Page 104 of The Taste of Deceit

“I broke her.”

She buries her face deeper against my chest.

“I broke my best friend.”

“No.”

I cup the back of her head, gently lifting her face until she’s looking at me.

“You didn’t break her.”

Fresh tears spill over.

“I did.”

“No.”

My thumbs brush away the tears that won’t stop falling.

“If anyone broke something today...” My throat tightens. “It was me.”

She shakes her head.

“She’ll never forgive me.”

“I don’t know what Katie’s going to do.”

Another sob catches in her throat.

“But I do know this.”

I wait until I have her eyes again.

“You are not going to carry this by yourself.”

She stares at me through blurred vision.

“I’ll talk to Michael. I’ll do everything in my power to help fix this. If Katie needs space, we’ll give her space. If she wants answers, she’ll get them. If she wants to scream at somebody...” I brush another tear from her cheek. “She can scream at me.”

Her lips tremble.

“This should’ve been my burden from the beginning.”

I rest my forehead against hers.

“I put you in the middle of something you never asked to be part of.”

My voice drops to barely above a whisper.

“I’m never doing that to you again.”

She closes her eyes, another sob escaping her, but this time she doesn’t pull away. Instead, she wraps her arms around my waist and buries her face against my chest again.

“I miss her already,” she whispers.

I hold her tighter.

“I know, Baby Girl, and I’m going to do everything I can to help you get her back.”