Even though the entire first floor is lit up, the house itself is eerily silent as I slip inside my family's home. This has been one hell of a long-ass day. Fending off comments, and the determined girls who chased after me to sign their photographs, is the most messed up thing that has ever happened to me.By the time I got to practice, I wanted to work myself over so I could stop thinking about all this bullshit. And Violet.For the life of me, I can't wrap my brain around why she would do something like this. If I didn't know better...if her bag wasn't in the shot...if I didn't remember the morning we woke up naked in my bed...I could easily conjure up another plausible explanation, but I can't.It was her.After inspecting the photograph carefully, I'm certain that it happened after the morning we made love for the first time. The memory now feels tainted.I still haven't returned any of her calls or text messages. It's killing me to avoid her. And yet, I can't bring m

I wait for her to walk inside before silently trailing after her. My hands stay shoved in my pockets. I think we're both thrown off by the way I keep to myself. Her movements are stilted as she sets her bag down on the couch in the small common area in the suite.Even though Mia doesn't appear to be home, we head to the privacy of her bedroom. Once inside, she settles on the edge of the bed before her gaze lifts to mine. Instead of dropping down next to her, I grab the chair from her desk and turn it around so I can face her.The tiny spark of hope in her eyes dims as I continue to keep my distance. Violet may not realize it, but it kills me not to reach out and touch her. I want to hold her in my arms and make this all go away."Sam," her voice is scraped low and hollowed out with enough regret to leave me wincing, "I'm so sorry."I search her eyes and shake my head, trying to wrap my mind around what could have possessed her to do something like this. "You took that photo

Unsure where to go, I stop at the front desk and explain why I'm there. I'm given directions to a waiting room. There are a few twists and turns down a sterile looking hallway before I spot my grandmother sitting in a chair, nursing a small cup of coffee.My heart spasms as I hurry toward her. "Gran? Have there been any updates?"Her gaze swings to mine before she shakes her head. She sets her coffee aside and rises to her feet before engulfing me in an embrace. Even though fear continues to pump through me, her thin arms have a way of offering comfort, just like they did when I was a child. After a few silent moments, we break apart. Our hands remain clasped as we sit down. Now that I'm here, I release a pent-up breath. "What happened?"Gran shakes her head as if she can't believe that we're sitting in the hospital waiting room, having this conversation. That a few hours ago they were at the breakfast table, starting their day just like they've done thousands of times

Mia pokes her head around the corner of the door and glances in my room. "Hey, how is your grandfather doing? It's been a few days since I've seen you.""He's better! It's a lot of resting right now, which is driving him crazy. I guess there's only so much CNN a person can watch." I open a drawer from my dresser to grab a few shirts to take with me. "There's no reason he shouldn't make a full recovery.""That's great." She moves further into the room and plops herself down on my bed. "Any plans to move back to the dorms?" There's a beat of silence. "I've missed having you around, Vi. It's way too quiet without you."My lips lift. "I'll be back in a few days. I want to make sure Gramps is doing all right."She nods. Mia understands how important my grandparents are to me. She's been invited over for a ton of dinners and has visited during summer breaks. "You can take my car back and forth if you want. It's not like I need it during the week."It probably would be e

"Violet! Wait up!"I swing around and spot Allie trucking toward me from out of nowhere. When she's close enough, one hand snakes out and fastens around my upper arm. The way her fingers bite into my flesh has me wondering if everything is all right.She looks a little crazy.All right, maybe more than a little.A frenzied light fills her deep brown eyes.I'm tempted to retreat, but her grip is solid. For the time being, I'm stuck."Oh my God, have you seen the picture yet?" Not only are her eyes bulging from their sockets, but she's vibrating with pent-up excitement. I've never seen her like this before.Not that I know Allie all that well, but this isn't her normal demeanor. She's usually more chill. Clearly something big is going on.My belly nosedives ten stories as I notice the way she's clutching her phone. Dread rushes through my body as I wait for her to drop whatever bomb is about to roll off her tongue. Even though I know it's impossible for there to be anot