Page 52 of The Fractured

Anita remained in the hug, but her voice steadied. “What kind of work?”

“Not legal,” I cringed.

“Christ’s sake, Seb.” She pulled back. “I thought that was done after the fire?”

I rubbed the back of my head. “You know how it is.”

She hummed her disapproval but brought her eyes back to her family.

I slung my arm around her shoulders. “Chloe will be alright. Alright? She’s a resilient kid. She’s got you for a mom. You’re like the Wonder Woman of mothers.”

“I am pretty good, aren’t I?” she grinned with cheeks still glistening.

“Okay, don’t let it go to your head.” I curled my arm around her head, smothering her lovingly before she playfully jabbed me in the stomach.

It made her laugh.

“It’s disgusting how much I love you,” she said.

“Right back at you.”

Chapter 18

Kira

I liked to think of myself as a pretty resilient person. Yes, I had a habit of leading with my heart instead of thinking things over clearly, but it seemed easier to fall in love with the unknown instead of worrying about the future or the past. That’s not to say I ignored whatever happened in the past — the past was what prompted me to go to these SDV meetings, to better prepare myself for what that future held. That future I so badly wanted to enjoy and live to the fullest.

And so, because of my open-hearted resilience and the determination to never let the past drag me down, I found myself sitting in my SDV meeting, unable to focus as I daydreamed about that bubble tea date. Technically not an official date, but it had brought about one of the best afternoons of my life.

My head was in a whirl about it ever since, with questions about what it meant for the friendship between Seb and me.

The friendship we once had…

My daydream faltered slightly at that thought, and I straightened in my seat, pretending to listen to the group.

He still hadn’t contacted me. It was the one little worry that frayed my perfect daydream’s edges. But it was also Thursday, which meant he would show up to give me a ride home on his bike, and we could talk about what happened. Even if the idea of talking about it sent my heart into a frenzy.

We had sex. Effortless, easy, sex that was everything I never had with Aiden.

Sex with Aiden never brought release. Sure, there may have been one or two orgasms, but with Seb, there was more. There was aftercare and less pressure to be anything more than two adults cuddling in bed. It was nice to just lay in bed andfeelinstead of diving right back into a discussion Aiden had listened to on a podcast.

An involuntary sigh left me before I remembered where I was.

I mentally brushed off my daydream as I looked around to make sure no one had noticed me staring blankly at the wall at the opposite end of the hall.

The group was already wrapping up today’s session, with Libby, the group leader, discussing plans for next week's meeting.

As I grabbed my bag and jacket from the back of my seat, Fran approached me and gently nudged my arm. A rare smile played on her lips. “You were out of it that entire meeting.”

I grimaced through a smile.

“Thinking of biker boy?”

My smile grew. “Maybe.”

Fran rolled her eyes despite the humor in them. “Jesus Christ.”

He was ten minutes late.