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Tears freely flowed down Skyla’s beautiful face, her mascara running down her cheeks in long, black streaks. But as much as Blake hated to see her like that, he hoped it meant that he’d finally gotten through to her. Skyla might have thought she had to deal with this alone, but not anymore.
There was a soft knock at the door. Blake turned and saw Hallie holding two cups of tea. “Can I come in?”
Blake nodded, then kissed the back of Skyla’s hand, and held her gaze. “I’ll be right outside. I need to talk to Caden so we can figure out a game plan.” He stood, took another cracker from her still half full plate, kissed the top of her head, and walked out of the room, more determined than ever to fix everything that was hurting, threatening, or just plain wrong in Skyla Madigan’s life.
Chapter 17
“I must look like crap,” Skyla said, trying to hide her face, but Hallie climbed into bed with her and pulled her in for a tight hug. Skyla wrapped her arms around her closest friend, grateful to be here with her. “I’m so sorry that I dragged you into this,” Skyla said.
“You didn’t,” Hallie insisted. “Not any more than I dragged you into my stuff.” Hallie gave her a little squeeze. “Now tell me everything. About you. About what happened. Everything. I want to hear it from you.”
Skyla sighed. She hated rehashing everything, but she owed it to Hallie to tell her. “I don’t even know where to start. You’ve already been through so much and I honestly thought keeping this from you was for the best.”
Hallie shook her head. “I don’t care that you didn’t tell me. I mean, I care, of course, but it’s not like I’m mad or upset with you for that. I understand better than anyone how scary it can be to have something in your life that you have no control over. I have to live with it every day.”
“But I can control it, Hallie. It’s part of what makes it so dangerous. The more people who know about it, the more people can -”
“Take advantage of you,” Hallie finished for her.
Skyla nodded. It wasn’t like she ever thought her friends would betray her, but after what her father had put her through, she’d just fallen into a pattern of never talking about her ability, no matter who it was. “I know you would never,” she quickly told Hallie. “I just -”
“I know,” Hallie said. “Let me go grab a towel so you can wash up. Caden and I can take you home -”
“No,” Blake said entering the room. “I’ll grab you a few towels and a clean shirt and boxers you can change into, but I want you to stay put for the night. Just in case -”
“Blake,” Skyla said, interrupting him. “I’m not spending the night here, and I’m not putting you or Hallie, or anyone else in danger. Also, dropping by my father’s house isn’t exactly AJ’s style. He usually just sends me a text message with where to meet him so being here won’t keep him away from me.”
“I thought we’d settled that part about you protecting us,” Blake said. “What’s changed since I stepped out two minutes ago?”
“Nothing,” Skyla said, pushing her way up from the bed. “Nothing has changed and that’s the problem, and the solution. I’m a big girl, Blake. I know what I’m doing and I knew what I signed up for.” She walked past Blake and saw a guest bathroom on her left. She went in and shut the door behind her, locking it for good measure. The last thing she needed was Blake or Hallie barging in and cornering her with another heartfelt speech.
They meant well, but this wasn’t something they could talk her out of. She’d made a deal with AJ. If she tried to back out now, there would be hell to pay, and he’d probably start with the man who’d just given her another toe-curling kiss. Blake O’Connell was seriously lethal, but even he couldn’t stop AJ from getting what he wanted.
She used the toilet and then turned on the sink, waiting for the water to turn warm before washing her hands and splashing hot water on her face, washing off the black trails of her eyeliner. With her foundation gone, the bridge of her nose now showed the light smattering of freckles she always hid with makeup. Her cheeks were paler too, and she had dark circles under her eyes that had nothing to do with the dark makeup she often wore.
Skyla wasn’t sure how long she’d slept, but it wasn’t nearly long enough. She needed hours and hours more before she felt like herself again. Luckily, according to the bathroom wall clock, it was still the middle of the night. If Caden took her home now, she would probably be able to get enough rest before needing to be back at Madigan’s later that afternoon.
“Skyla?” Blake called through the door. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Just give me a minute and I’ll be out. Then Caden and Hallie can drive me home and this hellish night will be over.”
“They left,” Blake said.
Skyla finished drying her hands and face, and threw the door open. “What do you mean they left? Hallie said they would drive me home.”
Blake reached out to her, but she sidestepped him, hurrying into the kitchen where she’d last seen Caden sitting at the kitchen table. He was gone and there seemed to be no sign of Hallie either.
“They just left?” She asked, as if they had purposely abandoned her in the middle of nowhere.
“No. I asked them to go. I thought we needed some time to talk,” Blake explained.
Skyla shook her head. She was all talked out. Her head was pounding, and she had absolutely no desire to have another make out session with Blake, which would only make things harder when she had to push him away for his own safety. “No. No more talking. No more kissing. I want to go home, and since you sent them away, I guess you get to drive me. Or I can call an Uber, but either way, I’m leaving.”
The disappointment in Blake’s eyes nearly crushed her, but he just nodded. “Okay. I’ll drive you. I didn’t do this to trap you, Skyla. I just thought -”
“You thought, what?” She asked, keeping a healthy dose of indignation in her tone, mostly as a way to prevent herself from going into his arms and never leaving. “That you could kiss me some more? Talk me into letting you put your life and the lives of my friends on the line, and for what? What do you care if I heal a few goons? Why are you so interested in AJ anyway?”
When Blake didn’t say anything, Skyla stormed past him to the guest bedroom to collect the few things of hers that were sitting out on the bedside table, like her cell phone and the key to the register at Madigan’s that she kept in her pocket while at work. She’d obviously not had the chance to remove it before leaving, since she’d been kidnapped by Nico.
