Page 62 of When You Stayed
Other than what she’d left inside of my chest? “Yeah, that’s it.”
Lifting her chin, she said, “Then I’d like to go home.”
Nodding, I remembered what she’d said back at Connor’s house. “Show me the letters.”
“What?” she faltered back a step.
I took one closer. “This morning you didn’t hate me. You wouldn’t be this angry that I stole your box of shit from Connor. You’re mad about the letters. Show me.”
Her dark brow flicked up. “You stole it from Connor?”
“Connor asked me to take the box to you that night he proposed. I took it, just didn’t give it back to you like he asked.”
“Why?” Her back was against the wall, and having her in my bedroom was way too fucking enticing.
“Show me the letters.”
Her head moved from side to side. “You can’t bargain for them while also threatening to keep me here.”
I smirked. “You can walk home.”
She bit down on her bottom lip like she was deciding what to do. “I’ll hand them to you, but don’t read them. Just like I won’t look in this box. We’ll trade, and then you take me home.”
The urge to kiss that smart mouth was intense. I had to lower my gaze to the floor while I thought over what I was about to do.
“Deal.”
Royce still seemed to war with indecision, but eventually let one hand fall from the box and twist behind her. She pulled a few pieces of folded paper from her back pocket.
“Where did you get these?” My brow furrowed as I stared at her outstretched hand.
“I was cleaning up at the cottage. These were falling out of a book under Rook’s bed. I would have left them, but I saw my name.”
My stomach flipped with unease as I began tracing my memories for what I had written to Rook about. I had never given him a letter of any kind or sent him anything. Whatever was on the note had herangry enough that she wanted nothing to do with me and wouldn’t even look inside the box.
“Okay, you have them, now take me home.” Royce demanded, clutching the shoebox to her chest once more.
I dipped my head in agreement. “Lead the way.”
The moment she cleared the door, I shut and locked her out.
“Hey!” her fist landed against the wood in a thud. “Ford, you promised.”
Ignoring her, I unfolded the pages and began scanning the text.
“Ford! Take me home or I’ll start ruining your house.”
She could have fun with that; it was already a complete piece of shit.
“Fine, I’m looking in the box.”
Didn’t care, I wanted her to anyway. I read through the conversation I had with Rook when we were sixteen. I had been jealous of Connor, and of the fact that she’d ignored my card at Christmas. Why would seeing this hurt her so much, though? We were little assholes, but so was she back then.
Swinging open the door, I found Royce standing by the television stand with the top of the shoebox lid open, but she’d yet to pull anything out.
“You’re pissed at me for something I did when I was sixteen?”
She gently plucked the first item out of the box and held it up, fanning herself with it.The Christmas card she’d rejected.
