Wrecked Palace (Wrecked, #3)

by Catherine Cowles

“Good things should happen to good people.” “You have a kind heart, Griffin Lockwood. Even if you’d rather people didn’t see it.”

“You’re allowed to need someone, too.”

I’d tried hard to instill the belief in my siblings that no feeling was bad or wrong. And neither was expressing those feelings, as long as you weren’t hurting someone else.

You guys are good for my soul. And no one makes me laugh harder than my tiny terrors.”

“That’s your rainbow. So you’re a part of our family, and you never have to leave.”

I didn’t give a damn. I’d hold everyone up for hours if it meant Mia felt safe and secure.

“What do you guys think?” It was Ava’s gaze that met mine in the rearview mirror. “It looks like you belong with us.”

What is it about me that’s so unlovable?” My arms spasmed at her words, flinching and tightening around her. “There isn’t a damn thing about you that’s unlovable, Caelyn. She’s the one who’s broken. And you can’t take on someone else’s brokenness. That’s theirs to carry.”

“You showed me how much I was missing by locking myself away from the world. You showed me that I could trust you with anything. But you’ve been showing me that from the first day I met you. In your kindness. Your care. How damn selfless you are. Everything I see in you challenges me to do better. Be better. To not run away from life because I was hurt in the past. I want this with you. I don’t know for sure where it will lead. But I want to find out.”

“You are wanted. There’s no one I’d rather be with than you and Ava and Mia. You’re my life. Not because it was forced on me, but because I love you. From the minute you were born and started terrorizing me.” Will’s lips gave the faintest twitch, and I pushed on. “I’d be lost without you three. You make my life so much better. And if anyone says otherwise, it’s because they’re miserable. You hear me?”

“Never be ashamed of feeling deeply. It doesn’t make you weak. It makes you so incredibly strong.”

“I love you.” I froze. The knowledge of her words seemed to zing through my body as if someone had lit a series of fireworks in my bloodstream. “What did you say?” Caelyn pressed her lips together. “I love you. I just needed you to know that. I know you might not be ready⁠—” I kissed her, quick and fierce. “I love you. I think a part of me loved you from the first moment I saw you. Some part of me recognized that you were the one person who could understand me. Who could help me find my way back.”

“I love you, too. I wish you could reach inside my brain and heart so you could see how much.” Griffin’s face softened. “I don’t need to see it. I feel it every day.”

“You have no idea the joy you give me. You made this wrecked palace a home.”

“You want us?” she asked without meeting my eyes. The burn in my chest intensified. I lowered Mia to the floor and crossed to Ava, crouching so that I was at eye-level with her. “I want you. All of you.” “Why?” she asked, her eyes filling with tears. “Because I love you. And you make this house feel like a home.”

“I love you. More than I thought possible. I didn’t think I could ever let anyone in again. But you and those tiny terrors… You wormed your way into my heart. So, you don’t get to leave now.” A tear splashed against our joined hands; it was the only way I even knew I was crying. “I’ve lost too many people I’ve loved, Caelyn. Don’t you leave me, too.”