Avenger(16)

“It was meant to be vague,” he rubbed his stubbled jaw.

“Ugh,” I groaned. I didn’t want to act like a fussy child, but I really thought we had gotten passed this whole ‘keep Sophie in the dark’ thing. I mean, really. “Come on, Caeden. Tell me.”

“No,” he said sternly.

“You need to tell me things,” I exclaimed. “You said you weren’t going to keep me in the dark anymore!”

“Fine!” He yelled. “I’m going to my dad’s grave! With everything that’s been going on, I missed the anniversary of his death! Okay?!”

“Oh.” I felt like a complete and total bitch. “I can go with you, if—”

“No,” he cut me off. His eyes and voice softened and he released his hold on the bed. “This is something I need to do by myself. Besides, you’re not fit to get out of bed.”

“I’m feeling stronger,” I frowned. “I do need to get up and move some. Sitting in bed all day every day isn’t good for me and the baby either.”

“You showered today,” he grinned.

“I don’t think it counts since you made me sit on the bench and you did the washing part.”

“At least you’re clean,” he winked.

It amazed me how one minute we could be arguing and the next we were cracking jokes. I guess that was the power of being mates.

“Am I interrupting something?”

We looked over to see Chris standing in the doorway. I hadn’t even heard her enter the house. This pregnancy had zapped my shifter senses.

“Not at all,” Caeden smiled. He walked to my side and placed a light kiss on my lips. “I’ll be back soon.”

When he was gone, I looked up to see Chris still standing awkwardly in the doorway. Her blonde hair had grown a bit longer since Caeden’s birthday, but it wasn’t as shiny and bouncy as normal. Her light green eyes weren’t as happy as they once were, but there was still a naughty glimmer in them that no amount of heartache could ever steal from her.

“Hey.”

“Hi,” she forced a smile.

“Are you going to stand there the whole time he’s gone?” I asked.

“No,” a ghost of a smile lifted her lips. I patted the empty space beside me and she sat down awkwardly beside me.

“Here,” I handed her the remote, “I’ll even let you watch one of those annoying reality shows you seem to love.”

“Thanks,” she took the remote but didn’t change the channel.

I wasn’t one to force a conversation so I grew quiet, waiting for her to say something.

A little over an hour had passed when she turned the TV off and looked at me.

“I’m sorry.”

“You’re sorry?” My brows furrowed together. “For what? You haven’t done anything.”

“I got married.”

I choked on my own saliva. “What did you say? I don’t think I heard you right.”

“You did,” she held her hand out, showing me the intricate gold band that glimmered there. “After losing Logan, and knowing what we’re facing, Bentley and I decided that we didn’t want to wait.”

“I-I-I—” I didn’t know what to say. “Did you have a wedding?”

“No,” she shook her head. “If we had a wedding, I wouldn’t have been able to keep it a secret. I’d want you to be my maid of honor. I know things feel…awkward between us. But I don’t want it to be that way. Logan dying wasn’t your fault. I don’t blame you, but I feel like you think I do.”

My lower lip trembled with the threat of tears. “But it was my fault.”

“Aw, Sophie,” Chris pulled me into her arms, stroking my hair. My tears stained her shirt as I sniffled. She shouldn’t have been the one comforting me. I was the reason her brother was dead.

I couldn’t stop the tears though. And I didn’t push her away.

* * *

Caeden

I stood in front of the grave with my hands shoved into the pockets of my shorts. This was the first time I’d been here since we buried my dad over a year ago. I hated being here. It made the fact that he was really dead and gone even more real. When I didn’t have to stare at his grave, I could pretend that he was just gone an extended trip and he’d be back soon. But death is one vacation you never return from.

“Hey, dad,” I mumbled, toeing the ground with my sneaker. “This is weird…talking to you like this doesn’t seem right…you know, since you can’t answer back.”

I tilted my head back, cracking my neck as I looked up at the clear blue sky.

“I felt like I should visit you though…I know mom and Bryce came to see you. And I didn’t. I’m sorry for that.”