Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 131271 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 656(@200wpm)___ 525(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131271 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 656(@200wpm)___ 525(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
“I need some air,” I mutter, grabbing my keys off the table and heading for the door.
“Shawn, please—”
But I’m already gone.
The cold air hits me like a slap as I step outside, but it’s not enough to clear the ache in my chest or the betrayal from eating it’s way through me. My mind replays every word, every post, every dig she made.
I thought Riley was ours. Mine. The one person who got us. The one person who believed in us.
And now?
Now, I’m destroyed. She’s turned my world upside down. Everything I thought I knew, every brick we’ve stacked to build this relationship, is demolished. I don’t know what to believe.
I slam the door behind me, the sound echoing through the apartment like a gunshot. Riley’s voice, that voice, is playing on a loop in my head, every sharp jab, every veiled insult, another punch to the gut.
Jacob and Hayes are getting out of the car loaded with takeout bags from the Greek place up the street.
Hayes straightens, brows drawing together. “What’s going on?”
I rub my hands down my face and stare at them, letting the silence stretch. Finally, I spit it out.
“Riley’s the creator behind Icing the Cake.”
Jacob’s arm drops immediately, his expression twisting into something between disbelief and anger. Hayes freezes mid-motion, the takeout bag held at an awkward angle.
“She’s what?” Jacob demands. “Say that again.”
“You heard me,” I grind out, the words bitter on my tongue. “Riley. She’s the one running that stupid channel. She’s the one who’s been tearing us apart online, me, you, Hayes… everyone.”
“No. No fucking way. Riley wouldn’t do that.”
“She did,” I snap back. “I confronted her. I played the video. She didn’t even deny it.”
Hayes lets out a long exhale and leans back against the car, his jaw tight. “What did she say?”
“She said she didn’t mean for it to blow up. That it started as something stupid and snowballed. You know how people eat that shit up online.” I grip the back of my neck so hard it hurts. “But that doesn’t change the fact that she did it. She’s the one who fed everyone those comments about me being a screw-up, Jacob being arrogant, you being too violent.”
Jacob glares at me like I’m the one responsible. “Why the hell would she do that?”
“It was because we hurt her.”
Jacob and I both turn to Hayes, confused.
“What?” I snap. “When?”
Hayes meets my eyes steadily, his expression unreadable. “I didn’t remember the incident she told me about before we started dating, but apparently, she overheard us saying really hurtful things.”
Jacob’s face hardens, but I frown, shaking my head. “What kind of things?”
“Personal things about her appearance and her body. It doesn’t matter,” Hayes says, his voice quieter now. “It stuck with her, and she must have used the channel to deal with some of that hurt.”
“That doesn’t make it right,” I bite out.
“I know,” Hayes admits, running a hand through his hair. “And I’m not saying she’s innocent. I’m pissed too. She should’ve told us. But look at the facts, Shawn.”
“What facts?” Jacob growls.
“The channel has been quiet since we started dating her. She toned it down from the moment we started to get to know each other.” Hayes continues his tone even. “When she realized we weren’t the douchebags she thought we were, she changed.”
I let that sink in, and my stomach twists uncomfortably. He’s right. “So what?” I mutter. “That makes it better? She stopped trashing us because she felt guilty. But she wasn’t honest, and that’s what really gets me. When those photos of me leaked, she was so indignant about me coming clean with her, and this whole time, she’s been keeping this huge secret from us.”
“Riley cares about us. You know she does. She screwed up, and yeah, I’m pissed too, but she’s a good person, and I’m going to give her a chance to explain.” He looks over to the house, and his eyes widen.
I turn to find out why and discover Riley in the doorway, her hand pressed to her mouth and tears streaming down her face.
“Do you love her?” Hayes asks suddenly, his voice a whisper.
“You know I do,” I say.
“Of course,” Jacob adds.
“So we go inside, and we deal with this. She needs to come clean, and we need to move past it because that’s what people who love each other do.”
At my brother’s words, the fight drains out of me. Hayes isn’t wrong, but beneath my anger is hurt because, once again, the person I put my trust in has found a way of betraying me.
“I just don’t know if I can forgive her,” I admit, my throat closing with regret.
“You can,” Hayes says quietly. “We all can.”
Jacob’s fists clench and unclench at his sides, but the wheels turn in his head. For all his anger, he’s thinking it through. We all are.