Page 64 of Off-Limits Bad Boy

“The new rules,” he says in a tone that confirms he understands.

The air in my apartment feels different now—heavy with the possibility that Kade and I might mend what's broken between us.

“No secrets. No lies,” I whisper.

He nods. “You have my word, Emma. No secrets, no lies.”

“Okay,” I say. “Let's start there.”

“Start... with honesty?” He seems almost confused, but I’m curious where he’s about to take this.

I nod as his cologne, familiar and intoxicating, washes over me.

“Emma,” he says, “I'm falling for you. Hard.”

I blink. That wasn’t the honesty I expected, but it’s certainly honest.

“Kade,” I whisper, my heart skipping a beat. “We have a lot to work through.”

“I know.” He reaches out, his hand touching mine. “But I want to. For you, for us. I'm all in.”

“Me, too.” Relief floods through me in waves, warm and soothing. His promise sounds like truth, like something solid I can hold onto.

And we dive into conversation, really talk for the first time since everything fell apart. I tell him about the empty days, how they've been filled with reminders of him. He listens, his responses not just empty words but genuine understanding.

“Emma, I've been lost without you,” he says with a delicate smile, and I can picture the furrow between his brows, the way he runs a hand through his hair when he's frustrated or sad.

“Are we okay?” he asks.

“I want us to be,” I say, because despite the hurt, the love is still there.

“Me, too,” he says, and something shifts in the space between us.

“Alex lied to me, too,” he says quietly, and the hurt in his voice tugs at something deep in me. “He wanted to invest in some risky business... a loan shark. Said you'd be against it and told me not to tell you.”

I blink. “That's true, I would've objected. Strongly.”

Kade leans toward me, bridging the gap between us. “I get why he did it, but keeping you in the dark... it wasn't right. And it was heavy.” His shoulders seem lighter now, a physical representation of the truth in his words.

A sigh escapes me. “It wasn’t right,” I say, agreeing with him. "We can't change the past, but there’s hope for a future.”

Our hands inch closer to one another, and his fingers brush mine.

“Let’s do this right,” I whisper, meeting his gaze.

“Let’s do this together.”

And as our fingers tangle, the world falls away, leaving nothing but us. His touch sends currents up my arm, warming me from the inside out.

I knock on Alex's door, my heart hammering against my ribcage. It swings open, and there he stands—my brother, yet he feels like a stranger today.

“Em? What are you doing here?” His question is filled with surprise and guilt.

“Can we talk?”

“Of course.” He steps aside, allowing me space to enter the familiar territory of his apartment.

I take a deep breath as I cross the threshold, steeling myself to confront my brother. “Alex, why did you lie to Kade?”