Chapter 96 Garrett
Garrett
For a second, there was silence as he looked at me in a way that was completely unreadable, and then he laughed. It wasn’t amused or soft; it was sharp, cutting straight through whatever I thought I was building.
“Oh my God,” he said, stepping back. “Of course. You come here asking me to leave Aitor so I can be with you… but not now, and not in public.”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.
“I swear, you don’t know when to stop,” he added, already turning away as he moved back toward the horse, mounting in one smooth motion.
“Wait,” I said quickly, grabbing the reins before he could move. “Aslan, listen to me.”
“I can’t do this,” he said, his voice breaking just enough to twist something deep in my chest. “Please go.”
And then he was gone.
The horse surged forward, faster than I expected, and instinct kicked in before logic could.
I grabbed the first horse I saw.
The wrong horse.
I knew it the second I was on it.
It fought me immediately, energy sharp and unpredictable under me, but I pushed it forward anyway with my dangerously mediocre riding skills.
“Aslan!” I shouted, trying to catch up.
He turned when he heard me, and I saw it in his face.
Fear.
“Garrett, stop—!”
Too late.
The horse jerked hard, pulling against the reins, veering too close to the fence. I tried to steady it, to pull it back, but it only got worse, faster, stronger, completely out of my control.
“Shit—”
“Garrett!” Aslan was already turning back, riding straight toward me.
The world blurred for a second—speed, noise, the horse refusing to listen—and then suddenly he was there, close enough to reach.
“Give me the reins!” he snapped.
I didn’t argue.
Couldn’t.
He leaned dangerously far from his own horse, grabbing for the reins, trying to force mine to slow—but it wasn’t enough.
The horse fought harder, jerking its head, veering toward the fence.
I saw him trying to catch his own balance, and I had the most horrifying premonition of my lion getting hurt because of me.
God, if anything happens to him…
“Aslan, let it go!” I snapped, panic breaking through. “You’ll fall too—”
He didn’t. Of course he didn’t.
Instead, he shifted his weight, rising slightly in the stirrups of his own horse for just a second—just enough to push off. I looked at him in disbelief.
“What are you–? Stop, Aslan…!” I shouted.
Then he jumped.
For one split, insane moment, I thought we were both going down, but he landed behind me.
Hard.
His body hit mine, one arm locking around my waist, the other snapping onto the reins with a grip that actually knew what the hell it was doing.
“Sit back!” he ordered sharply against my ear.
I did.
Or maybe he forced me to—I wasn’t entirely sure.
His legs pressed in, steadying, controlling, his hand firm and unrelenting as he pulled, adjusted, guided—and somehow—the horse slowed.
Not immediately. Not cleanly. It resisted, fought, tossed its head again, but this time there was direction behind it. Control. Authority.
It gave. Step by step, until it finally stopped.
Everything went still.
Too still.
I could hear my own breathing, rough and uneven, feel his chest rising and falling against my back, just as unsteady.
For a second, neither of us moved, and for the first time in a long time—
I had absolutely no control over anything.
I barely had time to process it before he was off his horse and in front of me, furious.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” he snapped. “You could’ve gotten killed on that horse! That one is not trained for this, Garrett, what were you thinking?”
I slid down, my legs still unsteady, my pulse completely out of control.
“I wasn’t,” I said honestly.
“No, clearly,” he shot back, running a hand through his hair. “You’re reckless. You’re impulsive. You don’t think. Why would you—”
“Aslan…” My voice dropped, rough, unfamiliar even to me. “I know I keep screwing up! I'm messed up, I know… and I–I’m not good with words, but I care about you.”
The words felt strange in my mouth. Too honest.
“I just… I’m really trying,” I added, quieter now.
“Garrett… don’t you see?” His voice broke. “I’m trying too. I tried when you made my life miserable, and I still couldn’t stay away. I tried the first time you kissed me and then punched me, when you touched me and begged me and then pushed me away. I tried when you asked me to stay, when you said you needed me, when you said I made you feel safe.”
He shook his head, breathing unevenly.
“I tried every time you pulled me in and then let me crash. I tried when I asked you if we could be something… anything. But you said no. You chose someone else. And now I’m trying to forget you, Garrett. I’m trying to move on. I’m trying to be happy with someone else.”
“No, no, cub…” I stepped closer, my chest tightening. “Then why, if you still feel something for me?”
“Because it hurts!” he snapped, his voice breaking completely. “You hurt me every time. You always will. And I don’t want to hurt anymore. I can’t…”
His body started shaking, tears slipping down his face before he could stop them. “You’re taking what little peace I had again… why do you hurt me like this?”
I didn’t think. I just pulled him into me and held him tight, like if I let go, he’d disappear.
For once, I didn’t try to fix it. I didn’t try to control it. I just stood there with him, feeling him break against me, the way he'd seen me break in his arms before, both of us breathing the same shattered air.
“You don’t deserve to hurt, lion,” I murmured. “I can’t stand seeing you like this.”
When I finally pulled back, I pressed a soft kiss to his forehead. “I’m gonna fix it. I swear. I’ll make it right, okay? I’ll make it right.”
I stood, pulling him closer once more when he didn’t resist, and something inside me settled into place.
I had made a shit ton of mistakes, but I was going to fix this.
I would make it to that trip. I would handle Trisha. I would help Aitor see what he actually felt, what he seemed to have forgotten, and then—
I was getting my lion back.
And one day, we’d get out of here. Away from all of it. Somewhere my demons couldn’t reach us, where those monsters couldn't touch either of us ever again.