have a relationship with you.”

“Harley—”

“Once things are settled down in Lakeview, and everything’s safe, you can have him in the summers. But only when everything’s safe.”

Stephan braced both hands on the counter and dropped his head. He took a few breaths, then looked up at me, his eyes burning gold with emotion. “I can’t force you to stay here. I’d never do that.”

“I know.”

“I want you to believe me when I say there was nothing with Blakely. But I know that’s not enough.”

“It’s not,” I agreed, even though my heart was breaking.

“But I want you to know… I love you, Harley.”

From a break to a shatter. Pain lanced through me.

“I love you with everything I have,” he continued. “Everything I am. That’s not going to change, no matter what. You’re my fated mate. You always will be. Even if you never forgive me, even if I never get to hold you again, there’s never going to be another woman for me. Ever.”

I couldn’t hold his gaze. The intensity was too much. I felt it in my bones. He meant it. He meant every word.

How could he say words like those, make me feel like this , and then get into bed with another woman?

It didn’t make sense. It was making me crazy. God, I wanted to believe him so badly.

“Mom? Dad?” Dylan stood on the stairs, in his pajamas with eyes wide and his hair a mess. “What’s happening? Where are we going?”

This wasn’t the way I wanted to break the news to him. But now I didn’t have a choice.

“We’re going back to Atlanta,” I said. “Tomorrow morning.”

“But the summer’s not even over.”

“I know, Dylan, but plans have changed.”

“What changed?” Dylan said in a raised voce. “What’s going on?”

“Dylan—”