All Chapters of THE LINE BETWEEN US : Chapter 51 - Chapter 60

Dinner had been a blur of soft laughter and cinnamon-sweet warmth. My mother had insisted on serving extra slices of her apple pie, claiming that Taylor looked “too thin for someone who runs around all day.” He’d smiled and obliged, charming her easily, while I sat there trying not to stare at the faint curve of his grin or the way the golden kitchen light turned his eyes to something gentler.It should’ve felt perfect, safe, simple, familiar.But under the surface, there was something tugging at me, small and sharp, like a thread caught between my ribs. I didn’t notice it until much later, when the dishes were done, when Mom had kissed my forehead goodnight and Taylor followed me quietly up the stairs.My room smelled faintly of vanilla and old paper. I sank onto the bed, exhaustion weighing down my limbs, and let out a soft sigh. Taylor sat near the window, the faint hum of my laptop filling the silence. Outside, the night pressed against the glass, thick, quiet, almost watchful.It

A man tumbled out of the house, reeking of alcohol, sharp, sour, and thick enough to sting my throat. He was built like someone who’d spent his life throwing his weight around, broad-shouldered and heavy-footed, his clothes hanging half-unbuttoned and stained.For a moment, I couldn’t move. My mind froze between the shock of his sudden appearance and the terrible familiarity in his face. The same jawline. The same hair.“Taylor…” I whispered, voice catching. “Is that…?”He didn’t answer, but the flicker in his eyes said it all.His father.The man’s gaze found me almost immediately, his expression twisting into something cruel. “Who the hell is this?” he slurred, pointing a thick finger at me before shifting his bleary focus back to Taylor. “Bringing girls home now? You think I don’t see what you’re doing? She’ll end up just like your whore of a mother.”The words cut through the air like broken glass.Taylor’s jaw tightened. “Don’t talk about her like that.”“What did you say to me?”

For a moment, I thought time had stopped.The only sound in the room was the faint, uneven rhythm of my breathing and the soft thud of the shawl as it hit the floor. Damian’s hand was still suspended midair, his eyes locked on my neck like the sight of it hurt him.He didn’t speak right away. The silence stretched, brittle and suffocating, until his voice broke it, low, rough, and shaking with something that sounded a lot like restrained fury.“Who did that to you?”My mouth opened, but nothing came out. I could feel my pulse hammering beneath the marks, loud enough that I thought he might hear it. His tone wasn’t demanding, just… edged. Like he was holding himself back from breaking something.“Autumn,” he said again, softer this time, but his jaw tightened. “Who hurt you?”I shook my head quickly, clutching the shawl against me even though it no longer hid anything. “It’s nothing, Damian. Please…just leave it.”“Nothing?” His eyes flickered, disbelief cutting through his voice. “Tha

For a second, I forgot how to breathe.His lips were on mine, warm, certain, desperate in a way that made the air tremble between us. I should’ve pushed him away. I should’ve said no. Every rational thought screamed for me to stop, to pull back, to remember who he was and what had broken between us.But I didn’t.Instead, my fingers moved on their own, clutching at his shirt, feeling the solid rise and fall of his chest beneath my palms. His heart was racing, fast, unsteady, wild, and I wasn’t sure if it was his heartbeat I felt or my own.Maybe it was both.When his hand slid to the back of my neck, my mind went blank. The world tilted. All the air between us vanished, leaving only that touch, the one I had imagined too many times in the quiet hours when I told myself I didn’t care anymore.And yet, here it was. Real. Terrifyingly real.I tugged at his shirt, pulling him closer until we both lost balance, the mattress dipping under our weight, and we rolled, once, twice, his hand cat

The shrill ring of my phone cut through the quiet darkness like a knife.I jerked awake, my heart pounding so hard I could hear it in my ears. For a moment, I couldn’t remember where I was, just the shadows, the faint glow of moonlight slipping through my curtains, and the sound of that persistent ring breaking the silence.My eyes were heavy with sleep, my head foggy, but I reached for the phone on my nightstand anyway. I didn’t even look at the caller ID. My voice came out hoarse when I answered.“Hello?”For a heartbeat, there was only static. Then…“Autumn?”I froze. My breath caught mid-inhale.It was him.“Taylor?” I whispered, my voice cracking on his name.The moment I heard that quiet sigh of relief on the other end, something inside me broke. I didn’t even realize I was crying until my throat clenched and a sob tore free.“Where were you?” The words tumbled out before I could stop them. “Do you have any idea how worried I was? I..i called you so many times, Taylor, and you d