Page 53 of Bound By Thorns
Her words made sense, but they also opened a well of emotions I had kept sealed for too long. It wasn’t easy to let go of blame—it felt like letting go of a part of Eli.
“I’ll think about it,” I said, finally meeting her gaze again.
Dr. Mendoza nodded, jotting something in her notes. “That’s all you need to do right now. Think about it. We can explore this more in our next session.”
The session ended shortly after, leaving me with a lot to unpack. The weight I carried for so long suddenly felt different—not lighter, not yet, but maybe not as immovable as I thought. Maybe it was time to start unpacking it, piece by painstaking piece.
Kaylan
“Honestly, we could totally be Avengers if we had superpowers,” Amelia joked, glancing over at the massive projector screen whereAvengers: Infinity Warwas about to start. We had just finishedThor: Ragnarok, and Leora had been doing her best to explain the saga of the Infinity Stones and other Marvel intricacies to anyone who wasn't up to speed. We were in the movie room in Blackthorn’s second building.
“Iron Man doesn’t actually have powers,” Delara pointed out, adjusting the volume.
“No, but he’s a billionaire genius,” I added quietly.
“That sounds like Sebastian,” Leora said with a smirk, causing a few chuckles around the room.
Amelia rolled her eyes dramatically. “He was a nightmare even when he was flat broke.”
“Oh, right!” Leora turned to Amelia with a sudden realization. “You and Dylan lived next door to Sebastian for a while, didn’t you?”
Amelia nodded, laughing. “Yeah, those were some days. He started calling me ‘sweetheart’ because he overheard me whining to my mom in our front yard about how no one ever called me honey or sweetheart like my dad did for her. So embarrassing. Then Seb took it upon himself to start calling me that.”
“That’s actually kind of sweet,” Delara said, smiling warmly.
“Ugh, please,” Amelia groaned, pretending to gag.
The night went on with just us girls, and I found myself genuinely enjoying it. Delara critiqued the fight scenes with a professional eye, Leora made us laugh with her slightly inappropriate but hilarious comments on the characters’ hotness, and Amelia, with her famously short attention span,kept us all engaged with her endless stream of questions. It was a pleasant break from everything else.
Logan
“That’s a nasty cut, still,” Dylan remarked, his eyes fixed on the small cut on my brow—a souvenir from the sparring session with Ronan. We were all lounging around, drinks in hand.
“Remind me to never pair Ronan with you on an assignment,” Sebastian quipped, a smirk playing on his lips. I ignored his comment.
“Well, did you at least get what you wanted?” Zarek chimed in, his voice tinged with concern rather than curiosity.
I hesitated. The truth was complicated. I had provoked Ronan, hoping to feel anything other than the gnawing guilt that had been consuming me. But the pain had only receded slightly, a brief respite before it would surge back with a vengeance.
I forced a soft smile. “I think I just made an enemy, more than anything.”
Zarek shook his head, his glass paused near his lips. “It’s Ronan; he won’t hold it against you. Trust me, I know the guy.” He downed the last of his whiskey in one gulp, then signaled Kabir for the bottle.
“You sure?” Kabir asked, eyeing the clock. “It’s almost 2 AM.”
Zarek’s eyes flicked up in surprise. “Shit, really?”
Zane tapped on his phone, then turned the screen towards us. “They’re still in the movie room,” he announced. The screen showed the women laughing, drinks and an almost empty popcorn bucket in hand. Kaylan’s smile lit up the display, sending a wave of warmth through me at the sight of her so relaxed and happy.
“Stalker,” I muttered under my breath, earning a mocking smile from Zane.
“Oh wow, Amelia is swaying,” Dylan chuckled, pointing at the screen. “Never thought she could get this drunk.”
Kabir shifted uncomfortably in his seat at his words.
“You’ve never carried your sister home drunk from a party before? Isn’t that like a high school ritual in America?” Kabir asked, turning to Dylan with a raised eyebrow.
Dylan shrugged. “I joined the military by the time she hit high school and started drinking. Never got the chance.”
