Sobbing, I cry for not being strong enough to fight for the guy I want, and for being stupid enough to believe I was capable of having a real relationship. I warned him I was too fucked up—too broken by my past. But he wouldn’t listen. Instead, he kept pushing for more even after I assured him I wasn’t capable of anything even close. He made me need him and now that I do, it’s too late.

My phone vibrates with an incoming text.

Cara: You okay?

Sophie: No. In the bathroom upstairs.

Cara: On my way.

Knowing I need to get my shit together before Cara sees me, I rummage through the cabinets until I locate some mouth wash. Gargling, I spit it out as the burn of the alcohol on my already angry mouth stings terribly. The room tilts sideways before it spins. I sit down on the small rug in front of the shower to get my bearings. I hear Cara knock on the door, but I can’t get up to let her in.

It’s not locked so she opens it herself and rushes to my side. “Sophie, are you okay?”

“Dizzy. I’m okay.”

“Let me help you up.” She takes my hand and pulls me to a standing position. I’m weary, swaying back and forth slightly.

“I want to go home, Cara.”

“Okay. Can you walk?”

“I’m not sure.” There’s no way I can walk the entire way back to the dorm.

“Hang on. I’ll get Kipton’s keys. I only had half a beer. I’m fine to drive.”

“No! Don’t bother him. He’s probably busy.”

Laughing at me, she says, “he has it coming.” She doesn’t bother knocking, instead she tries the knob. When she finds it locked, she kicks the door repeatedly with her boot until Kipton answers the obnoxious banging. It doesn’t do any favors for my already throbbing head.

“What the hell are you doing, Cara?”

Peeking through the space between the bathroom door and the door frame, I’m able to see Kipton. Although his shirt’s still off, his pants are on. Sighing in relief and holding onto a sliver of hope, I duck my head, tears leaking from my eyes. I did this to myself. I pushed him to her.

Cara scoffs at him and gets right to the point. “Give me your keys; I need to drive Sophie home. And put your shirt back on.”

“What? Why?”

“Because you’re not a man whore.” She spins on her heel, but he grabs her shoulder before she gets away.

“No. Why do you need my keys?”

“She’s not feeling well.”

“Again? Where is she?” he questions.

“Give me your damn keys, please.”

Kipton’s about to hand them over to her, but pauses. “Are you okay to drive? Were you drinking?”

“I’m fine. Only had half a beer,” she assures him. She grabs the keys from his hand and rushes back to me. “Okay, Sophie. We can go. Let me help you back up.”

My heart is racing, but it’s not from the site of Kipton. “Cara, my chest.” Before I hear her response, I’m reaching out to grab the sink. I can see Kipton’s silhouette in the doorway, watching me closely. “It’s tight and pounding.”

“Sophie, what’s wrong?” he asks.

“I need to go home.” My chest is so tight. I clutch at my throat, rubbing my skin.

“Kipton, baby. Come back to bed,” Emily purrs. She’s wearing his shirt and nothing else. The site alone makes me want to gag all over again. She looks exactly like one of my dad’s trashy sluts.

Kipton does a double take of her and looks livid. “Where are your clothes, Emily? It’s time for you to leave.”

I stare in horror between the two of them. Kipton stands in front of me, forcing me to look at him. “This isn’t at all what it looks like, beautiful. I didn’t—I wouldn’t.”

I need to get away from Emily before I scratch her eyes out. Bracing myself against the wall, I use it for support as I walk down the hallway. With Cara’s help, I’m able to make it to the kitchen. But before I can get outside to the car, Kipton’s by my side.

“You know me, Sophie. I’m not that guy anymore. You’re what I want. Not Emily or anyone else.”

I swallow around the lump in my throat. It would be so easy to believe him. But the truth is, I’m not sure I do. “Goodnight,” I whisper. With my heart in pieces, I walk to the car where Cara’s waiting to take me home.

“You okay?” Cara asks on the drive to the dorm.

That’s a loaded question. “I will be.”

Back in the dorm, Cara makes sure I’m safely tucked in my bed before she excuses herself to see Drew. “I’ll be right back. I just want to make sure he knows what’s up in case Emily or Kipton come back here. I doubt she would have the guts to, but you never know with my brother.”

“Take your time, I’m okay.” I toss around to get comfortable, hoping to fall asleep so Cara doesn’t feel obligated to babysit me, but my phone rings.

“Hello.”

“Are you okay?” Kipton.

“I’m fine. I’m going to bed.” Pulling the phone away from my ear, I’m about to hang up when I hear his desperate plea.

“Sophie, wait.”

I’m too tired to play games, but I answer him anyway because part of me is thrilled he bothered to call me in the first place. “What?”

“I didn’t sleep with her.”

Am I supposed to believe that? They were both practically naked. “I don’t care either way, Kipton.”

“I know you care because I felt the same way when I saw you with Caleb.” He sighs into the receiver. “Jesus, Sophie. What are we doing?”

“I dunno? You tell me.”

“I swear I didn’t have sex with her.”

“You were in there with the door shut and she came out wearing your clothes, Kipton. How do you explain that?”

He sighs and continues his explanation. “We sat on my bed and I told her all about you. She’s jealous, Sophie. Really fucking jealous. That’s why she came out in my T-shirt. She took her own clothes off and took that shirt out of the wash basket. I didn’t touch her, I swear to you.”

I know all about jealousy. It’s what caused me to seek revenge in the first place. “I believe you.”

“You do?” He sounds surprised he didn’t have to fight harder to convince me. We were both acting like such jackasses tonight.

“Yeah. I do.”

He sighs again. “Are you in bed, beautiful?”

“Yes.”

“God, I want to be with you right now. Please say yes, Sophie.”

He has no idea how much I want him to hold me in his arms right now. “I want to. More than you know.”

“Then say the words and end this.”

“I think we did enough damage for one night. Maybe we can start fresh tomorrow.”

“Yeah. Maybe.”

“Cara’s back. I should go. Good night, Kipton.”

“Night, beautiful,” he whispers.

I pray sleep takes me to my dreams quickly because I need Kipton.

MAYBE I’M A FOOL, BUT I’m willing to wait Sophie out and give her the time she needs. Space is a different issue entirely. I can’t promise not to keep trying. I’m a persistent man when I know what I want and I want Sophie. From the tone of her voice on the phone, I thought she was about to break down and give up her fight.

Desperately wanting to help her, I have no idea where to begin. Maybe I could if I knew what was holding her back in the first place. She’s obviously scared, I get that. I just need to know why. Everyone has a past and I’d never hold hers against her, or run from it.

The minutes continue to tick by on the clock, as her words continue to eat away at me. I’m about to get up to find a bottle of Jack when my phone pings with an incoming text. Calls this time of night usually aren’t good, so I’m praying Cara’s safe. Unless it’s Emily. I doubt I’ve heard the last from her. When Sophie’s name appears, I’m not sure if I should rejoice or worry.

Sophie: Kipton.

Kipton: Hey beautiful.

Sophie: I’m sorry.

Kipton: For what?