Biting Temptation

25: My Fault

His eyes weren't actually focusing on me but at the top of my head and that somehow angered me more. "I said, it took you long enough to lean away."

My grip on his wrist tightened. "Are you saying this is my fault?"

"Whoa, wait a minute now, who said that? Not me that's for certain." The sarcasm didn't go unnoticed. "All I said is that it took you a little longer than it should have for you to lean away from him."

"I was surprised."

His sudden burst of laughter made me let him go. "Were you really? I wasn't surprised at all when I saw."

I blinked back my angry tears. "You're not being fair. I haven't done anything wrong here."

"You've led him on."

I turned my head away as if I'd been slapped. "I don't treat him any differently than I do Callum or John or even Christian. I hug them, they kiss my cheek, I kiss theirs-"

"The difference between them and him is that they're not practically in love with you."

I stood there completely speechless, I couldn't even look at him. I haven't done anything... But then I thought maybe I had. Maybe I had led him on by... by what? A part of me asked. By being how you are with everyone else? But I knew how Nate felt, he'd admitted that much in the hospital all those years ago. He may not have ever said it again or hinted. Maybe Michael was right. Was this my fault?

Without a word I walked past him upstairs to our room. I didn't want to be made to feel guilty over this though because right now that's what Michael was doing. He was looking for someone to blame and since I told Nate to go, I was in his line of sight. Nate trying to kiss me was the icing on top of this wonderful cake of a day. I couldn't do this right now, and with Michael's state of mind with Ana's passing neither could he.

Well... what do I do now? Leave? Wait for Michael to cool down? I could go to mom and dad's for the night; it wouldn't be that unusual because of the funeral. I didn't want to leave him alone tonight of all nights too but it looked like I didn't have much of a choice.

So with that in mind I took a nice long hot shower to wash away what I could of today's events, threw on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and tied my damp hair into a ponytail. I threw in tomorrow's clothes into a holdall and made my way downstairs fully intending to bypass Michael wherever he'd disappeared to.

But I had no such luck. I paused by the end of the stairs, watching him rub his hands over his head. His tie was loose around his neck, a few of the buttons on his shirt were flicked open.

I adjusted the bag on my shoulder and started toward the hallway. But the look in his eyes froze my movements. "You're going." He murmured, his voice breaking a little on the last word.

He watched me carefully as if I were the wild animal about to spring and make a run for it and not him. I dropped my bag carefully by the chair and slowly kneeled in front of him. "I thought it'd be best to go to mom and dad's because you're mad at m-"

"I'm not mad at you, Evie. I swear to you I'm not."

I frowned, stroking my hand over his cheek. "I get it, I do. I encouraged it but not intentionally I really didn't do it on purpose. I love Nate, but not like that."

Michael's eyes lifted to meet mine. "But you have feelings for him."

I pursed my lips. "I used to. When I was nineteen."

"And now?"

"Do you trust me?" I countered.

The fact he didn't hesitate when he nodded his head eased my heart. "I do."