HURRICANE, obx

Avery Kingston had been raised to believe that loyalty was the same thing as love, that if you stood by someone long enough, fiercely enough, it would become something unbreakable.

that was how she justified Rafe. she knew the version of him from before the anger, before expectation, and loving him felt like guarding something fragile the world kept trying to destroy. with Rafe, she was the only person who didn't look at him like he was already beyond saving.

but then there was JJ reckless, a smile that made it seem consequences were a myth. he didn't need her the way Rafe did. JJ looked at her like she was more than a Kingston, more than the polished girl everyone assumed they understood. round him, she didn't feel the responsibility or reputation.

Rafe was history, gravity, the weight of promises already made, while JJ was freedom, the dangerous pull of something she wasn't supposed to want.

endgame ?????