Page 39 of Claiming Pretty

“Then send him away,” Ciaran said, his voice hardening, suspicion flashing in his icy gaze. “He’ll only leave if you tell him to.”

“Ty was my best friend.Ismy best friend.” I met Ciaran’s gaze, willing him to understand. “I can’t send him away. We need his help to take down the Society.”

Ciaran’s jaw tightened, his voice low and sharp, each word clipped. “That plan is suicide, Ava.”

I pushed up from the bed, from him, the sudden movement breaking the fragile moment between us. My hands shook as I snatched my top from the floor, pulling it over my head. “Don’t you believe in us? Inme?”

Ciaran climbed out of bed, reaching for me. His voice softened, losing its edge. “Of course, I do—”

I whirled on him before he could finish, my frustration bubbling over. “Tybelieves in me.”

The second the words left my mouth, I regretted them. I saw the flicker of pain in his eyes, the way his hands dropped to his sides as if I’d struck him. It was a low blow, and we both knew it.

I took a steadying breath, my voice softer now, as I finished pulling on the rest of my clothes.

“Ciaran… I thought we could run, but now I know the truth. We can’t. There’s nowhere we could go that the Society won’t find us. And even if they don’t… I can’t live with myself knowing I ran away.”

His shoulders slumped, and the anger in his gaze dimmed, replaced by something raw and aching.

“I’m just scared about losing you,” he admitted, his voice barely audible.

“I know,” I said, stepping closer, my hand brushing against his arm. “I’m scared too. But we’re stronger together. The three of us.”

He stiffened at that, his jaw clenching.

“Fine,” he said after a long pause. “He can stay for now. But only because I know he’s the only other person on this fucking planet who would protect you like I would.”

I pulled my hair up into a messy bun on my head, watching him in the mirror.

God, only three months ago all I knew was Scáth. There had been no Ciaran… no mirror image, no twin to complicate things.

“Why did you pretend to be Ty?” I asked him.

He didn’t reply, his jaw tightening, but I saw the flicker of guilt in his eyes.

“Ciaran, please,” I whispered, my voice softer now. “We can’t have secrets from each other. Not us. They’ll tear us apart if we do.”

He turned me to face him, his fingers gently pushing a fallen strand of hair over my ear as he stared at me. His gaze traced every feature of my face as though committing me to memory. His eyes searched mine, and for a moment, I thought he might deflect again.

“Just give me a minute more,” he whispered. “I want to see you… one last time before I tell you why I lied.”

“I won’t look at you any differently,” I promised, my voice steady, though my heart was pounding.

“The truth is… I was ashamed,” Ciaran admitted, his voice low and raw, holding my gaze, though I could see the effort it took not to turn away. “Ashamed of how I’d treated you. Ashamed I had let Ty be the one to go to prison. Ashamed that I had blamedyouwhen you were being abused by my own damn father.”

My chest tightened at his words, but I didn’t speak, letting him say what he needed to.

“I was a fuckingidiot,” he continued, his voice cracking. “To think you were complicit.”

Pain etched itself into every line of his face, and Ireached up, brushing my fingertips lightly against his cheek. His gaze was raw and vulnerable, and I felt my heart break for him all over again.

“I didn’t want you to think of me as the boy who tormented you,” he said, his voice barely audible. “I wanted to be the boy who always loved you.”

My throat tightened as tears burned at the edges of my vision. “He might have loved me first,” I whispered, my voice shaking with emotion. “But I lovedyoufirst.”

His eyes widened slightly, the weight of my words sinking in. “So you remember…?”

“Yes,” I said, nodding. “I remember everything. You don’t have to hide anything from me anymore.”

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