Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 87289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Thrown off, I tense. “Zane and I had a few words.”
Her gaze locks on mine. “Did you hit him?”
The truth sticks to the roof of my mouth for a beat. “Yeah, I did.”
She nods once, like she was expecting the answer. “Why?”
There’s no way I’ll repeat the shit Zane said. I won’t let that poison touch her.
“I was irritated with how he acted during the game,” I say instead. It’s not a total lie, but it’s nowhere near the truth.
Disappointment flashes across her face, and I hate myself for not knowing what she needs from me in this moment.
“Zane reached out after the game, and we met. He wants another chance,” she admits quietly. “He wants Nora to have her family. He knows he screwed up and wants to make it right. All I have to do is say the word and he’ll break everything off with Gigi.”
Her voice cracks a little at the end, and that’s all it takes for me to eat up the distance between us. Two strides and I’m in front of her, cupping her face in my hands, desperate to remind her of everything we’re building together.
“Is that really what you want?” I ask, trying to keep the panic from flooding my system. “You want Zane back after everything he put you through?”
She shakes her head. “I don’t know. I want to give Nora the best life I can.”
“You don’t need Zane to create a loving home for her. You’ve done that all on your own.”
Her eyes lift to mine. They’re glassy and just a bit lost. Like she’s standing in front of a door she’s terrified to open, afraid to find out what’s waiting for her on the other side.
“I don’t know what to do,” she admits.
My throat tightens. “I get it.”
“No,” she says with a shake of her head. “You don’t. You’ve never had someone rip you apart and then come back saying all the right things. It messes with your head, River. It makes you question what’s real, what’s regret, and if you’re being manipulated.”
More than anything, I hate that Zane still has this kind of hold over her.
With her face cradled in my hands, I rest my forehead against hers.
“Then don’t choose for him,” I choke out. “Don’t even choose for Nora. Choose what you need and what makes you happy.”
“I don’t know what that is anymore.”
“If you give me a chance, I’ll help you figure it out,” I tell her. “All you have to do is trust me.”
She leans into me slowly, like someone testing the edge of something fragile but real.
It’s not a yes.
But it’s not a no either.
We stay like that for a long, quiet beat. Just soaking each other in and steadying ourselves in the stillness.
And for now, that’s enough.
It has to be.
41
Callie
The room is dark and quiet, save for the gentle rhythm of River’s breathing beside me. He’s fast asleep, one arm flung over his face, his chest rising and falling in a slow, steady pattern that should be comforting.
And normally, it is.
Tonight, though, the stillness does nothing to soothe me.
It only makes everything louder.
My thoughts won’t stop spinning.
The game.
The locker room.
Zane.
The loan.
The way River looked at me like I was his whole world, even after I told him everything.
I roll onto my side and watch him in the faint silver wash of moonlight that leaks in through the curtains. His lashes are feathered against his cheek, his jaw dark with stubble, and one hand curls loosely against his bare stomach.
Physically speaking, the man is beautiful.
But he’s so much more than that.
He’s kind.
Generous.
Reliable.
And he’s still here after everything I confessed. He didn’t walk away or tell me to pack up and get out.
Zane might’ve said all the right things earlier tonight, but River’s been showing them from the moment he opened his door and let me and Nora in.
Every breakfast he made.
Every book he read at bedtime.
Every small moment he didn’t have to offer but gave anyway.
He’s loved Nora without hesitation, like it’s woven into his DNA.
And she’s fallen for him, completely and without question.
If I’m being honest, so have I.
The ache inside me expands so quickly, it nearly swallows me whole.
The truth is terrifying.
My heart hammers as I push upright in bed, the only sound the slow, steady rhythm of River’s breathing beside me.
With trembling fingers, I reach for the hem of my tank and drag it over my head. The thin cotton slides across my skin and then pools beside the bed. My underwear follows, slipping down my legs in a whisper of fabric before I let it fall to the floor.
I shift the covers before straddling him, my knees bracing on either side of his hips. The sheets rustle around us, the quiet movement amplified by the hush of the room. River stirs beneath me, a low murmur falling from his lips. His brow furrows and then relaxes, his body stretching instinctively toward mine.