BOOK TWO!
Escaping the Outer Banks with the Pogues, Talia Carrington believes she's left her past and the danger of Carlos's control behind. But shadows from her old life follow close, especially the secret she kept from Rafe, whose memory haunts h...
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THE SILENCE BETWEEN them grew heavier, suffocating, as if the room itself had shrunk. Rafe stood firm, his gaze locked on Talia, and she felt herself unraveling under the weight of his presence. She could see the storm in his eyes—anger, hurt, and something else, something far more dangerous: resolve.
"Talia," he said, his voice low but sharp. "I want the truth. No more running, no more excuses."
She tore her gaze away, her chest tightening. "I told you, Rafe. There's nothing else to say."
He scoffed, stepping closer, his frustration boiling over. "You think I'm stupid? That I'm just going to stand here and believe you? After everything we've been through?"
Her own frustration flared, heat rising in her chest. "What do you want me to say?" she snapped, turning back to face him. "That I've been scared out of my mind since the day I left? That I thought walking away was the only way to save both of us? Because I've already said it, Rafe. And you're still here, acting like it wasn't enough."
"It's not enough!" His voice rose, echoing off the tile walls. "You left me with nothing. No answers, no goodbye—just a voicemail and a lot of questions I couldn't fucking answer. And now, you're standing here, lying to my face like that's supposed to fix it."
Her hands clenched at her sides, the anger bubbling up and mixing with the guilt she'd tried to bury. "It wasn't supposed to fix anything. It was supposed to keep you alive. And if you knew me at all, you'd understand why I couldn't stay."
"Oh, I understand plenty." His tone was biting, his jaw tight. "I understand that you didn't trust me enough to tell me the truth. That you thought you could just make that decision for both of us, like I didn't have a goddamn say in my own life... and all you fucking do is run. When shit goes left—when you feel the control slipping through your fingers, you run. Like a coward."
She flinched, the words hitting harder than she expected. "Fuck you, Rafe. It wasn't about trust and it wasn't about control."
"Then what was it about?" he demanded, stepping closer, his presence overwhelming. "Because from where I'm standing, it looks a hell of a lot like you didn't think I was strong enough to handle it. That you didn't think I was worth fighting for. You just gave up and left."
Her breath hitched, and for a moment, she couldn't speak. The hurt in his voice cut deeper than his anger, and it took everything in her not to let the tears she'd been holding back spill over.
"You weren't supposed to have to fight for me," she whispered, her voice trembling. "You were supposed to have a life without all the chaos I brought us in Brazil. A life without me."
His laugh was sharp, bitter. "Without you? You think I wanted a life without you? God, Talia, I would've gone to hell and back for you. I did everything to keep us together. And you just—what? Threw it all away to protect me?"
"Yes!" she shouted, her voice cracking. "Because I loved you! Because I didn't want to be the reason you ended up dead! Why is this so fucking hard for you to understand, Rafe?"
The words hung between them, raw and heavy, but Rafe didn't back down. His voice dropped, quieter now but no less intense. "And now? Now you've got a new life. A new boyfriend. A whole world you built without me. Was I ever really part of your plan, Talia? Or was I just... a phase?"
Her chest tightened, her nails digging into her palms. "You're being ridiculous, you were never just a phase," she whispered, her voice breaking. "You were everything to me. But I couldn't—" She stopped herself, shaking her head. "It doesn't matter now. You said you handled it, didn't you? So, what's left to talk about? Let it go."
Rafe's jaw clenched, the frustration in his eyes intensifying. "That's the thing, Talia. I handled it, but I still don't know why the hell you couldn't just tell me the truth. You should've just told me about Carlos. What are you so afraid of?"
"I'm sorry, Rafe," she said, her voice trembling but steady. "I'm so sorry."
His gaze softened, just for a moment, and she saw a flicker of the boy she'd fallen in love with—the boy she'd left behind. But it was gone as quickly as it came, replaced by the cold, determined man he'd become.
"And what about us?" he asked quietly, his voice tinged with something close to desperation. "Do we even matter anymore?"
She couldn't answer. The truth caught in her throat, tangled with everything she couldn't say, everything she wasn't ready to admit. Instead, she looked away, the silence between them louder than any words she could have spoken.
"Yeah," he said finally, his voice hollow. "That's what I thought."
Her head snapped up, panic flickering in her chest as he turned and reached for the door. "Rafe—wait."
He froze, his hand hovering over the handle. Slowly, he turned back, his eyes narrowing. "What?"
Her lips parted, but the words wouldn't come. All she could do was stare at him, the weight of her choices pressing down on her like a tidal wave.
He let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head. "Have a nice life, Talia." Without another word, he opened the door and walked out, the sound of it clicking shut behind him like a final nail in the coffin.
Talia sank against the sink, her chest heaving, the silence pressing down on her like a vice.
For the first time in months, she felt the full weight of what she'd lost—and what she might never get back.
