35: You're Allergic To Cats?
KILLIAN
I yanked her back. She slammed into my chest, and I swear, my knees nearly buckled from the sheer terror that had gripped me.
"No," I growled into her ear. "No, Alexa. Don't you dare."
My voice cracked.
It never cracked.
But it did just now.
My grip tightened around her middle. I could feel her ribs beneath my hands. I could feel her heart racing just like mine.
And fuck, I hated her.
I hated that she made me feel this much.
I despised the fact she could still crush me with a single step.
But I also...
God help me, I loved her.
Even with the past choking me like tendrils of smoke that I couldn't escape from.
And seeing her broken didn't bring me satisfaction.
It gutted me.
She didn't fight me. That scared me more than anything. She just... went limp, collapsing against my chest. My fingers curled tighter around her.
She was smaller than I remembered. Or maybe just... hollow. And that hurt worse than the goddamn bullet.
....
The cursor blinked at me, taunting me as if it was a ticking bomb.
@souljuice_98: "She's trash. You can't rebrand poison."
I cracked my neck.
And typed:
@darkocean_13: "Bold words from someone whose entire personality fits in a clearance bin. You're background noise. Worry less about Alexa and more about your hygiene, sweetheart."
Post. Block. Next.
Another:
@truthwarrior69: "Imagine marrying a woman who LAUGHED at her husband's funeral. LMAO. Killian deserves what's coming."
I clenched my jaw and typed quickly:
@darkocean_13: "Imagine being so irrelevant that your opinion exists only to bounce off a wall of your own misery. Sleep tight, rodent."
I leaned back in the chair, the glow of the monitors spilling across my bare chest. Two screens glared at me, one showing a battlefield of online comments... and the other?
Her.
Alexa.
She was lying on her side in my bed, her lips parted in sleep.
Her wrist still bore the faint red mark from where the broken glass had kissed it earlier.
And fuck me, something about seeing her in my bed, wearing my shirt, curled into my sheets...
It made something wild and brutal crawl up my throat.
Not even the most violent of revenge plans could match the madness she sparked inside of me.
"You look like a man who just bought Twitter out of spite."
I didn't look up.
Ethan's voice came from the entrance of my study. He sounded amused. He walked in with his jacket draped over his shoulder, his black tie undone.
"DarkOcean13?" he asked, moving over to peer at the screen. "Seriously?"
I clicked open another browser tab, ignoring the fact that I just got caught arguing with trolls.
"Don't start."
He chuckled and sank into the armchair across from me. His eyes flicked briefly to the other monitor.
"She's asleep?"
I nodded once, my eyes glued to her chest rising and falling through the screen.
Ethan leaned back. "Good. She needs it. So do you, by the way. Preferably not fueled by anonymous cyber rage."
"She almost walked off the balcony."
His gaze softened a fraction.
"And you saved her."
I didn't answer.
The silence between us thickened. But in my head, all I could hear was the echo of her broken voice accusing me.
'You hate me for what I don't remember.'
"No one touches her," I muttered, more to myself than to him. "No one lays a fucking finger on her while she's under this roof."
Ethan nodded slowly. "Already handled. The PR team's working overtime. That article will disappear before dawn. Every mirror site, every repost, will be gone. Scrubbed like it never existed."
I glanced at him. "And the account that posted it?"
"Anonymous. Hidden behind a VPN and three fake corpses. But we'll find them. Eventually."
I went quiet again, watching the screen.
She shifted in her sleep. A soft, pained sound slipped from her lips. My hand clenched on the mouse.
Ethan's voice broke the silence again.
"K... how long are you going to dance this line? Between revenge and..." he tilted his head towards the screen, "...whatever that is."
I didn't answer.
Because I didn't fucking know.
Because when I had held her on that balcony and felt her body sag against mine like she didn't care if she lived or died, every ounce of my fury had fractured.
I clicked refresh.
More comments.
More blood to spill.
...
She awoke before the first light crept over the city. I didn't say a word or move.
I stayed where I was, on the couch, my laptop balanced on my legs, glasses perched low on my nose.
Alexa moved slowly, letting out a soft sound of pain as she sat up in my bed, rubbing her eye sleepily. I couldn't take my eyes off her, especially with how vulnerable and small she looked.
She reached for the painkillers on the nightstand without uttering a word. She didn't glance in my direction either. The silence hung heavy in the air. It was thick and suffocating. And I understood why.
I watched the way her fingers trembled as she opened the bottle. I stared at her as she swallowed the pills dry and gulped down the water.
Still, she treated me like I was nothing but the unwelcome ghost in the room. I couldn't stand it. I knew I had to do something.
"Come with me somewhere today," I said.
She scoffed, still refusing to look at me.
....
A little while later, we were both fully dressed.
She had slipped on a blue sundress, her face partially hidden behind a black mask and a pair of oversized sunglasses.
I grabbed a mask of my own.
We didn't speak. Not when we got into the car. Not even when the gates rolled open.
But the moment the scent of earth, hay, and animal fur filled the air, she froze.
Her brows furrowed as she looked around, blinking in disbelief.
"You brought me to an animal park?" she asked, her voice dropping to a whisper.
I gave her a small nod. "I did."
Her voice faltered. "How... how did you know?"
I didn't hesitate. "Three years ago. On your birthday, you posted about it once."
We both got out of the car, and she turned her head to fully look at me. Her lips parted slightly, but no words came out.
So I filled the silence. "The article's been scrubbed. Wiped clean. PR handled it."
She nodded once, her eyes fixed on a pen full of rabbits. "I'm not mad."
But her voice cracked slightly, just enough for me to hear the truth hiding behind it.
"I didn't write it, Alexa," I said, stepping closer. "But I won't lie. Part of me... wanted to see you fall apart. Just once. Just to feel like I wasn't the only one who got ruined."
She turned towards me slowly. "Then we're even," she whispered. "Because I did ruin you once."
I didn't answer. What could I say? Yes? That her betrayal still lived beneath my skin like shrapnel?
How could I tell her that I still dreamed of her lips on mine... and her hand on the trigger?
...
Alexa crouched beside a small tabby kitten nestled in a basket.
The cat meowed and reached for her fingers with a soft paw.
She smiled. Genuinely. It was the first real smile I'd seen since she walked back into my life.
My chest ached at the sight.
And then, I sneezed. Loudly. Well, shit.
Her wide-eyed gaze met mine. "Wait... you're allergic to cats?!"