Ignite

Emmit’s gray eyes caught my blue as he stared at me with such intensity.

I dropped his hand and quickly reached for the nurses’ button.

“Wait. Before you bring in the whole team to tell me why my head hurts like a motherfucker, I want to say something to you.”

My lips trembled as my entire body tightened in fear. He was going to tell me to leave. That what I did to him was unforgiveable.

Tears flowed from my eyes again. I was prepared to fight for our love. I’d made a mistake again and I would own up to it, but I wouldn’t let him throw it away like I almost had.

I slowly sat back down in the chair and tried to wipe the endless tears away. “O-okay,” I whispered as chewed on my lower lip.

“My head hurts so damn much,” Emmit said as he lifted his hand and felt the bandage.

Trying to find my voice, I finally managed to say, “You were hit over the head with an unopened beer can by one of Malcolm’s fans.”

Emmit let out a sigh. “Fucking, Malcolm.”

My lower lip was going to be bruised with how I was tearing it apart.

Emmit turned and looked at me. I wasn’t sure how to read his eyes. They were . . . empty. Looking down at my hands in my lap, I began talking. “I’ll understand if you’d like for me to leave, Emmit. I wouldn’t blame you if you hated me for running away again. It’s just, I overheard the conversation between you and Stephanie and from my perspective, it sounded as if—”

My hand came up as I wiped my tears away again. “I knew in my heart you hadn’t cheated on me.”

“Why did you leave then?” Emmit asked.

Before I was able to answer, he looked away from me. “It doesn’t matter. None of it matters anymore.”

My heart dropped, and I knew in that moment I had lost the only man I’d ever loved.

THE SOUND OF ADALINE’S VOICE caused my heart to feel light again. A warm sensation spread through my body as she talked about us growing up. When she brought up the night we had first made love, my eyes automatically opened. The light in the room hitting my eyes felt like a million knives stabbing me in the back of my head.

My heart ached as I listened to her talk. Hearing her say she knew I didn’t cheat on her was sweet music to my ears. She must have finally listened to the damn messages I left.

“Why did you leave?” I asked before

looking away. What was I doing? It didn’t matter why she left. What mattered was she came back. “It doesn’t matter. None of it matters anymore.”

The sharp intake of air from Adaline caused me to look back at her. Her face was white as a ghost as she stared at me in disbelief while I asked, “Did you listen to my messages finally?”

My body went rigid when she shook her head. “I didn’t listen to them.”

“How did you know I didn’t cheat on you then? Did you talk to your dad? My mom?”

Adaline was chewing on her lower lip, causing it to instantly swell. “No,” she said. “I just finally decided to stop listening to my head, and I listened to my heart. I’m so sorry I hurt you again, Emmit. I’d give anything to take it all back.”

The warmth spread through my body again as I looked into her eyes. “You can’t run away every time you think there’s a problem, Addie.”

Nodding her head frantically, she barely spoke. “I . . . I know. I’m an idiot.”

I would have nodded in agreement, but my head hurt too damn much. “We need to work things out together if there is a problem.”

Adaline began crying hard again. “I. Know. I. Hate. Myself. For. Hurting. You.”

“I want a do-over, Addie.”

With a snap of her head, she wiped her eyes and then her snotty nose. “A do-over of what?”

“That night.”