Broken Hearts (Light in the Dark 5)

But when I’d come down from that, and reality hit, it sucked.

Once I met Nova, it no longer appealed to me.

She understands me in a way no bottle can.

“Well, let’s eat then,” I plead, smacking my stomach. “I’m starving.”

Nova shivers in her blanket and scoots closer to me.

The sun descended a little while ago, and the moon has taken its place.

Even though it’s June, the night air is chilly. I wrap my arm around her, trying to offer as much warmth as I can.

We all sit around the fire pit—except Xael who Thea took inside to put her to sleep—warming ourselves and eating cake.

It took so fucking long to get to the cake and everyone knows it’s the best fucking part.

Nova slathered the cake in icing, which is my favorite part. I swear there’s not a thing she doesn’t know about me. I don’t think anyone in all of my twenty-eight years has ever known me this well.

If you’d told me when I was twenty-three I’d fall head over heels for a girl and she’d be my forever, I would’ve thought you were crazy. I didn’t want to be tied down, but furthermore I thought I didn’t deserve love. My father made me feel like a worthless piece of shit so I believed he was right and that I’d turn out to do nothing and have nothing.

Constant negativity like that eats away at you.

It’s sickening.

But when my dad was dying … I think he looked at me and saw all he’d thrown away.

He tried to make amends and I accepted, because he was my dad, and he was going to die, but the main reason I forgave him is because I saw the sincerity in his eyes.

That meant everything to me.

When he finally passed away, I don’t think either of us had any regrets anymore.

I finish my cake and stand to grab another piece.

Too much cake is never a bad thing. How do you think I got these abs?

I sit back down and wrap my one arm back around Nova.

Cade’s talking about some kind of project he’s working on. He’s an architect and works for Xander’s dad. Xander nods along with him but I don’t think he’s really paying attention.

Thea and Rae are engaged in conversation as well.

I feel like we’re all such boring fucks now, but you know what, I wouldn’t have it any

other way.

I kiss the side of Nova’s head and she smiles up at me.

“What was that for?”

I swallow down a huge bite of cake and shrug. “Because I can—because I want to.”

She lays her head back down on my shoulder and lets out a contented sigh.

“Bleh, you guys are too sweet I can’t handle all the sugar,” Thea interrupts. “Remember when you both were allergic to love and relationships? Those were the good old days.”

Xander shakes his head beside her and mumbles something in her ear.