CHAPTER 964 The Problem is 56*
CHAPTER 064: The Problem is Sex
Knox doesn’t move when we pull into the hospital parking lot.
His fingers stay curled tight around the steering wheel, gaze forward. The engine is off, but his body hasn’t caught up. The tension in his arms is visible, humming under his rolled up sleeves. Even the little lines around his eyes seem sharper.
I unbuckle my seatbelt and glance at him “Aren’t you coming?”
He shakes his head once. “No, I’ve got some things to take care of”
“Work stuff?”
“Mmhmm.”
I don’t press. Instead, I lean toward him, dropping a kiss on his cheek. But the moment I start to pull away, his hand shoots up, tangling into my hair and tugging me back to him.
His mouth crashes against mine with zero warning–hot, rough, claiming. His teeth nip my bottom lip, just enough to sting, and his tongue follows to soothe it. I moan, helpless against the sheer heat of it, my fingers bunching in the front of his shirt.
When he finally releases me, I’m breathless. Unsteady.
He doesn’t say anything at first. Just reaches into the center console and pulls out a slim white business card, pressing it into my palm.
I glance down at the card.
Dr. Yara Colburn, PhD. Licensed Clinical Psychologist. Trauma Specialization. Forensic Psychiatry, Private Practice + Intensive Residential Programs.
Huh.
It’s printed in pale gray ink on a stark white background, minimalist, expensive–looking.
“Are you giving me this because you think I’m a sociopath who needs help?” I ask.
Knox chuckles. “I think you’re a sociopath alright, but I don’t want you healed.” He taps the card between my fingers. “That‘ s for your friend, Finn.”
“Finn?”
“If you want to help him, make sure he sees her.”
I purse my lips. “He said he’s already booked a session with my sister.”
“Your sister’s a therapist?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, this one’s a little more… extreme. Especially when you pay for the VIP care.” His voice is casual, but I hear the edge in it. “She’s the only one I trust to get the job done.”
I stare at him. Something about the way he says that…
Extreme?
The only one?
My gut tightens. I raise an eyebrow. “Who is she to you?”
“An acquaintance.”
“Have you… slept with this acquaintance?”
A pause. Just long enough to feel it.
“Is that jealousy I sense?”
He says it lightly, like he’s teasing. But there’s no light in his eyes. They’re watchful. Measuring.
I narrow mine. “You didn’t answer.”
He doesn’t offer anything else. Which, in Knox language, might as well be a damn confession.
Something burns in my chest. And even though I want to roll my eves and tell myself I don’t care, I know what I’ll be doing the moment I get in front of a computer.
Successfully unlocked!
I’m going to find everything there is to know about Dr. Tara Co. yuing to dissect every interview, every podcast, every social media post. I’ll find out where she studied, what she looked like at twenty–two, who she dated in grad school. I‘ Il even find out her star sign.
It’s not obsessive. It’s… research.
CHAPTER 064 The Problem is Sex
“Fine,” I say finally “T’ll tell him to book an appointment.”
“Don’t worry, I already got that covered.” Knox grins. “You just tell him to call her and keep his appointment.”
My lips twitch, but I don’t let the smile come through. I reach for the door handle, then pause.
I turn back to him. “By the way you’re not allowed to have sex with anyone but me. I didn’t make that clear before.”
His brows lift slightly.
“No one touches you,” I add. “You’re not the only one who can take a limb from someone else.”
For a split second, I think I’ve caught him off guard. But then–he smiles.
Not a smirk. Not a fake, restrained lift of one side.
A real, full, devastating smile.
It’s like being hit in the chest with sunlight, God, he should smile more often.
“Yes, ma’am,” he says. “I was wondering when you were going to mention that.”
“Glad we’re on the same page.”
His expression softens just a little, but then he says, “In all honesty, that’s not something you need to worry about anyway. 1 don’t fancy sex with people unless on the very rare occasion I become deeply attracted to one.”
“Really? You expect me to believe you don’t have like ten acquaintances lying around?”
He chuckles. “The only thing I like to do to people is hurt them.”
I stare at him. And for once, I have no clever reply.
No joke.
No sarcasm.
I just nod.
Then get out of the car.
I spot my car still parked in the hospital lot, right where I left it yesterday. Knox doesn’t move. Not even when I glance back. His eyes follow me all the way in.
Several minutes later, I’m driving Finn back to his apartment.
The trip is quiet.
He sits in the passenger seat with his casted arm resting in his lap. His hospital gown has been swapped out for a casual T -shirt and sweatpants, and he’s buckled in but hunched slightly, as if trying to occupy as little space as possible.
I don’t pay him much attention because I’m distracted.
