Broken Promises by H. M. Ward

pads of my fingers felt the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. His strength, his passion, everything was mine that night. I shake my head to clear the thought from my mind. Walking down that path will be too painful, but that doesn't stop him from calling me back.
    "It's not what you think." Trystan's lashes lower and then raise. He fights to remain focused on me, but I know the drugs are pulling him under. He won't be awake much longer.
    I grab the rest of what I need and start to clean up some of his wounds. Trystan continues to speak, saying things I don't think of during daylight.
    "Everyone thinks they know me, Mari. The truth is very few people know me in a way that matters. Even fewer people truly like me. It's been lonely since Tucker died. There are personalities in this world existing purely to do good, steering us onto paths too steep and narrow to climb alone. Tucker helped me take my life in a different direction, but I walked up the mountain alone. There are very few things that truly frighten me and being alone is one of them. I'm alone, Mari. Morning after morning, there's no one around me except people who want something from me. I'm at the top of this precipice alone. I don't even belong here and, since Tucker died, I've tried to stay on this path, but I can't. I'm not cut out for this."
    I can't help it. There's no way for me to listen to him speak like that and say nothing. "You're not alone Trystan."
    He lifts his dark lashes, his sapphire gaze meeting mine. He watches me for a moment, sensing my sincerity, before speaking. Taking a deep breath, he breathes, "I'm not?"
    Inwardly I'm still battling my inner bitch who wants to castrate him for all the pain he put me through, but the kind girl living inside my brain kicks her ass and replies. "No, you're never alone."
    I shift positions to examine his other wounds and check for a second gash on his hairline. Lifting a piece of sterile gauze dipped in cleaning solution, I go to wash the dried blood from his hair, but Trystan reaches for my wrists and stops me. My heart beats faster, and my breath catches in my throat. I've been touching him all this time, and feeling the pull between us, but when he touches me, it's a million times worse. I'm about to start shaking, desperate to pull away. The intense feeling of his touch has amplified over the years. It courses through my body, lighting me on fire and sending a spark across every inch of my skin.
    Before I can move Trystan speaks. "I thought I'd never talk to you again. I thought I'd never see you again."
    "Same here." My heart thumps one beat at a time. Why is it so hot in here? I can't think. His hands are on me. The memory of skin on skin, of our sweat-covered bodies moving together fills my mind. It's too much. It's like he's channeling the thought in me. Gasping, I pull my hands away and stare at him with my lips parted and my hands shaking.
    "Mari, there's something I've been dying to tell you. For the longest time, I've wanted to say it, to explain—" he presses his lips together and swallows hard.
    I want to know so badly. I want to know why he walked away from me. I want to know why he slammed his car into a tree. I want to know all the things I missed. Something within me is crying out for him, still craving his touch, still wishing the sound of his voice filled my ears. A shiver crawls up my spine, attacks my shoulders, and travels down my arms. My jaw hangs open with words ready to roll off my tongue. I notice the clock in the room ticking louder as my pulse roars in my ears. My chest rises and falls faster and faster.
    Trystan watches me, looking up at me from the cold bed. His breath lifts his body making his beautiful chest rise and fall. There's a cut on his lip that's covered in dried blood. I don't know why I do it, but I change directions, leaning toward his mouth, carefully dabbing at the cut until it's clean. I’m so close that his scent fills my head. I wish I could stay in