“I’m going to kill him,” he whispered, his eyes narrowing, and I knew he meant it. Before Maxx could go after Evan again, I gripped his arms as hard as possible.

“I need to go home,” I said in an agonized whisper, my hands shaking so badly that I could barely hold on to him anymore. My bag fell from my limp hands and dumped out onto the ground at my feet. Maxx’s eyes clouded with concern, and I saw smears of red on his knuckles as he reached down to collect my things. The sight of Evan’s blood on his hands caused my stomach to heave.

“I need to leave,” I repeated, and swallowed bile thick in my throat.

Maxx put his arm around my shoulders, holding me up. “Of course. Let’s get you home,” he said softly in my ear, steering me away from Evan, still lying on the ground. I looked up to where April had been standing and saw that she was gone.

“Will he be all right?” I said. I don’t know why I cared. But Evan hadn’t been moving, and I really only worried about Maxx getting into trouble for intervening. Though my mind wouldn’t let me even begin to think about what would have happened had Maxx not shown up when he had.

“Fuck him,” Maxx said with a vehemence that shook my already trembling body. I didn’t say anything else as we walked across campus toward the south-end parking lot. “My apartment’s back that way,” I said, pointing in the direction we had come.

“I know. But I’m driving you. You can’t walk home right now.” Maxx held his car door open for me as I got in. I wasn’t about to argue with him, because he was right. I didn’t think my feet could make the journey.

I leaned my head against the window and closed my eyes, not opening them again until Maxx pulled up in front of my apartment building. I got out, not wanting to feel like a complete loser by having him help me up the stairs. Even if I was shaking so badly my teeth were chattering.

Shit.

Evan had wanted to hurt me. I had never seen such cold hatred in someone’s eyes. I should report him to campus police. But what would that mean for Maxx? Evan wouldn’t let himself go down alone. He’d pull Maxx right down with him. Of that, I was certain.

Maxx fished my keys out of the side pocket of my bag and unlocked the door. He took my messenger bag and dropped it onto the couch. I didn’t say anything. I pushed open my bedroom door and kicked off my shoes. I sat down on the edge of my bed and stared blankly at the wall.

Maxx stood just inside the entryway, as though not sure what he should do.

“I think I just want to close my eyes for a bit,” I said tiredly.

I didn’t wait for Maxx to say anything. I crawled up onto my bed and tucked my hands underneath my head, curling into a ball. My body shook and I felt like I should cry. But I didn’t want to give Evan any of my tears. That asshole didn’t deserve them.

After a few minutes, my bed dipped and I felt Maxx lie down beside me. He didn’t touch me, but I could feel his body heat against my back. The sound of the hypnotic rhythm of his breathing lulled me to sleep.

chapter

twenty-three

aubrey

i woke up feeling groggy and winced as I moved my arms. My muscles felt bruised, and it took me a minute to remember everything that had happened earlier.

Evan and the horrific scene after class. And Maxx.

I sat up abruptly, pushing aside a blanket that hadn’t been there when I had fallen asleep. My room had grown darker, and I could see the soft glow of my alarm clock displaying the time. It was just after eight in the evening.

Crap! I had slept for almost three hours!

I heard a soft exhale of breath, and I looked over to see Maxx curled onto his side. His hair was messy and fell onto his forehead. He had one hand tucked beneath his cheek and the other reaching outward.

He looked incredibly young. Vulnerable, even.

My heart twisted and turned painfully as I watched him sleep. Love that had never gone away re-ignited unobstructed in my chest.

I knew I should push it away, seal it back into the box I had tucked it away in. But I couldn’t.

Not now.

Maybe I was still in a state of shock. Maybe I wasn’t thinking clearly, given the horrific experience I had just gone through. Whatever the reasons, I found myself once again drawn toward the very person I knew I should stay away from.

Without thinking about what I was doing, I slowly lifted my fingers and let them hover above his skin. I wanted to sweep his hair back and feel the soft strands.

But I couldn’t let myself touch him. Even as my fingers tingled with the need to.

I wanted to lie back down beside him. To press myself against him the way I had done so many times before. To fall back into that crazy, passionate place that had dominated my life.

My heart demanded that I never let this man leave my side again. That he belonged there. He would always belong there.

But my head said something else entirely. It warned me of the price of loving him.

But was it a price I’d be willing to pay?

I thought about Renee. And Brooks. And Dr. Lowell. The people who believed in me. The ones who gave me my second chance.

I wouldn’t be disappointing just myself if I allowed this to happen.

But having him here, after what had happened, made my emotions run high. Irrational emotions that had always gotten me into trouble.

I wanted to be smarter. I wanted to be strong and turn away.

I was struggling.

Maxx’s lips quirked into a sleepy smile, and his eyes slowly drifted open. “The whole watching-someone-while-they-sleep thing is a little creepy, you know.”

I blushed, embarrassed at having been caught.

I cleared my throat and looked away. “Yeah, well, you have drool caked to the side of your face.”

Maxx frowned and wiped at his cheek, and I couldn’t help but grin. He rolled his eyes. “You’re hysterical, Aubrey,” he deadpanned.

I smirked, chuckling to myself before sobering. “You shouldn’t have stayed,” I told him firmly but quietly.

I sounded ungrateful, and I knew that. But it was my last-ditch effort to keep him at arm’s length. Because I knew all too well there was a very big difference between doing what was right and doing what felt right.

Maxx sat up. His hair was mussed, and there were fine red lines along his jaw from the crease of the pillow. There was something rugged and raw about his face that made it impossible to look away.

“There was no way I would have left you, even if you had tried to make me.” His eyes flashed vehemently, and I believed him.

“I know,” I sighed.

Maxx ran his hand over his face before looking at me again.

“I think you need to report Evan.”

“If I did, what would happen to you?” I asked. Maxx frowned, looking confused.

“You beat the crap out of him, Maxx. You don’t think he’d jump at the chance to take you down with him?” I continued.

“That’s ridiculous, Aubrey!” Maxx fumed.

I held my hand up, silencing him. “It is what it is, Maxx. You know I’m right.”

I hated remaining silent about what Evan had done. It felt wrong, and in a way like I was letting him win.

I thought about April and knew without a doubt that what I had experienced at his hand was most likely mild in comparison to what she had been through.

An abusive bully like that needed to be dealt with. But I knew sacrificing Maxx to do it wasn’t an option I was okay with.

Maxx looked at me like I had lost my mind. “Do you think I honestly give a rat’s ass about that? I can handle what happens to me. But you sure as hell can’t let him get away with what he did to you. It’s not right!” he said emphatically, as though reading my mind.

I shook my head, knowing he wouldn’t be able to change my mind. “I don’t think he’ll mess with me again. Not after you nearly put his head through the concrete,” I said with a small smile, trying to lighten the mood. If that was at all possible.