Aiden finally met Julian's and Ashton's gaze, the slight sting in his voice echoing the physical pain he'd inflicted on himself.
"Well, it's not like I wanted to do this to myself," Aiden explained, gesturing vaguely at his swollen mouth. "I just kept on feeling so guilty that I let Zane kiss me. I didn't even know when I damaged my lips to this extent. Even all my gums hurt from my brushing."
Julian frowned, utterly baffled by the confession. "Why on earth would you feel guilty? You're single. Zane is single. So what's there to feel guilty about?"
Aiden gave a helpless shrug. "I don't know. I just kept feeling that me kissing Zane was betraying Ryker."
Ashton's eyes widened in sheer surprise. He immediately moved back to sit right beside Aiden. "Aiden, are you crazy? I thought you said you were giving up on Ryker."
"Of course I am giving up," Aiden insisted. "But I was still feeling guilty, so what was I supposed to do?"
