Chapter 103 (1/2)

“Hardin?” Tessa’s voice travels through the dark silence, and I try to make a quick decision whether to talk to her. I’m just too fucking mad to deal with her shit and be scolded for picking on Landon.

“He started this shit,” I say, stepping out into the open space between two large trees.

So much for hiding. See, I can’t even fucking do that correctly.

“Are you okay?” she asks, her voice light and nervous.

“What do you think?” I snap, looking past her and into the darkness.

“I’m—”

“Save it. Please, I know you’re going to say you’re right and I’m wrong, and I shouldn’t have slammed Landon against the wall.”

She steps toward me, and I can’t help but notice the way I take a step closer to her at the same time. As angry as I am, I am fucking drawn to her—always have been, always fucking will be.

“Actually, I was going to apologize. I know how wrong it was to keep that from you. I want to take ownership for my mistake, not blame you,” she says softly.

What? “Since when?”

I remind myself yet again that I’m pissed off. But it’s hard to remember how pissed off I am when I just want her to hug me, to remind me that I’m not as big of a fuckup as I think I am.

“Can we talk again? You know, how we did on the patio?” Her eyes are wide and hopeful even in the dark, even after my blowup.

I want to tell her no, that she had her damn chance to talk every day since she decided to move across the fucking country to “put some space between us.” Instead, I huff and nod in agreement. I don’t give her the satisfaction of answering, but I nod again and lean against the trunk of the tree behind me.

I can tell by the look on her face that she didn’t expect me to acquiesce so easily. The childish little shit inside me smiles at my having caught her off guard.

She kneels down and sits cross-legged on the grass. She rests her hands on her bare feet. “I’m proud of you,” she says, looking up at me. The lights from the patio cast only enough light to make out her small smile, the soft praise in her eyes.

“For what?” I pick at the bark on the tree, waiting for her answer.

“For walking away like that. I know Landon was pushing and pushing, but you walked away, Hardin. That was a huge step for you. I hope you know how much that means to him, that you chose not to hit him.”

Like he fucking cares. He’s been going behind my back for the last three weeks.

“It doesn’t mean shit.”

“Yes, it does. It means a lot to him.”

I pull off a particularly large piece of bark and toss it to the ground at my feet. “And what does it mean to you?” I ask, eyes focused on the tree.