I draw my knees to my chest as terror ripples through me.

The fire blazed through Ship’s Haven and is currently burning its way through the next town...which means it won’t be long before it reaches Royal Manor.

If I close my eyes and concentrate…I can hear the sirens looming in the distance and smell the smoke in the air.

I should pull myself together and try to escape, but I have nowhere to go.

And even if I did, all the roads are congested due to people trying to evacuate.

I’m literally trapped.

But that’s still not the worst part about what’s happening.

The worst part is that Oakley’s out there somewhere and I have no idea if he’s okay.

And I’m probably going to die without ever making things right between us.

I start rocking myself, desperately trying to ease my anxiety as tears fill my eyes.

I’d give anything to go back to that night at the bar and do things differently.

Because despite us being a train wreck waiting to happen and me always feeling like I was one breath away from drowning every time he was near.

I’ve never been happier in my whole life.

I’m so lost in my thoughts, I barely register the sound of the front door opening and heavy footsteps rushing up the stairs.

“Get up.”

My head snaps up at the sound of Oakley’s voice, and for a moment I honestly think I’m hallucinating because how is he standing right in front of me?

Getting off my bed, I rush toward him. “Where the hell were you?” Tears clog my vision as fear and anger spiral through me like a boulder rolling downhill. Before I can stop myself, I shove him. “Do you have any idea how worried I was?” I shove him again, harder this time. “How hard I cried myself to sleep the past two nights because you abandoned me—”

I don’t have time to finish yelling at him because he scoops me up and tosses me over his shoulder…right before he starts charging down the staircase.

“What the actual fuck are you doing?”

Ignoring me, he continues out the front door.

“Where are we going?”

He doesn’t answer, but he does put me down when we reach the driveway.

I’m puzzled when I notice a sleek, black motorcycle parked at the end of it.

“Why is there a bike in the driveway?”

“It’s my dad’s.” Jaw clenched, he tosses me a helmet. “Get on.”

He’s out of his mind. “Are you crazy? I’m not getting—”

“Christ,” he seethes as he straddles the bike. “Shut the fuck up and hop on so we can get out of here.”

Shaking my head, I back away. I’ve never been on a motorcycle before and I don’t know much about them, but everything I do know isn’t good. “There’s no way in hell I’m getting on that thing.”

Muttering a curse, he looks up at the night sky, like he’s trying his hardest not to reach over and throttle me. “Bianca.”

He says my name like a threat and a promise.

“What?”

His glare grows glacial. “Get on the goddamn bike. Now.”

Turns out riding a motorcycle through town was the smart thing to do because we were able to speed past all the bumper to bumper traffic.

However, I’m confused when Oakley pulls into the parking lot of the beach. “Why are we here?”

He doesn’t say a word as he gets off the bike and starts walking.

I follow close behind him and I’m even more baffled when I see a small tent at the end of the beach.

Given it was set up before we got here, he must have done it earlier.

Which makes no sense…unless.

“Have you been here the whole time?”

I don’t know why I didn’t think to check here in the first place. Oakley once told me it’s one of his favorite places to go when he wants to be alone.

Wordlessly, he takes a backpack out of the tent and pulls out a few bottles of water, not even bothering to look my way.

His silence cuts like a knife.

“I know you hate me but can you at least tal—”

“I don’t hate you.” He gives me a look that robs me of breath. “Trust me it would be a lot easier if I could.”

I swallow against the pounding of my heart. “I know I screwed up, but you can’t just disappear like that. You can’t—

“You don’t get to have a say in what I can or can’t fucking do.” His deep voice rumbles through the air, wrapping around me. “You lost that right when you stole my phone and started accusing me of shit.”

My heart sinks. “I—”

“Did you fuck him?”

The inquiry snaps like a whip.

I’m briefly thrown off, but I answer honestly. “No. I wouldn’t do that—”

“It’s late.” He turns his back to me, directing all his attention toward the ocean now. “There’s an air mattress in the tent you can sleep on. It’s not that comfortable, but it’s better than nothing.”

I shuffle my feet in the sand. “What if the fire comes?”

“Then we swim.”

I’m about to tell him Cole came up with a similar plan, but I stop myself.

Because our connection—the one I’ve always felt in my marrow—is no longer there.

I severed it with my obnoxious game fueled by jealousy.

I take a step closer to him. “Oakley?”

His shoulders tense. “What?”

My heart hurts at the hollowness of his voice.

“I’m sorry.” Closing the distance between us, I press my body against his back, breathing in his scent. “I never should have taken your phone to text Hayley. And I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions when I saw you with that woman at the bar.” A sharp kick of pain hits my heart. “And I definitely shouldn’t have let you think I was fucking some random guy as payback.”

Truth be told I can’t blame him for being so angry with me. What I did was not only immature…it was hurtful.

Turning his head, he speaks over his shoulder. “This won’t work if you can’t trust me.”

I press a gentle kiss to his shoulder blade. “I do trust you.”

Deep down, I know Oakley would never hurt me.

However, the thought of anyone else having him…doesn’t sit well with me.

“But I don’t like sharing you,” I whisper. “I want you all to myself.”

And maybe that’s wrong of me, but I can’t help how I feel.

I start to walk away, but his next words stop me in my tracks.

“That’s the thing, Bianca.” Slowly, he turns. His expression is twisted in pain, as though he’s battling something stronger than him. “You do have me.”

I’m not sure what he’s saying. “What—”

Jaw bunching, he grits his teeth. “The harder I fight whatever this thing is between us…the stronger your hold on me gets.” Heaving out a long sigh, he shrugs as if succumbing to his fate. “So I’m done fighting it.”

The air between us grows so thick you could cut it with a knife. “Does that mean—”

“That we’re together?” He scrubs a hand down his face. “Yeah…yeah we fucking are.”