A High so Sweet (Thornes & Roses 2)

I turn for the house, opening the small pedestrian gate, and step inside. I know his car is still there. But I don’t look. I don’t turn back to see him leave me, and as I blink, the emotion trickles from my lashes, wetting my cheeks.

By the time I’m in my bedroom, I’m a mess. I shut myself in my bathroom and open the cabinet, taking everything out to find the little box I need. Inside, I pull out the sachet of white powder and cut two lines.

The moment I inhale, I forget.

I forget my pain.

I forget my heartbreak.

I forget Cassian.

1

Cassian

Five years later

A party.

I’ve been looking forward to this night since last year. It’s the only evening where you can do anything or be anyone. There are events that happen throughout Thorne Haven, the small town we live in, the town we own, but our Halloween Gala is probably the most infamous.

Each year Dad hosts, and I know the moment I tell my father we should try something different, he’ll inform me that I’ve lost my mind. The thing about Thorne Haven is that there are rituals, customs that cannot be broken, no matter how much we want something new.

Every year, we have elaborate events because it’s part of the town’s history. Owned by two families, the Thornes, and the Havens, the town is built on a solid foundation that dates back to my ancestors. Most of the history is still hidden in the libraries of the Thorne and Haven mansions, respectively.

With my older brother Damien and his wife in London, Finn and I are left to pick up the slack. And my younger brother is not one who enjoys hard work. He loves to party hard, though, so as we get ready for this year’s Halloween Gala, he’s stepping in to help with the plans.

This year, we’re going all out. Each year, we have a little game, and I’m so ready to find a girl who’ll be able to take the edge off when I need it. I’m just not interested in the bullshit that comes with it. I loved once, but when she left, I was nothing more than a shell.

Shaking my head to clear the memories away, I focus on my closet. It’s been a long time since I saw her. Five long fucking years, and she walked away from me that night, not even looking back.

Call me a fucked-up romantic, but I always believed if someone truly cared, they had to look back before leaving. It’s a belief I stood by, but she didn’t. Instead, she walked away, leaving me to pick up the pieces of the lies she spewed while heading off to a new life in Hollywood. And not once did she try to contact me to apologize, which means all those years I was there for her, I was the fool.

Since that night, I vowed to never allow anyone to make a fool of me again. No woman will ever get my heart. And no woman will ever make me love her. Because I already gave my heart away.

“What the fuck is this?” Finn’s voice comes from behind me, and I glance over my shoulder to find him holding up a long black cape with a white mask. It looks like something out of a horror movie.

I chuckle, shaking my head. “Not a fucking clue,” I tell him. “Maybe Dad’s going as the Grim Reaper.”

“That fucking sucks; I wanted to be Death,” he says, annoyance clear in his tone. He glances away from the outfit and looks at me. “What are you going as?”

I haven’t given it too much thought, so I shrug. “Not sure. Maybe I’ll just play around with that skull face,” I tell him. When I had a Skype call with Damien earlier, Nesrin said I should try getting that done for the party. It sounded like a good idea at the time since there’s no mask to carry around, and I can just wear a black shirt and a pair of slacks. No need for anything elaborate.

“That’s lame,” Finn answers, breaking through my thoughts. “Did you hear who’s back in town?” he questions when I step into my bedroom from the walk-in closet.

I glance at my brother, stopping all movement because even though I’m not certain, I have a feeling I know what he’s going to say. “Who?”

“The Narros.” His voice is filled with caution when he says the name. It’s the same name that’s haunted my every fucking thought over the past five years. I wanted to find her, to tell her she had me, she was mine, but she was seventeen when she left, and I was far too fucking old for her. I didn’t want to end up in jail, so I let her go.

The night in question has played on my mind time and again. If it wasn’t for my father’s influence in this town, I wouldn’t be here. She was the one who didn’t stand up for me when I needed it. Even though I spent years looking after her.