Page 103 of Split You Open

She pushes herself to sit up and she glares at me but even that glare lacks anything human. Leaving her there, I move around my room.

“What are you doing?” she asks. “This isn’t funny. I need to grab my pajamas and dry off.”

I come back to stand in front of Blair with my towel, which was hanging behind my door, in hand.

“Lean forward,” I order.

Her eyes narrow. “Why?”

“Lean. Forward.”

I watch as she mentally calculates if it’s worth fighting me on this. With an annoyed huff she does as she’s told. I smile when her head hangs between her legs. Kneeling, I take the towel and gently wrap her hair up.

I take my time soaking up the water and massaging her scalp. When I’m done, I stand and return my towel to its hook on the door. I head for my dresser next and pull out a shirt and then grab some boxers for her to wear.

Blair says nothing.

She simply stares off into space.

When I come to sit down beside her, she doesn’t look at me. I place the articles of clothing on the other side on my bed and then rest my hand on her thigh.

“Baby girl, talk to me. What’s going on?”

“Nothing. It’s just been a long day.”

My teeth immediately gnash together. I suck a deep breath through my nose in an attempt to shove down my annoyance at her lack of communication and I try again.

“I understand you’ve been through a lot, but keeping everything you’re feeling in isn’t healthy, Blair. Talk to me. And if you lie,” I add quickly when Blair opens her mouth. “Know you’ll be punished.”

Blair’s bottom lip juts out as she glares across the room.

“What if I don’t want to talk about it?”

“I wouldn’t push this if I didn’t think it was important, baby girl. Talk to me. I’m here to listen, not judge.”

At this, she finally looks over at me. The tension in her shoulders eases just a little so that they lower an inch.

“I cut Ledger tonight,” she says.

I nod. “I kind of assumed that since you came out of that room unharmed yet covered in blood.”

My teasing makes one side of her mouth twitch into an almost-smile. It fades as her eyes slide away from me.

“I… I kind of feel bad about it now.”

It’s a reasonable thing to say after hurting someone, especially someone as close as Ledger has been to Blair all these years. And if I wasn’t so attuned to the woman beside me, I would accept that it’s guilt that’s bothering her.

But I do know her better.

Her stillness, the lack of inflection that continues to cling to her voice, and the emptiness that she’s trying to hold onto—they’re all Blair’s little tells.

She’s lying.

The only warning Blair gets is a heavy sigh. Then I’m yanking her over my lap.

“What the—AH!”

My hand cracks against her ass, hard.