Knox’s words echo through my head. ‘The only thing I like to do to people… is hurt them.’
What does that even mean?
Emotionally? Physically? Financially? Metaphorically?
Or does he mean he has a goddamn torture dungeon beneath his house and I just haven’t seen it yet?
I shift slightly in my seat, trying to focus on the road. The city passes in slow snapshots. Trees. Sidewalks. Traffic lights. But I’m not seeing any of it clearly. Because all through the drive, Finn’s gaze has been on me.
Finally, I can’t take it anymore, “What is it, Finn? You’ve been staring at me nonstop.”
“Nothing.”
“Don’t lie.”
“I’m not lying.” He shrugs with his good shoulder. “I’m just… really happy, that’s all.”
“Happy?” I glance over. “That you broke an arm?”
“No. That you’re here.”
I roll my eyes and look away.
“You don’t know how terrible the past few days have been,” he continues. “I know I screwed up. I know I did. B seriously be mad about it, right?”
I don’t say anything.
“I mean–we’ve been friends for almost eight years-”
“Ten,” I correct without missing a beat.
Cu can’t
CHAPTER 064. The Problem is Sex
He nods. “Ten. I did that on purpose so you could see how unreasonable you’re being. We’ve known each other too long for my brother to come between us. That’s what he does, Sloane. He gets in the middle of things. He finds what I care about and tries to take it. Because he hates me.”
I sigh, keeping my eyes on the road.
“I couldn’t sleep,” he says. “I couldn’t eat. All I could think about was how sorry I am. I hate this, Sloane. I hate this space between us. You’re not really going to leave me for him, are you?”
I clench my jaw. “Finn. I am with him. We’re in a relationship.”
He scoffs quietly. “And that means what? You can’t be my friend anymore?”
“Your brother isn’t comfortable with us being friends.”
“Since when do you give a shit what people are comfortable with?”
I glance at him, the words lining up in my throat.
“Since I realized,” I say quietly, “that being around you messes me up.”
That shuts him up. For a beat.
“What?”
“When I’m with you,” I continue, “I can’t have a life. You have these… bottomless problems I always feel like I need to solve. And it’s messed with me, Finn. Now I don’t even know how to exist unless I’m fixing someone.”
He doesn’t reply.
I glance at him again. His face is stone.
“Come back and fix mine then,” he says.
I laugh–one short, bitter sound. “That’s the most selfish thing you’ve ever said.”
“For God’s sake, what do you even see in my brother? He’s arrogant, rude, dangerous–he doesn’t care about anyone but himself. And you’re acting like he’s your damn soulmate or something.”
! My fingers twitch on the steering wheel.
“You’re drawn to him like a moth to a fucking flame,” he says. “And I don’t get it. Because it’s always the opposite. Always. Girls leave him for me. That’s how it’s always been.”
I brake a little too hard at a red light.
My heart is thudding now, anger and disbelief pooling fast in my chest.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” I hiss. “Do you even want me, or are you just trying to steal something else from your brother?”
“Steal? I had you first! He stole you from me!”
“News flash, Finn. You gave me away when you chose Delilah over me.”
His jaw clenches.
“And I’m sorry,” he says hoarsely. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. I just… I just wanted Delilah back. I used Knox because I knew he’d do whatever he says he will. And I figured you’d reject him anyway and come back to me.”
I shake my head. “You thought wrong.”
“You always come back to me.”
Silence settles again. We’re almost at his apartment now.
“I like your brother,” I say firmly. “And I’m staying with him. If that means I have to let you go, then I will.”
The car slows as we pull into his building’s lot.
“I’m only here,” I add, “because I never properly said goodbye.”
I park. Shift into neutral.
Finn doesn’t move. His eyes are wet. His good hand clenches around his casted arm.
“You’re breaking my heart, Sloane,” he whispers. “You’re in love with me. Everyone knows that. I know that. How can you love someone for ten years and then fall for someone else in two days?”
If it were before, I would have denied it. I would have argued. Claimed I didn’t love him. That it was always platonic. But maybe it’s time to be honest. Finally.
“So I’m supposed to keep loving you and not move on? I didn’t date people because somehow, I ended up chasing them away because of you. Because I thought you’d come around.”
“Sloane-”
CHAPTER 064: The Problem is Séx
“I couldn’t have you because you wanted her. Delilah. You always did.”
He doesn’t deny it.
“And then your brother took one look at me,” I whisper, “and wanted me. He’s passionate. He’s obsessed. He makes me feel things I didn’t even know the body could feel.”
Finn undoes his seatbelt with his good hand, the metal clicking loud in the silence.
His voice is hollow when he speaks.
“So… the problem is sex?” he asks. “You just wanted someone to fuck you?”
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