Faded Perfection (Beautifully Flawed Book 2) Read Online Free PDF Page A

bought the bottle for New Years, but he hadn’t touched it until now.
    “Adam…Did you drink that whole thing?”
    “Head hurts,” he said. His words slurred as his head fell forward into my chest. “Hold me.”
    “Come on,” I said as I attempted to pull him up.
    “Head hurts,” he repeated, supporting his weight against mine. My head still pounded, but I was too busy concentrating on not dropping him to focus on it.
    “Can you somewhat walk?” I asked as I leaned against the counter.
    His head rolled from side to side. “Sure.”
    I doubted his response, but somehow we managed to stumble our way to the bedroom where I dropped him on the bed and collapsed next to him. The pounding in my head rushed back, and I found myself breathing rapidly as the waves of pain squeezed against my skull.
    “You okay?” Adam asked as he cuddled into me.
    Not really.
    “You shouldn’t have drank that whole bottle,” I replied.
    “Mhmm…tell me about it,” he said, tucking his nose in my neck and letting his alcohol filled breath wash over me.
    I gagged, turning my head away from him and staring at the wall of guitars. I wished he chose to play one of them to distract himself instead of getting drunk, but I imagined it was easier to open the bottle and tip the liquid into his throat to numb his mind. A part of me understood the urge to drink, but for me, it just wasn’t strong enough. I sighed as I turned and wrapped my arms around him, letting my hands drift over his arms until it lulled us both to sleep.
    When I woke my eyes didn’t hurt as much anymore, but the feeling of weight inside my chest hadn’t lifted. I rubbed my face before rolling over to see Adam sitting by the window. His face was painted in pale moonlight, and his eyes filled with the sadness that seemed to have become a part of us. He didn’t stir as I crawled out of bed and moved towards him. His chest rose as he sighed and moved to pull me into his arms. He rested his head on my shoulder, and his arms snaked around mine until our fingers were intertwined. “How do we move forward?”
    I let my body sink deeper into his arms. “We just do.”
    “You say that as if it’s the easiest thing in the world,” he answered, and his chest rumbled with a sarcastic laugh.
    I swallowed and pulled away, looking down at him as I turned in his lap. “I didn’t say it was going to be easy.”
    “Riv,” his eyelashes fluttered; “I didn’t mean it like that.”
    He pressed his fingers to his temples, and I felt my heartbeat slow as I watched him struggling to explain how he was feeling. I put my hands on his shoulders, letting my thumbs brush his neck now stippled with a heavy five o’clock shadow.
    “I know… I just don’t think there’s a secret to getting over this,” I replied, letting my shoulders rise and drop before continuing; “I don’t know there is a way to ever get over this. We just have to move on from it.”
    Adam’s hands dropped over mine, and the warmth of his touch spread up my limbs until I felt a small smile tugging at my lips.
    “We have each other,” I said.
    Adam’s eyes drifted from my lap, up my body until they met mine. “That’s all we’ve ever really needed, isn’t it?”
    He licked his lips, and I felt the inevitable pull of my body towards his. He lifted his hand and let it caress my cheek, before slipping it behind my neck and moving me towards him until our lips touched. It started with a soft kiss, but desperation sunk in as I leaned my body closer, and his hands drifted down my spine to grip my hips. His lips crushed into mine, spreading them, so his tongue met my own. I tangled my fingers in his hair as he moved my legs and stood, carrying me to the bed without his lips leaving mine. I pulled away gasping, and he tucked his head into my neck, his tongue washing over my bare skin as he slipped his hands under my shirt and then lifted it off. I knew we should talk, but words were always useless with Adam