Secrets of Us A Forbidden Love Romance (Alina)

Chapter 148

We'll See You Soon

My eyes snap open and | blink against the faint light creeping in from the window.

It's early, so early the sky is still a deep gray with just the faintest light of sunrise. | frown, running my hand over

the spot where Jake should be. It's cold.

Empty.

| sit up, the sheets sliding off my bare skin as | glance around his room.

It's quiet. Still.

My heart thumps a little harder in my chest, a ripple of unease spreading through me. | slip out of bed and find

my wrinkled clothes from the night before.

| fold them neatly at the edge of the bed and take them withas | make my way toward my room. | haven't

fully unpacked yet, so everything is still folded in my suitcase.

| pull out a thick, oversized sweater, a pair of black leggings, and my warmest socks. After brushing my teeth

and shoving my hair into a bun, | head downstairs, hoping I'll run into

one of my guys.

The cabin is quiet, but the fireplace is already crackling faintly in the living room. | frown, still not hearing any

deep voices filtering through the air.

The living room is empty and when | step into the kitchen, | realize that it is, too. | notice

a piece of paper on the kitchen island with my nwritten across the front of it.

| recognize Jake's messy handwriting. My chest tightens as | pick it up, unfolding

it

carefully.

Alina, The three of us needed to handle sthings. For us. For you. We're out for the day, but we'll be back

before dinner. There's food in the fridge - Aiden cooked - The TV's set up with whatever you want to watch, and

the fireplace is going, but you'll need to throw another log in if you don't want it to die. Stay warm. We'll see you

soon, baby. - Jake.

A sour excitement fills my chest and | smile, biting my bottom lip, reading the note again just to let the feeling of

it settle into my chest.

1/4

445pm

We'll See You Soon

They're trying. For each other. For me.

1 pull out the container from the fridge and heat it up slowly on the stove. The cabin is so quiet | can hear the

faint bubbling of the food as it warms, and the soft hiss of the fire as it cats away at the logs.

| can't stop thinking about them. Hoping they're figuring it out. Finding common ground.

Healing, maybe.

God knows | needed that when my dad and brother died. | got none of that, of course. My mother was broken

and angry, so much so that she forgot | was alive right there with her.

| ignore the pull that has on my heart.

| can't depend on her for closure, or kind words, because she will never give them to me.

But my guys still have a chance. | can tell that their love for each other is there even if the years and the hurt

have chipped away at it.

| want them to trust each other again.

| carry my food to the couch and curl up with a blanket, staring at the TV but not really

watching it.

Still, | make myself eat. | even finish two movies. | stay inside, because something about the untouched snow

makesfeel like going out would break the quiet spell they left

behind..

It's something | want to enjoy with them.

But as the hours pass, | find myself glancing at the window more and more, just a little

bored and a little worried.

| wonder if they're okay. Wonder if they're thinking oflike I'm thinking of them.

By the tthe second movie ends, the back of my head is beginning to hurt from the lack of stimulations. |

wash my dished and head upstairs, deciding a bath will calm my nerves, and maybe makelook less restless

when they get back.

| soak in the hot water until my skin is flushed and my fingers prune. When | finally

step

2/4

We'll See You Soon

out, | wrap myself in a thick towel and start drying off.

As I'm rubbing lotion on myself, | hear the front door open. | step to the bedroom

door and listen to the sound of boots scraping against the floor.

Low voices rumble and then laughter. Real, easy laughter that makes my chest squeeze in

the best way.

| smile, biting on my bottom lip.

They're home.

Without thinking, | drop the towel | was using on my hair and dash out of the bathroom,

still wrapped in just the one around my body. | don't really care.

My feet are bare against the wooden floors. My heart is pounding for an entirely different reason now. When |

reach the bottom of the stairs, they're there. The three of them, standing just inside the door. Shaking off snow.

Talking. Laughing. They take off their boots, their coats, and each one is oblivious to my presence.

I like it. I like watching them as they forgetfor a moment. Watching them just

be

themselves around each other.

Zaid is the first to see me. He's laughing at something Aiden said and he does a double take. Jake and Aiden

notice his stare.

They all turn, and the second their eyes land on me, everything changes. The laughter

dies down.

Hunger.

It's painted in their eyes. Dark, hooded. Three pairs of eyes looking atin the exact

sway. It's a lot to take in and I'm suddenly struggling to breathe.

Jake's jaw ticks, his eyes turning darker as they roam down the length of my barely covered body. Aiden's lips

part like he's just realized he's staring but can't help himself. Zaid's smile is slow, dangerous.

And all three of them are looking atlike they might devourwhere | stand.

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We'll See You Soon

I wouldn't mind that.

| take a step forward, and the towel shifts against my skin. Their eyes follow the

movement like they're tracking prey.

"Hi," | breathe, but it's barely a whisper.

Jake's the first to move.

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