Page 83 of Beautiful Storm

“I’m not making any excuses, but I was not in a great place when school started back, and when you wouldn’t speak to me, I kind of lost my mind. After that, there was no going back. I was done.”

I still remember the day Amelia’s dad left her mom; it was the talk of the school. Vicki went from using it to get sympathy to announcing it to the world like she’d won. Amelia’s dad had chosen her and her family. Now it was Amelia’s turn to feel like the loser.

But in the end, he left Vicki and her mom too.

The disgust I have for that man is almost unrivaled. I may have been pissed off with Amelia, and God knows I threw the hate word around, but when it came to her dad, I discovered what hate really felt like.

And I should have been there for her.

“You didn’t deserve any of that, Amelia, and I’m sorry that my stupid pride and the constant need I have to put myself first got in the way of me seeing that you needed me more. Regardless of whether you overheard what I said or not, regardless of whether or not we were friends, when it all came out, I should have been there for you.”

“I’m sorry I held on to the hurt for so long, but I couldn’t get past the fact that you knew and your harsh words when I thought we were friends. Then when you accepted my anger without calling me on it, I assumed you didn’t care.”

“You should have known me better than that.” I force a smile. “You bruised my ego and there was no one there to snap me out of it. That was your job.” Amelia grins at that and I relax a little. “I’m sure you’ll be happy to know my sister has tried hard to take your place over the years. She’s constantly reminding me that I’m not God’s gift to the world. The two of you will get along nicely.”

“Good.” Amelia laughs. “You always needed someone to knock you down a peg. Though she didn’t get through to you when it comes to women.”

“No, she didn’t.” I chuckle. “She was too innocent when we were younger, and I was too far gone by the time she figured out the type of guy I was. But she’ll be happy that you’re doing a good job on that front. You and Jelly Bean.”

“For now anyway. Once we’re divorced, you can resume your playboy ways.” Her hand falls to her stomach protectively, and I doubt she realizes she’s doing it. As she fakes a smile, a thought hits me.Does she imagine I’m going to be like her dad?That I’m going to treat our child the way her father treated her?

“Amelia, I’m not him, you know?”

“What?” Her brows furrow as she frowns.

“Your dad. I’m not him. Jelly Bean will always be my number one priority. I can promise you that.”

“Oh, I wasn’t thinking that.” She brushes away my concern like it's nothing, but I can tell she has more to add.

“But…”

She scrunches her nose, hesitation clear in her expression, making me internally grimace. “But?” I repeat.

“But…my dad said that too.”

Of course he fucking did. That heartless piece of shit. “Amelia—”

“I don’t think you’re like him, Luke. I never have. You’ve always been up-front about the type of man you are.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Amelia laughs, but it’s not as light as it was before. “I mean that you’re honest about what you want. Women know you’re not the settle-down type. They know what they’re in for ahead of time. My dad lied, he kept secrets, he was deceiving. There’s a difference. And while you may have kept secrets at times, it’s not the same. You’re nothing like him.”

“Okay. Good. I’m glad we established that.”

“Me too. But with everything between us, do you honestly believe we can do this?”

“The marriage?” I question, a nervous energy filling my chest.

“Any of it.”

“I do. For Bean. Especially now that everything's out in the open. It is, right? That’s all of it?”

Amelia takes a deep breath and stares at the ceiling again as though it holds all the answers. And after the longest beat, she nods. “That’s everything,” she whispers, her voice breathy. “I’m sorry for getting you arrested,” she adds with a smile, making me huff out a laugh. “If I’d have known you were arrested when you were eleven, I may have kept my mouth shut.”

During my time being questioned by the police, I managed to keep myself out of the line of fire while never once mentioning Amelia’s name. I thought I was clever until another officer arrived to let us all know that “Miss Amelia Rosenberg” had admitted she was with me at the time, and that she thought I had something to do with it all. She threw me under the bus while I tried to protect her. But it’s all in the past. And it turns out, I’m the one more at fault here.

“I’m sure we both would have done things differently if we’d had more information. But I’m sorry for everything I’ve done. The list is too long for me to quote each thing individually.”

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