Run.
Fromher.
Chloe had seen him take off, her heart pounding against his words.Clearly we both are.
Fools.
She sat on the end of her bed in the downstairs room, the door open, hoping he’d come back.
Please, come back.
Except he’d said they were done.
Done.
And even as his anger radiated out from him, his story about Narin and even his father rang through her.
She’d chosen her story over him. That had felt like the only option.
But standing in the middle of the kitchen earlier, she’d watched it break his heart.
Just stay out of my way.Yeah, see, she knew this was a disaster.
You got me into this mess.
She had. Her throat tightened. She’d done it again. And this time...Aw,she should have listened to her head, kept her distance.
Maybe she needed to run too.
She got up and headed out into the main room.
North, jaw tight, kept glancing toward the door where Skeet had disappeared. West maintained his usual calm, but he glanced at her as if assessing the emotional damage.
Nothing could fix the wreckage of her heart, thanks.
Still,awkward much?
“I need to make some calls,” Hamilton said and headed upstairs.
North immediately moved toward her. “Chloe?—”
“Don’t.” She held up a hand. “Just... don’t.”
North’s face softened with understanding that made her chest ache. He’d been where she was—torn between love and duty, trying to figure out how to protect someone without abandoning his job, his responsibilities.
“He’ll come around,” North said quietly.
“Will he?” The question came out sharper than she’d intended. “Because from where I’m standing, it looks like he made his position pretty clear.”
West cleared his throat. “For what it’s worth, he’s beating himself up out there just as much as you are in here.”
She looked at West, then shook her head. “He was right. This is too complicated.”
She headed back to her room and grabbed her pack. Pulled out clothes from where she’d hung them in the closet. Not many—the coral dress, the journalist outfit, her swimsuit.
She shoved them inside the bag with more force than necessary.
“What are you doing?” North had come to her open door.