Page 82 of The Alpha's Crimson Vow

I clear my throat, hating the thickness in my voice. “I’m sorry.”

She blinks.

“For everything,” I continue, my voice quieter now. “For how I left you. For how I told you I used you. For making you think, even for a second, that you weren’t—” I stop, dragging a hand through my hair, my teeth clenching before I force myself to look at her again. “It was the only way I could think of protecting you from Valerian. I thought if I hurt you enough, you’d stay away from me. That you’d—”

My throat tightens. I shake my head.

“I just wanted to keep you safe.”

Her lips press together, her expression unreadable.

I keep going.

“I’m sorry for following you,” I admit, my voice hoarse. “For trying to stay close to you even when I had no right to. I—” I exhale sharply. “I was an idiot. A prideful, stubborn idiot, and I should’ve told you the truth from the start. I should’ve fought for you instead of trying to push you away.”

Silence stretches between us.

I wait.

The silence lingers longer, thick with the weight of everything I’ve just said. My heart pounds as I watch her, waiting—praying—that she’ll say something, that she’ll give me anything to hold onto.

Then, finally she exhales softly.

“I accept your apology, Alex.”

The words come quietly, but they slam into my chest with the force of a tidal wave. My wolf stirs, his ears perking, his presence thrumming stronger inside me than it has in months.

“I won’t lie to you,” she says, her voice steady but edged with something fragile. “I don’t know how to forgive you just yet. But I’m willing to try.”

Something inside me—something that’s been aching—breaks free. A sharp exhale rips from my chest, and without thinking, I reach for her hands, gripping them tight, pressing my forehead against them.

“Thank you,” I murmur, voice thick. “You don’t know what this means to me.” I lift my gaze to hers, locking onto those eyes I’ve missed so damn much

She sucks in a breath, and for the first time tonight, her eyes gloss over. Her throat works like she’s trying to hold something back, but then—

“I needed you, Alex.”

Her voice is raw. Almost broken. I feel my stomach drop.

She pulls her hands from mine, wrapping her arms around herself as if trying to hold herself together. “That day, when you left me… when you said those things to me…” She shakes her head, her lips pressing into a tight line before she continues. “I still hear them sometimes. The way you said it. The way you looked at me.”

A lump lodges itself in my throat.

“I had a private investigator look into the crash,” she continues, her voice barely above a whisper. “The one we were in.” She exhales shakily. “He found out that my parents were murdered, Alex.”

Her gaze flicks to me, pained and distant. “And I needed you.” Her voice breaks—just a little. “I needed you more than anythingin that moment. And instead…” She lets out a shaky breath, her arms tightening around herself. “Instead, you told me I meant nothing to you.”

Fuck. I can’t take it.

I grab her hands again, pull her toward me—into me—until her head rests against my chest, until I can wrap my arms around her and just hold her.

Her body trembles slightly.

My jaw clenches as I press my lips to the top of her head, my arms tightening around her. “I’m so fucking sorry, Katherine,” I murmur into her hair. “I swear, I never wanted to hurt you like that. I thought I was protecting you, but I see now—I see how badly I failed you.” I shake my head. “I won’t make that mistake again. I won’t leave you again.”

She doesn’t say anything at first. Just stays there, breathing, feeling. I can feel her heartbeat against my chest, and it’s fast. It makes something inside me ache.

“I always try to be strong,” she murmurs, her voice small. “But everything hit me all at once. Finding out about my parents, losing you, the company going bankrupt—I didn’t even know how to stand anymore.”

---