Possessed Soul

Chapter 55

Chapter 55

Holden hadn't regained consciousness yet. Flynn had suggested that we all head back with Grace, while he waited at the hospital with Emma who refused to even consider returning home.. I didn't want to head back either, but Sage was exhausted; and I found that while it hurt seeing her with Ryan, just looking at her filled a small part of the empty place in my heart.

"I'll carry her," I told Ryan, as we pulled up at the house, since Sage had fallen asleep in the car.

"I've got her," he protested, as he gathered Sage's sleeping body into his arms. He stumbled under her weight, and I couldn't keep myself from chuckling softly. He'd rather drop her than let me near her.

"She's too heavy for you," I reasoned. "It's not like I'm going to kidnap her. I'm just going to carry her inside and then she's yours for the rest of the night."

Ryan assessed me from head to toe. When he was convinced of the sincerity of my words he handed his girlfriend over to me.

I carried her bridal style into the house, while Grace held the door open for us. She gave me a sympathetic look; either because she knew I wouldn't get the love of my life, or because she pitied me for continuing to torment myself.

Ryan followed me into the bedroom and watched as I gently cushioned her head on the pillow and brushed my lips against her still brow.

"Don't push your luck." Ryan put a hand on my chest and pushed me away from her. He was good-looking, I decided, with his tendency towards messy hair and a lean body. He was muscular, but not in a way that suggested he worked out; it was more like the muscles were proof of puberty and they were just enough to make his limbs look less gangly and more powerful.

"I love her," I stated. I was hoping that she would wake up and hear me.

"She doesn't love you." Ryan rubbed his jaw. "Give it a rest. You should know when to call it quits."

"She does," I argued. "She loves me more than she loves you."

Ryan opened his mouth to say something, but no words escaped his lips. I couldn't tell what he was thinking, but he stayed like that for quite a while; his mouth gaping open like a koi fish. Just when I thought he would say something, Sage awoke with a start. In one solid movement she was sitting upright, and her eyes wavered between me and Ryan.

"Kaden?" Her eyes shot to me, almost as if she had just seen me. Her voice was soft and barely audible.

"Yes." I bent down towards her, so that I could hear her more clearly.

"Can't you take a hint. Stay away from her," Ryan bellowed, placing his hand on my shoulder and pulling me backwards. He wasn't strong enough to really make any impact. The only reason that I staggered back was because of the raw fear in Sage's eyes; not for me, but for him. She knew I could ram him into the ground if I wished to do so. I hated that look in her eyes, and it hurt knowing I was the one who had put it there.

"Ryan, I really need to talk to Kaden," Sage said, wringing her hands in her lap, knowing there was no chance that he would agree and preparing herself to convince him.

"No." Ryan sounded like a stubborn child, who was told to leave so that the grown-ups could talk.

"It'll be quick, I promise," she pleaded.

"Don't beg him, Foxie." I wanted to see Ryan's reaction to my nickname for her, but his lips remained tight; he barely acknowledged the words I was saying. "If you're going to confess your love for me, best do in front of him. It would save you having to explain your feelings twice." I actually believed my own words, that telling her I loved her had done the trick and that she had finally caved.