Unbroken Rules (Rules 3)

But why? Why would he want me to think he cheated? Why would he bulldoze my heart like this… when we were this close to being together again?

I don’t think twice and make my way over to the couch, barely squeezing through the crowd. Haze seems surprised when he sees me approaching. The blonde girl sees me too and, probably because I look like I’m about to murder someone, she has the good instinct to walk away.

I stop in front of him, hands on my hips, eyes dark as the night. Conversations are cut short as the other guys seated on the couch notice me.

“Hey, beautiful,” some guy says. “Need help with something?”

Vic elbows him and offers me an apologetic smile. At least he’s still decent unlike someone.

“What do you want, Winter?” Haze huffs.

Dark-haired dude tenses up. “Hold on a second. That’s Winter?”

Haze glares at him in response.

So, he’s told them about me.

“What do you want?” Haze repeats.

“We need to talk.”

He avoids my eyes. “Why? The whole point of not being together anymore is that we don’t have to talk.”

Ouch.

The idiots next to him cheer him on—all but Vic—and I swallow hard. Without a word, I clasp my fingers around his tattooed arm and force his ass off the couch. Prying eyes follow our every move as I drag him to a quiet corner. I open my mouth to speak, but the surprise on his face stops me.

A small smile tugs at his lips.

“Your hair.” He tucks a loose piece of hair behind my ear. “You changed it.” I’m taken aback by the sweet gesture. For a second there, I recognize him: the Haze I loved. But as though he’s just remembered that he’s supposed to hate me, he clears his throat. “What do you want? I don’t have all night.”

“Oh my God, aren’t you exhausted? Just drop the act already. You’re not telling me everything. What the hell happened? What changed for your feelings to disappear overnight?”

He keeps his eyes fixated on the floor.

“Maybe I got tired of waiting for you to give me a chance, Winter.”

“What?” Is he serious? “I needed time. Can you really blame me? You lied to me for months. Months. Was I supposed to just let that slide?”

“No, you weren’t, and I understand why you didn’t want to be with me anymore, but, I guess… after a while, I got tired of chasing a girl I couldn’t have. I don’t feel the way I once did. You’re just going to have to let this go, okay?”

That bullshit again.

“I know you didn’t cheat on me.”

His jaw falls.

Panic stirs in his blue eyes, but he quickly pulls himself together, driving his emotions away with a deep sigh.

“Doesn’t change anything.”

I step forward. “Why would you do that? Why would you go out of your way to break my heart?”

He worries his bottom lip, eyes darting back to his shoes.

“Haze, please.” I can’t believe myself when I defy my last shred of dignity and place a gentle hand on his cheek. The gesture screams come back to me. He closes his eyes under my touch, like he missed it as much as I missed him. Then he shakes his head and steps out of my hold.

“I knew it was the only way you’d really let me go. What we had was too strong for you to just accept that I don’t love you anymore. It was the only to make sure you’d leave me alone.”