Page 171 of Claiming Pretty

“You’re trembling,” she said, concern deepening.

When she reached for me, I instinctively stepped back, leaning heavily against the nearest tree.

She rushed forward, her hands on me, and I closed my eyes against the warmth of her touch.

It was too much—too much to hold her when I knew I had to let her go.

“Let me help you,” she urged, trying to slip an arm under my shoulder. “It’s not far now.”

I pushed her away, not trusting myself to stay steady if she kept touching me.

“Goodbyes are never easy, are they?” I managed, forcing a faint smile.

“What? No.” Ava’s head shook violently, tears welling in her eyes. “No.”

Her refusal felt like a dagger, but I couldn’t falter now. When she leaned into me, resting her ear against my chest, I gripped the back of her sweater tightly, grounding myself in her presence one last time.

“I know you’ve chosen Ty,” I whispered, the words tasting like ash.

She shook her head, but I held her close, not allowing her to meet my gaze.

“You’ve chosen him,” I repeated, quieter this time, as if saying it aloud would finally make me believe it.

I rested my bruised and bloodied cheek against the crown of her head, breathing in the faint, familiar scent of jasmine shampoo. The fragrance was bittersweet—a tether to the love I couldn’t keep, and the goodbye I wasn’t ready to say.

But that wasn’t the only reason I held her this way. I couldn’t bear to meet her gaze. Those gentle, heartbroken eyes would undo me, strip away the last fragments of resolve holding me together.

“Say it,” I murmured, my voice barely louder than the rustle of the leaves around us.

Her voice came, muffled and hesitant against my jacket. “Do I really have to?”

I closed my eyes, swallowing the lump in my throat. I didn’t want to hurt her any more than I already had. This wasn’t some cruel test, some twisted punishment to satisfy the darker corners of my soul. It wasn’t even about me clinging to pain like a lifeline.

I just needed to know. To hear it. To understand that it wasn’t a moment of confusion or desperation clouding her mind. That it was real, undeniable, andfinal.

I didn’t answer her, but my silence spoke volumes.

It was the same language we’d always shared. When midnight shadows stretched between us, words had always been secondary. Our silences—they had spoken first.

And now, in this moment, my silence was a plea. A surrender. A final request for the truth.

Her breath hitched as she finally said the words. “I’ve chosen Ty.”

A part of me shattered, but another part of me was strangely numb, as though my heart had prepared for this all along.

I nodded, holding her for a moment longer before gently pushing her away.

She didn’t resist this time, wrapping her arms around herself as she stepped back.

For a moment, we stood in silence, the sunlight creeping farther into the grove.

When I finally spoke, my voice was quiet. “I wonder if there’s a world where I could’ve been enough for you.”

“Ciaran—”

“I know there isn’t,” I said, shaking my head. “But it’s nice to think about, isn’t it?”

Her gaze searched mine, and I saw the pain mirrored there.

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