Midnight Hour (Shadow Falls: After Dark #4)(87)

In the back of her mind, she heard Della say, Balls, eyes, and throat.





Chapter Twenty-Five

“Miranda?”

Shawn’s voice had her panic rolling off her but a newfound panic rolling in. She had to break up with him.

“I didn’t think you’d be here until ten.”

“I got off early.”

“But you were walking away from my cabin,” she said.

“You weren’t there.” He sounded guilty.

She knew why. He’d wanted to avoid seeing her. “You should have texted me.”

“Probably.”

She started walking. His steps moved in rhythm with hers. The sound of crickets singing filled the night air.

Her mind raced, searching for a way to tell him what needed to be said. Something that sounded right. Nothing came to her.

“How’s your arm?” he asked.

“It doesn’t even hurt anymore.”

“That’s good.”

“Have you heard anything about my sister?”

“No, sorry.”

They walked the rest of the way to her cabin in silence. She moved up the porch steps and on the last step she almost tripped when she saw what

was left outside her door.

Flowers.

He’d bought her flowers. Now.

A spark of anger flickered inside her.

She turned. He stood there watching her.

“I … didn’t get a chance to have any delivered to you when…”

He stopped talking as if just now realizing what a mistake he’d made.

She walked to the side of the porch, dropped down, and dangled her feet off the edge.

She felt him sit down beside her.

She waited to see if he’d say anything. The silence felt thick. An awkward kind of sadness filled the air. Something was about to end. She

hated endings.

Even when they were right.

She pulled her up big-girl panties. “We need to talk—”

“I brought her flowers because I felt bad,” he blurted out. “I was in charge of protecting her. She got shot. It was meant to be a nice

gesture, not a romantic one.”

Miranda looked at her flip-flops hanging from her feet. “You liked her, too. Della told me. She said that Chase and Lucas had smelled it

earlier.”

He exhaled with a whoosh. Frustration laced the tense sound. “She’s pretty. I was attracted to her, but I wasn’t acting on it. And it’s not

fair for you to blame me for just thinking … Guys can’t control that especially when…” He pulled his lips into his mouth.

“When what?” she asked.

“When you haven’t been willing to take things to the next level.” He shook his head. “I’m sorry. I … You have all the right in the world

to take as much time as you need. What’s important here is that … I didn’t do anything.”

She looked right into his soft blue eyes. And she saw it.

“Then why do you feel guilty?”

He glanced off into the woods. “Maybe because I knew Della was going to blow this out of proportion.”

“Or maybe…,” Miranda said, “you really like the girl. More than you like me.”

He ran a hand over his face. “I’ve been crazy about you for years.”

She scrunched her toes, feeling her flip-flop falling off. “I was crazy about you, too. But that’s not enough, is it?”

He frowned and then looked … angry. “This isn’t about me, is it? It’s about Perry?”

Suddenly the flip-flop was on the other foot. She had the guilt now. “No.” The word tasted like a lie. “Not completely.”

“Define ‘not completely,’” he said in a judgmental voice.

She searched for the right words.

He didn’t give her enough time. “You guys are back together, aren’t you?”

“Not officially.”

“Define ‘officially.’”

It was the first time she’d heard Shawn sound so angry. She felt terrible. Her chest felt weighty. But he deserved an answer. “I needed … to

tell you that I didn’t think—”

His frown deepened. “How dare you make me feel bad when you’re already with…”

“I’m not with him.” She wished she could say they hadn’t even kissed. She couldn’t. He stared at her as if it was her fault. She didn’t

feel at fault. But she did feel guilty. She was hurting him. She hated hurting people.

Hated.

Hated.

Hated it.

She reached deep and found the one defense she had. “When you asked me out the first time, I told you I wasn’t ready. Or that I wasn’t over

… everything.”

He jumped up, as if to leave. He didn’t. Stopping at the other end of the porch, he stood there staring out.

After several birdcalls and a few cricket songs, he faced her. “You’re right. I rushed you. I just thought … we were perfect for each other.

”

He came and dropped back down beside her. Just not as close. That little half of an inch between them said a lot. He’d accepted it.