Page 36 of The Comeback Road (Leaving #2)

Lexie

The soft hue of the lighting in the living room cast a glow over the sofa, where I sat with the blanket Magnolia had draped over me after she finished stitching me back together with her steady hands while the rest of her vibrated in anxiety.

She kept mumbling, “I’m not trained for this.

” But despite knowing how much trouble she could get in, Magnolia persisted anyway.

The familiar feelings of love and friendship felt both comforting and suffocating.

The remnants of the mission and everything that had transpired in the past twenty-four hours were lingering throughout every part of my mind, body, and soul. I felt raw and exposed.

Even so, I couldn’t help the overwhelming sense of contentment as the television flickered in the background, an old movie I couldn’t place playing.

I wasn’t really watching, just lost in the past few months.

I couldn’t help it as my gaze drifted out to the window, where the sky was speckled with stars that shone so brightly in that small town.

I’d forgotten how much I loved to see the stars.

In the simplicity of the moment, I found my mind shifting to thoughts of him.

Jace. The moments over the past few months where we built up a friendship, a companionship that morphed into more for what only seemed like the briefest of moments, but still felt like forever.

I missed his laughter, the warmth of his presence, the way his eyes always seemed to zero in on me within seconds of being in the same room.

He made me feel seen and wanted for the first time in my life. Until he didn’t.

While I was lost in my memories, I hadn’t realized that the room had cleared out, that there were whispering voices in the kitchen belonging to Magnolia, Sloan, and Luke. I didn’t have it in me to care much at that moment, seeking comfort in the fact that I was home.

The sound of the floor creaking had me shifting from looking at the stars to whoever was behind me. “Hey,” Sloan said softly, handing me a cup of tea. “How are you holding up?” I could see a small flicker of worry as he took in my pale face, greasy hair, and the blood stain still on the floor.

I managed a small smile, though I could feel it didn’t quite reach my eyes. “I’m okay, just trying to…unpack everything, I guess.”

Sloan nodded as if he understood, but he didn’t. He had no idea what had just happened. Sloan shifted his weight from one foot to the other and ran his hand through his hair. “I just…I just wanted to check on you.”

“It’s good to see you, roomie.”

I heard him choke on his tea at my response, and he offered me a sheepish grin.

I took a sip of the tea that Sloan handed me.

The warmth seemed to breathe life back into me, spreading from my fingers and seeping into my chest, even if only for a moment.

I heard the soft thud of approaching footsteps, and Luke appeared.

His expression was a mix of concern and relief as he leaned against the frame. “Hey, Lex,” he said, his voice low and as calm as ever, despite what we had just been through. His presence anchored me to reality. “Magnolia said you should be fine, as far as she can tell.”

I nodded my head in agreement. While I still felt awful—obviously, I’d been stabbed—I felt a lot less like death warmed over.

“I’ll get there,” I offered half-heartedly, grateful for his presence and support, but still feeling the weight of everything I’d barely had the time to process or make sense of.

The fact that I’d killed a man lingered somewhere in my subconscious, knowing I wasn’t ready to deal with it yet. Heal the body, then the mind.

Sloan retreated back to where Magnolia was, and before Luke could muster a response, a loud knock echoed in the otherwise silent night. “Lexie! I know you’re in there. Open up!” came an urgent voice, thick with emotion. Jace.

My heart raced like a stampede at the sound of his voice. How the fu—why is he here? The whispers from the kitchen quieted as the atmosphere shifted, charged with an unspoken tension that seemed to fill the silence. I exchanged a glance of surprise with Luke, who looked just as shocked as I felt.

“Should I…?” Luke asked as he started to make his way to the door, but I shook my head. The overwhelming urge to run was beating in my chest, but I was going absolutely nowhere in my condition.

Even with no answer, the front door to the house flew open, and Luke placed his body in front of mine, shielding me from whatever might have come. I heard loud voices, belonging to Magnolia and Sloan.

“You shouldn’t be here.”

“It’s not…She’s not…”

“Can you just listen for one second?”

The want to flee was becoming overwhelming, rising with my blood pressure.

In a matter of seconds, Jace entered the room, his expression wild, eyes scanning until they settled on me.

I saw his face drain of color. “What the fuck? What the hell happened?” He stepped further inside, and I could feel the energy radiating off of him. “You’re here.”

In the moments our eyes locked, I felt whole.

I could just pretend for one second that he had picked me, chosen me.

And I saw his eyes rake down my face and to the blanket, which led to the blood on the floor and realization that I sat on the sofa with blood surrounding me, bleeding through my bandage, and looking a bit like death.

I saw the sheer panic fill his eyes as they widened in disbelief, and I whispered his name.

“Jace, I’m—” My breath caught in my throat, the weight of the moment and the look on his face pressing down on me.

“This is Jace?” Luke turned back to look at me, and all I could do was nod as I kept my eyes on Jace’s.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” Luke said as he took one step forward, punching Jace, who dropped like a sack of potatoes.