Page 31 of Unravel Me

He whips his head in my direction, pointing a finger at me.

“Don’t. Don’t you dare downplay what we had. You know damn well it was fucking different. You felt it, Ivy. I felt it! In every single look, in every touch, every kiss, every time I was inside you! So don’t say that again.” The venom lacing his words hits its mark and I can’t help but wince, my broken heartshattering into tiny pieces at the pain I’ve caused him. How many times can a heart break before it dies altogether?

I watch as Sawyer wipes the tears from his face.

I know he’s right.

I felt it.

And I fucking ruined it.

Chapter 12

SAWYER

Ithought I had felt pain when Ivy left me at eighteen.

I thought I had felt it again when I waited for her to show up last year.

I was wrong.

Hearing why she left me is worse. Even so, it doesn’t feel right seeing her close in on herself, crying, hurting, gasping for air. None of it fucking matters anymore. I can’t change a fucking thing that’s happened before this moment. But I can have a say in how we move forward.

“I need to know, Ivy. Just please don’t lie to me. Not now. Not ever. Do you understand? I only want the truth from your lips.”

She hiccups through her tears but nods her head.

“Words, Ivy.”

“Ye-yes.”

“Are you happy? With your life? I don’t even know why the fuck you’re back all of a sudden. But are you happier? Without me and Aspen Ridge?” She freezes, eyes locked on mine, her plump bottom lip quivering. It’s fucking destroying me not to comfort her.

“No, Sawyer. I’m not happy.”

My body deflates and I sit back down next to her, running my hands through my hair. I don’t know what I wanted to hear. That she’s happy and has been living her life fully and fulfilled without me or that she’s been unhappy and living a life that she never truly wanted. But at least now I know my way forward.

I nod once before leaning in and scooping her body into my arms, standing, and walking us through the house. Her face is a blotchy mess and contorts into confusion as I drop her onto my bed. I leave her sitting, puzzled, and walk to the bathroom to retrieve a box of tissues that both of us need.

Returning quickly, I take a seat in front of her. I blot her skin, wiping away the tears and letting her blow her nose while I do the same.

“I never could stand to see your tears. Seems like they still hold power over me after all this time.”

She at least chuckles lightly before apologizing again.

“You want to tell me why you’re suddenly back?”

She pulls her knees up to her chest and rests against the headboard, clearly forgetting that she’s only wearing one of my T-shirts and a skimpy pair of panties. The shift in position gives me a perfect view of her bare ass in a thong. I reach behind me, pull up the throw blanket from the foot of the bed, and wrap it around her legs. I don’t need any distractions. And based on mycock lengthening in my jeans, she’s still just as distracting as she always was, despite this heavy conversation.

“The last ten years have been hard, Sawyer. And over the last few weeks it crashed and burned. I made some bad decisions and there was a ripple effect.”

“We’ve got all night, baby. Fill in the blanks for me.”

“Uhh. I did go to the Culinary Institute, I’m a chef now and it was the right choice for me. I feel alive in the kitchen. I worked as a bartender through school, which I hated, then worked as a line cook for a few years. I finally got my first job as a sous chef at this incredibly prestigious restaurant. But . . . promise you’ll be an adult about the next part?”

“No promises when it comes to you. But I’ll stay calm. Keep going.”

“Not long after I was hired, I started dating the owner’s son like an idiot. Mistake number one. Mistake number two, we were only dating for a few months before I moved in with him. I had an apartment with two roommates, and it was working fine, but then our building was sold and we had to move. I wasn’t exactly friends with them, so we just went our separate ways. I was couch surfing at my best friend Zoe’s condo, and when Brooks found out, he told me to just move in with him. So I did.”“Fucking hell.” I try to hold back my anger. I figured she would have moved on with other men, but the confirmation that someone else touched her and slept next to her every night has me feeling possessive anger, jealous rage, and more crushing pain.

---