Page 14 of Kane's Kingdom

He comes in but leaves the door open, because of course he does. He then reaches past me for a folder. His forearm brushes my shoulder.

"Need this."

"Take it."

The contact is barely anything, and my entire body reacts. Kane feels it too because his hand stills. For one suspended second, neither of us moves.

Then he straightens with the folder and notebook in hand and puts space between us, reasonable, controlled and completely infuriating.

"Your walls need fixing," I say.

His gaze narrows. "We've done this."

"No. You decided we were done."

"I decided the clubhouse wasn't the place."

"Because the brothers might hear?"

"Because that grief is yours."

"It was theirs too."

His jaw tightens. "Was."

The word cuts clean enough that I stand. "That's exactly the problem."

"Bella."

"They rode with him. Ate at our table. Slept on our couch. Half those men called him brother, and not one stopped King wiping him off the wall."

Kane sets the folder down. "What do you want me to say?"

"I want you to stop being so damn calm, Kane."

"That won't help you."

"You don't know what helps me."

"I know carrying it like this is hurting you."

Everything inside me goes still and he hears it as soon as he says it.

"You think I should let it go, don't you?"

"That's not what I said, Bella."

"It's what you meant though."

"No, it's not."

"You think I should stop carrying it because it makes everyone uncomfortable."

"I think your father's dead and mine is too, and you're still letting both of them decide what happens every time you walk into a room."

The breath leaves me. "How dare you?"

"I'm not asking you to forgive anybody."