Page 272 of Darling Venom
Because Leah was right.
I was not okay, and I couldn’t string Charlie along, forcing her to wait for me to get my shit together.
I knew as soon as I saw Charlie that I shouldn’t have come. Delivering hope with no intention of following through should be a criminal offense. At least then I’d be jailed and far less likely to show up here on a whim.
Charlie’s intense green eyes tracked me from her perch on Mars.
The god of war, I noted.
She sent me a weird look.
Maybe a little hopeful.
Maybe a little confused.
“Are you here to apologize?”
If she wanted an apology, she was going to have to be more specific. In that department, I’d racked up a list longer than Santa’s.
“Save it,” she continued, turning back to watch a park squirrel dart down the slide. “I don’t want to hear it.”
I remembered my excuse, lifting the book. “I came to return this to you.”
Her shoulders deflated, but she held her head high.
“It’s yours to keep.” She sounded resigned.
“I read it.”
“Impressive.”
“Charlie.”
“Charlotte.”
“Charlie.”
“Fine.” She pointed in the general direction of the jungle gym, still not looking at me. “Set the book on the slide. I’ll grab it later.”
Charlie didn’t want to chance touching me.
Message received.
“For the squirrel to use as a landing pad?”
She ignored me. “Is that all? Or do you have something else you’d like to hand me? To say?”
Leave, Tate, the sole remaining thread of rationality inside me demanded. That’s all you came to do. Speaking of, a courier would have done the trick.
My feet didn’t budge.
Damn it.
“It was the first book I’ve read since college.”
She paused.
I could tell she didn’t want to talk to me.
