With Every Heartbeat(160)

Noel nodded and clasped my back as he groaned and crawled to his feel. “I’ll take you.”

Asher ended up taking off then, but Ten and Noel came with me to Noel’s house. We found Zoey curled up on Caroline’s bed with her head in Caroline’s lap, while a drowsy Caroline sat up against the headboard and stroked Zoey’s long, blonde strands. I stood in the doorway, just watching her sleep in the fetal position as if trying to escape all the nightmares haunting her. Then she whimpered and began to cry in her sleep.

Tears slid down my own cheeks. My chest felt like it was on fire. Caroline murmured a few words to soothe her, and Zoey settled, but I didn’t. I choked out a sob and glanced at Noel and Ten on either side of me.

Ten had been strong enough to stay away from Caroline even though he wanted her. He knew he was no good for her, just like I was no good for Zoey. With Cora being her sister, my past with my first girlfriend would always be there, between us. I didn’t need to put that kind of drama in Zoey’s life. I had caused this to happen to her.

But no matter how much I commanded myself to walk away and leave her in peace, I couldn’t do it. Zoey had taught me what true love really was, and no way could I abandon that. Maybe I could get her to forgive me.

I went to her and crawled onto Caroline’s bed to pull her into my arms.

Caroline sent me a tired, grateful smile and got off the bed to go give Noel a hug. Then all three of them moved out of the doorway.

Zoey stirred against me, burrowing into me and settling her ear against my heartbeat. “Quinn,” she murmured sleepily.

I kissed her hair and stroked her back. “I’m here.”

“Love you,” she mumbled sleepily. I don’t know if she was still too asleep to know what she was saying or if she honestly knew she was talking to me. But the words moved through me anyway.

“I love you too. With every beat of my heart, I am yours, Zoey Alaina Blakeland. And I’m so sorry for everything.”

Her eyes fluttered open before she looked up at me. “You don’t have anything to be sorry for.”

“Yes, I do. I walked away tonight when I shouldn’t have. I walked away without realizing something awful had happened to you.”

“Did you beat up Belcher?” she asked.

I brushed my fingers delicately over the bruise on her cheek. “Yeah. Does that bother you?”

She shook her head. “No. I…I’m glad. Thank you. I don’t…I don’t like that guy.”

I grinned and pressed my forehead to hers. “Neither do I.”

“Is he going to be in a lot of pain for a while?”

“Yeah,” I repeated. “He is.”

She lifted her hand to my cheek. “Thank you.”

I closed my eyes and breathed in her amazing smell. “Does this mean you’ll take me back?”

“If you still want me.”

I touched my lips to hers softly. “I’ve always wanted you, and I always will.”





I woke alone in Quinn’s bed. The scent of him wafted up from his pillows and sheets and made me smile.

I’d almost been asleep in his arms on Caroline’s bed last night when from somewhere Ten’s voice said, “Well, pick her up and bring her with us, already. I’m tired as shit. Let’s go home.”

Quinn had sounded amused when his answer rumbled through his chest and into my ear. “You’re not going to balk about her staying at our apartment?”

In return, Ten had sounded confused and a little insulted. “Why would I balk? She’s your first real girlfriend. That’d be a pretty shitty, asshole move on my part to bar your woman from our place.”

Quinn had merely laughed before he scooped me up. I closed my eyes, wrapped my arms around his neck, and burrowed in.

And now, here I was, where he’d deposited me on his mattress before he’d crawled under the covers with me and held me all night long.

I stretched and glanced around, not really wanting to move, but wanting to find Quinn more than I wanted to stay still. I sat up and pushed the covers off my lap before patting Quinn’s shirt I wore to sleep in down enough to cover the tops of my thighs. As soon as I went to stand, the bedroom door cracked open. Quinn peeked inside.

“Hi,” I said, glowing from the inside out.

He stepped into the room, carrying a glass of juice. “Hey. You’re awake.”

When I nodded, he brought the cup to me. “Here. I brought you something to drink. Ten said he’d take care of breakfast.”

I paused halfway through my first gulp to look up in surprise. “Ten cooks?”

Quinn’s dimple appeared as he grinned at me. “No. But he buys. He’ll be back with donuts.”