KATY

He muffled my name from the other side of his door. You’d think having a mansion meant he’d have better sound insulation—thicker wood or something. Pierce left me standing outside for almost a minute before he slowly opened the door, and I saw my first glimpse of his face in days.

"What?" he sounded exhausted and hurt with his words full of pain. I put the pain there—not only at Nanna’s funeral but for the last few years. Forever.

My ...