Chapter seventy one

Hazel Maya sent me a message before I had finished brushing my teeth.**Maya:** He brought coffee.I stared at the screen, then laughed so hard that toothpaste fell onto the front of my shirt.Silas stood in the bathroom doorway with a towel around his shoulders. “Should I be worried?”“Maya is going on a date with Leo tomorrow.”His eyebrows lifted. “Leo asked her?”“He asked properly, which is more surprising.”Silas leaned against the doorframe. “He has been practicing.”“With you?”“He asked me whether coffee was too obvious.”“And what did you tell him?”“I told him every woman I have ever met has wanted coffee at some point.”I rinsed my mouth, then picked up the phone again.**Hazel:** Did he say good morning before telling you he did not poison it?Maya answered almost immediately.**Maya:** He did. He said he had been practicing.I turned the screen toward Silas. “You have created a monster.”“He was already a monster. I only helped him become polite.”“That may be the sweet

Chapter seventy two

Silas Hazel slept late the morning after our date.I woke before sunrise because I always did, then stayed in bed because she had one hand closed around the front of my shirt. Her hair covered half her face. The blanket had slipped from her shoulder, and I pulled it back over her carefully.She did not wake.For a long time, I watched the slow rise of her chest and listened to the quiet house around us. Marcus had already left for the morning. Leo was probably at the gym, working through whatever had kept him awake. The staff moved softly downstairs, aware that Hazel had been carrying too much for too long.Nobody came near our room.Hazel shifted closer to me, and her fingers tightened in my shirt again.I had spent years sleeping lightly. A door opening, a phone vibrating, a car stopping outside the house could pull me from sleep in a second. My body had learned that peace did not last. I had learned it before I was old enough to understand why my father kept a gun in his desk dra

Chapter seventy three

HazelI woke before the alarm and knew the date before I opened my eyes.My mother’s birthday.For a few minutes, I stayed under the blanket with my face turned toward the window. The room was still dark. Silas slept beside me, one arm resting near my waist without holding me. He had learned that I sometimes needed room before I knew how to ask for it.I was grateful for that.I stared at the ceiling and tried to remember my mother’s face without forcing the memory. Her smile came first. Then the small line between her eyebrows whenever she read something serious. Her hands came next, warm and busy, always doing three things at the same time.She used to make her own birthday cake.Leo complained every year that she should let someone else do it. My father offered to buy one from the best bakery in town. She always refused, tied her apron around her waist, and made a mess of the kitchen with flour, butter, sugar, and too many bowls.She said birthday cake tasted better when the perso

Chapter seventy four

Maya Leo arrived ten minutes early.I knew because I had been standing near the entrance of my building with my coat buttoned to my throat, pretending I was waiting for the bus. The street was busy with students, delivery riders, and parents carrying children toward the small school at the end of the road.His car stopped near the curb.Leo stepped out before the driver could open his door. He wore a black coat over a dark blue shirt, and his hair had been pushed back from his forehead with more care than usual. He looked toward my building, found me immediately, and walked over with a coffee cup in each hand.“Good morning,” he said.I accepted the coffee and examined the lid. “You remembered.”“I practiced.”“You did.”His mouth moved with quiet satisfaction.The coffee had the right amount of sugar. I took a sip while he reached for my bag, then stopped halfway through the movement.“I can carry it,” I said.“I know.”“You remembered that too.”“I am learning several difficult thi

Chapter seventy five

Hazel Silas came home after midnight.I knew because I had been awake for almost an hour, lying under the blanket with a book open against my chest. I had read the same page four times and remembered none of it. The lamp beside the bed stayed on, casting a soft circle over the pillow he had not used.He had told me he would be late.He had also told me to sleep.Those were different things.When I heard the front door close downstairs, I put the book aside and sat up. His footsteps moved through the hallway, slow enough that I knew he thought I was asleep. The bedroom door opened carefully.Silas stopped when he saw the light.“You are awake,” he said.“Yes.”“You should have slept.”“I tried.”He stood near the door with one hand still on the handle. His coat hung open, and his shirt was creased beneath it. His hair had fallen across his forehead. He had taken off his watch, though he still wore the ring on his right hand that he only removed when he showered.I noticed a dark mark

All Chapters of TANGLED:,Crazy For You: Chapter 71 - Chapter 75

Chapter seventy one

Chapter seventy two

Chapter seventy three

Chapter seventy four

Chapter seventy five