Fault Line (Coastal University #2)

by Ki Stephens

Of course, golden boy Becker would be here to witness my moment of weakness—with his beady brown eyes, his perfect head of sandy hair, and his extremely annoying smile.

“No.” He takes a solid step forward, the rough pad of his thumb swiping across my cheekbone. He draws the corner of his bottom lip beneath his front teeth, a look of pure concentration on his face. “Mascara,” he murmurs, rubbing his fingers until the tiny black streak smudges away. “Tends to run when the tears come out.”

“We all know there’s a thin line between love and hate, Kaia.”

“You know, I missed you last week.” “What?” “I missed talking to you,” he admits, his gaze intense. “This ignoring shit you’ve been doing? Yeah, it doesn’t really work for me.”

“Kaia.” He parrots my tone. “Look, if you’re pissed at me, then just tell me. Fight with me. Yell at me. But don’t shut me out. I don’t like seeing you everywhere, knowing that you’re just gonna look the other way.”

“You still think I don’t like you?” I lean back, running a frustrated hand through my hair. “Kaia, I fucking adore you.” Her brow furrows. “What?” “I admire the hell out of you. I think you’re smart, funny, witty, beautiful.” I stop myself before I get truly carried away. “There’s never a dull moment when we’re around each other.”

“So, what you’re saying is that you want to be my last resort?” A smirk tilts my lips. “As long as I’m your something.”

“Fuck, Kaia,” I rasp, unable to keep my emotions in check. “You’ve been treating this relationship like we’re living on a fault line, ready to destruct at a moment’s notice.