Fire with Fire (Crash and Burn, Book 3) (A Military Romance) by Eva Grayson Read Free Book Online Page B

sipping a coffee out of a paper cup. I’m too nervous to drink or eat anything right now, so I make a beeline for her.
    “Hey,” I say quietly.
    “Hey.” She nods. Her face looks tired, her eyes a bit downcast. And I hate myself all over again for making her feel this way. After the Max debacle, she looked like this for months—or at least our mutual friends told me she did. She didn’t go anywhere near me until well after that.
    I slip into the seat across from her and drop my hands to my lap. Fidget with the hem of my skirt. Shift in the chair. “So.” I clear my throat. Swipe at my messy braid. Shit, I’m so frigging nervous. “Um, I’d really like to hear what you have to say. And I’ll be quiet while you talk, I promise. I know you’re upset with me, and rightly so. I handled everything badly about Cole.” I stop rambling and force myself to look at her.
    Christina just stares at me for a long, hard moment. “Okay, I’m not gonna lie, I’m still a little upset at you. You should have told me from the start that you and Cole are seeing each other instead of hiding it. I felt so stupid. Stupid and hurt and embarrassed.”
    I want to tell her that we’re not together—at least, not yet, not unless I manage to convince him to give me another shot, a real shot—but I keep my mouth shut. I promised to stay quiet. This isn’t about defending myself, it’s about listening to her.
    She plays with the rim of her cup, running her finger along it. Stares down into the brown liquid. “So I’m still upset, but…I’m not mad anymore. I’ve taken some time to really think about it and try to see it from your point of view. At first, all I could think about was how this was another echo of what happened with Max.” She looks up at me now, her eyes filled with intense emotion. “But it’s not. I know that now. I can’t be mad at you because Cole likes you, not me.”
    I dare to reach over and grab her other hand. She doesn’t move for a moment, then squeezes my fingers, and that massive knot I’ve been carrying in my chest since our fight dissolves. I’m so relieved I could cry. “I’m super sorry,” I whisper.
    She shakes her head. “I’m sorry, too. I said some nasty things to you that weren’t fair, or even fully true, and I feel bad about that. It was a silly little crush I had on him. I see that now. And it’s fine, I swear—I’ll get over it. It’s a big world filled with lots of men, right?” Christina offers me a shaky smile.
    I smile back. “Absolutely.”
    “So, what’s going on with you guys? Are you dating?” Her voice is light, but strained. I can tell she’s asking to be polite, and my heart swells even more from the gesture she’s making toward me, despite her discomfort. She’s trying.
    “No, I…I kinda screwed up, yet again, and blew it big time.” I can’t seem to muster a smile now, my lungs tightening as I think about what happened. “Seems like I have a gift in being able to do that with the people I care about the most.” The image of his eyes, filled with pain as he looked at me, won’t stop haunting me.
    Christina studies me. “But you have romantic feelings for him.”
    “I do.”
    “Strong romantic feelings.”
    “Very strong. I don’t know when it happened, but it did, and…” My throat clenches. I swallow. “I love him, and I hurt him, and I don’t know how to make it right without making things worse.”
    “You’ll figure it out,” she says, squeezing my hand in earnest now. Her eyes are kind, and I ache at the warmth on her face now. Once again I feel like it’s more than I deserve, but I so need it. “He’s a great guy.”
    “He really is.”
    Christina leans forward. “Then tell him how you feel, in a way that makes it clear beyond question he’s the man you want. Don’t let a fight keep you two apart like this.” I know she’s talking about her and me because of the sad smile on her face. “It’s a dark, lonely place to live