Jax lowers his head. “I can’t … I can’t lose her again.”

“I know,” Hunter says in a tone barely above a whisper. “But you’re freaking Raven out right now, and I know you don’t want to do that to her, right?”

A beat of silence goes by, and then Jax whispers hoarsely, “No.”

“Okay, then go calm down for a moment.” Hunter pats Jax on the shoulder.

Jax bobs his head up and down then swings around him to leave the room. When he reaches the doorway, he glances back and briefly locks gazes with me.

Pulsating fear.

That’s what I see in his eyes.

To the point where I can’t even breathe.

When he leaves the room, Hunter asks, “Are you okay?”

Nodding, I redirect my attention back to him. “Is he, though?”

Hunter wavers, chewing on his bottom lip. “He will be.”

I nod for a second, Jax’s words replaying in my head. “This person that you said Jax lost in a similar way as what happened to me today … how long ago did that happen?”

Hunter smashes his lips together, a series of emotions flickering across his face. “Over a decade ago.”

“Oh,” I whisper. “It seems like it was more recent … with how much pain he seems to be in.”

Instead of commenting on what I said, Hunter briefly searches my eyes. “The girl he lost was the only girl he’s ever really loved, so he didn’t really get over it, I don’t think …” He swallows hard. “None of us did, really.”

“You all loved her?” My heart aches with a pain I don’t know if I fully understand.

He gives an unsteady nod then steps toward me, wisps of hair falling into his eyes that look watery, as if he’s about to cry. “Me, Jax, Zay, and this girl, together, the four of us made up a whole. We did everything together; played together, were there for each other”—he swallows hard—“suffered together.” He momentarily dazes off before blinking his attention back to me. “But then she was gone, and a part of us withered with her … We’ve never really been whole again.”

Hearing him speak of this girl makes me want to cry. I’m not much of a crier, though, so the sensation is a bit unsettling.

“I’m sorry,” I say, “that you guys lost a part of you.”

Again, he searches my eyes. For what, I’m not sure.

“You don’t need to be sorry.” He reaches up and tucks a strand of my hair behind my ear. “Maybe you’ll end up fixing what was broken that day.”

My pulse is pounding from his words and his touch. “It sounds like some pretty big shoes to fill.”

“They are,” he agrees, tracing his fingers down the side of my face. “You’re so beautiful.”

I don’t think he means to say the words aloud because, the second he does, he pulls back and clears his throat.

“But yeah, anyway, I’m totally crossing the BFF line. I know.” He goes straight back to the smiling Hunter so quickly that I nearly get whiplash. Then he checks the time on a clock on the wall. “Shit, it’s getting late. You should probably call your aunt so we can get you settled in for the night.”