DARE-TO-LOVE-TRUTH-AND-DARE-DUET-COLLECTION-by-Lylah-James-pdfarchive

I was stronger than the magic of love.
I wrapped my arms around my knees and brought my
legs closer to my chest. I laid my head over my knees and
turned to look at Maddox. He was staring at my parents'
headstones, looking thoughtful.
“Do you believe in love?” I asked him back. My cheeks
felt tight from the cold and my dried tears. My face was
probably blotchy and red, but I couldn’t find myself to care
in the moment.
This was Maddox, my best friend.
He blinked, as if he wasn't expecting the question. “I
don't know.”
Curious, I pushed for more. “What do you mean?”
“I used to think love was fake. It didn't exist. Love is too
complicated and shit. No one belonged to me before. I was
never close enough to love someone or to even understand
the meaning of it.”
Wild emotions clogged my throat, and my heart flipped
like a caged bird, beating its wings, looking for an escape.
“And what do you think now?” I whispered the question.
Maddox faced me, his blue eyes staring into mine,
looking right through my cold exterior, pushing right
through my walls and knocking at my caged heart.
When he spoke again, his voice was deep and rough. His
words were a silent confession.
“Now, I have someone to lose, and I know it will break
me. I know what it means to fear losing the person who
means the most to you. That person has the power to
destroy me.”
Silence fell upon us, and I couldn't find the words to
convey what I was feeling. I turned my head away from his
probing gaze and went back to staring at the headstones.
Seconds turned into long minutes, but we sat there in
comfortable silence.
“Maddox?”
“Yeah?”