Arden couldn't say that Dallas was her every dream in a man. She couldn't say she was happy when he disappeared for days on end, only to turn up again with a half-assed excuse. She couldn't say she was pleased about him going out to drink without her, without telling her, and then having to take care of him when he returned trashed as hell. The evasive comments, the open vulgarities, the sometimes unrequited advances-- no, Arden couldn't say that Dallas was perfect by any means.
Yet no matter which way she looked at it, she loved him. She loved curling into him on nights spent sleeping together, she loved feeling his warm body pressed against hers on cold nights when her heating system didn't work, she loved sharing her drinks and faking her anger when he downed the rest of it, she loved playing with his hair and massaging the back of his neck, she loved the stolen kisses and trails of fire his lips left on her skin.
But she knew him. And she knew that when she woke up, hearing rustling as he got dressed, something was wrong. "Going where, exactly?" She blinked groggily, trying to disperse some of the post-sleep haze. She caught a look at his face before he turned around, heading for the door, and her stomach suddenly twisted into knots. Something was different. She didn't like it when he left during the night, and she sure as hell didn't want him to leave now. "Dally, no, wait!" She scrambled out of bed and ran after him, meeting him at the door. "Where are you going? Why are you leaving?" She choked out.