Page 104 of When We Fall: Part One

I gave a slight shake of my head. “No. I need to earn her trust. I keep bringing her back to me and then screwing it all up. It’s something I need to fix, not you or the guys. I wanted you to know how much I fucking love you, E, and how sorry I am for tonight and for every night you’ve suffered because of my ideas and plans.”

“I suffer because of monsters, Enzo. Not because of you.” He scooted even closer and rested his forehead against mine as he hugged me. “I love you, too, brother.”

We clung to one another, both of us sniffling. I didn’t want to let him go. The idea that Celeste was out to get us made me sick, but we’d gone through similar before and had drowned that kitten in the lake. I’d do it again if I had to, arms deal be damned.

“Keep loving her, Enzo,” E whispered to me as we held each other. “Don’t let go.”

“I’ll never let go,” I answered softly, clinging to him tighter. My words meant so many things. I’d never let go of Rosalie Bishop. My family. My best friends. This life I’d fucking conquer for all of us. I’d do it all.

I promised myself on repeat until sleep took me, E and I holding each other.

We both needed this.

I’d talk to Rosalie tomorrow, and hopefully, she’d put my ring back on. Until then, I’d simply dream of her on our wedding day.

THIRTY-SEVEN

ROSALIE

Iwoke to see Enzo in bed with me and Ethan. They’d slept holding one another. I’d seen the guys sleep with one another before, but nothing like this. They were face to face, arms around one another, the sheets twisted around them. Tears were dried on both their faces.

I stared at them for a moment, my heart hurting, before I got up and quietly completed my morning routine, not wanting to wake them.

My feelings were all over after last night. I hated that Celeste bitch with every part of me there was, but I also knew how hard Enzo had it in dealing with her since her father was a big deal to his world domination plans.

But it didn’t excuse any of it. He had to learn to draw lines in the sand. He did that with everyone else, and now he needed to do it with her. Had he, I may have had a different mindset about it all. Knowing he seemed to feed into her pissed me off.

So he could hold my ring until he was ready to get his shit together.

The thought hurt me to my very core, but I wasn’t going to get walked over because I was the minority in our group of dominating men. Seeing Ethan the way he was wasn’t workingfor me. I could feel Fox growing distant. Cole was getting crazier. Enzo was becoming darker and more obsessed with his climb to the top.

And me? I was here, watching my world slowly fall apart.

I wasn’t so sure I could keep holding onto the pieces and putting things back together. There had to be an equal give and take.

I wouldn’t pin all the blame on Enzo, though. My priorities had also grown twisted. My heart had strayed and had wanted to love another and bring him in. It was hard to admit, but life without Anson took its toll on me. I’d fought with my feelings for so long that I was becoming too exhausted with all of it. I felt like I was also betraying the guys. It sickened me. I wasn’t this girl, and they deserved better from me, just like I deserved better from them.

When I spoke to Jamie about all this crap, she’d told me that sometimes, when things grow toxic, you have to let them go. She said it had happened with her and Spencer, and while it hurt, she was growing from the mess left behind.

I wanted to grow, too, but leaving them behind hurt me in ways I didn’t think possible.

On the other hand, I couldn’t live a life where this shit kept happening. It wasn’t healthy for any of us.

Sighing, I tabled the thought and went downstairs to find Cole standing in the kitchen and looking out the patio window.

He turned when I came into the room and stared me down.

“Hey,” he murmured as I hesitated beside the kitchen island.

“Hey,” I answered.

“You look beautiful today.” His gaze swept over me quickly. “I like when you wear that shade of purple.”

I looked down at the lavender sundress I was wearing. He’d bought it for me several weeks ago, citing the same thing then.

He walked over to me, crowding my space, before he reached out and lifted my chin so I was staring into his troubled blue eyes.

“Will you spend the day with me, Rosebud?” he whispered. “Just me and you. Alone. Together?”