Just Always be Waiting for Me; Book 5 In The "Love is Weakness" Series

Heart in My Hand

"We just went in a circle!" Carlos exclaimed.

"I know! I know! Wonderland's tricky, sometimes." Hartley replied to Carlos, in exasperation.

"This has never happened to me before. I've lived here my whole life, this only happens in Looking Glass Land." Devante disagreed.

"We keep ending up back in the place where we came in. It can't be a coincidence. Maybe something's trying to get us to go back to Auradon." Ben surmised.

"Believe me, I'd love nothing more than to go home and crawl into my bed with Dude. But, not without Raven." Carlos expressed.

Devante was beginning to become very confused.

"Alright, that's enough. My Lady, I need to speak with you in private." Devante interjected bluntly, addressing Hartley.

Carlos looked at Hartley questioningly, and she nodded indicating that she was okay going with him.

Devante led Hartley down the path to a more private location, away from prying eyes and ears.

"I'm at a loss. Why is your Intended so concerned about that Pixie?" Devante demanded.

"Does this really seem like a good time for this?" Hartley attempted to stop his line of questioning.

"My Lady!" Devante challenged her, through gritted teeth.

"Yes, my Knave?" She countered, mocking his tone.

"Fine! Hartley..." Devante conceded.

"Was that so hard?" She quipped.

"Hartley, I need to know." Devante pressed.

"What do you want to hear, Tae?" Hartley sighed, in frustration.

"The truth." He demanded.

"Fine! The truth is...I'm pathetic." Hartley blurted out. "Carlos was in love with me and I betrayed him. I was obsessed with getting out of Wonderland, and having even a small piece of time to be free. But, my mother's voice never left my head, no matter how long I stayed away. Instead of facing her, and fighting...I abandoned a sweet, caring..." Hartley paused shamefully, and a regretful tear fell from her cheek.
"I was just too scared of her, and too scared to tell him that I loved him too. When I learned that he was allowed off the Isle, I was furious. Then I found out that he'd moved on...to someone else."

Devante released a knowing sigh, and shut his eyes slowly. Struggling to look into her face, and the pain that lingered.

"So, I tried to make him love me." Harley revealed, with disgust in her voice. "I failed again and again. We did such terrible things. I guess, we were trying to break each other. But he never broke. Any metaphorical dent I'd make, he'd just take it. Somehow, instead of completely falling apart...he found the love of his life. It's Raven, okay? He chose Raven! And we both had to accept that together, we're nothing but chaos. We weren't meant to love each other, not forever."

"You lied." Devante murmured, plainly.

"Yeah, I did." Hartley replied, in a low voice. "Wouldn't you? It's humiliating."

Devante stared at her intently, without responding.

"Look, I'm sorry. I thought misleading you would give me something that I could possibly use to my advantage. I didn't know if I could trust you, and I..." Hartley began.

Devante grasped Hartley by the elbow, pulling her to him. Their chests collided, and he placed his hand behind her head, abruptly crashing his lips into hers. This time he would be the one to steal a kiss. Letting himself become enmeshed in her, their lips melded together, fervently. The chemistry they'd been fighting, was now licking at their skin like flames. Passion overtook them, both flooded with anguish at the thought of letting this moment end. However, Hartley's mind was beginning to flood with questions and fears, causing her to push him away, harshly.