Page 258 of Knot Unwanted: Part One

Alone.

Ren left that night when he put his fist around my throat and choked me. I remember the way his hand closed around my neck, the pressure cutting off my air, the raw power of him overwhelming me in a way I hadn’t been able to stop. Even now, the memory makes my fingers shift to my neck, tracing over the spot.

The moment he notices, his gaze drops, his jaw clenching so tight I can practically hear his teeth grind.

He knows.

He knows exactly what I’m thinking about, and it’s tearing him apart.

For a long moment, neither of us says a word. The tension in the cabin seems to take on more weight, pressing down on both of us.

“You’re punishing yourself for it,” I say softly, breaking the silence.

His head snaps up, his icy eyes locking onto mine with a sharpness that takes my breath away. “What?”

“You’re punishing yourself,” I repeat, my voice steady but quiet. “For what happened. For what you did to me.”

His nostrils flare, and he turns away abruptly, his hands bracing on the edge of the table. “Do you really want to talk about that right now? This isn’t how I imagined?—”

“Yes.”

His gaze snaps back to me. “Fuck. Me.”

My cheeks heat, even though I know that’s not what he means. “You choked me but?—”

“I fuckinghurtyou, Hailey.” He stares me down as if he’s daring me to challenge the fact. “I saw the bruises.”

“I…” I swallow hard, not sure where I’m going with this. Am I afraid of him? Yeah, to be honest, I am a little. Am I afraid for Finn and the others more? Yes. Yes, I am. “You didn’t mean to,” I whisper.

He lets out a humorless laugh, his head falling forward slightly. “No, I didn’t. But back then…Back then, you wouldn’t even look at me full-on. You didn’t talk to me. Hell, I think I scared you so bad you’d flinch if I so much as breathed too loud. And then I went and didthat.”

I blink at him, caught off guard by the bluntness of his words. “You did breathe too loud,” I counter, my lips twitching despite the tension. “And I wasn’t scared. I was just…careful.”

“Careful,” he repeats dryly, turning back to face me fully. “You mean terrified. Hasn’t stopped you from being pushy now, though.”

“I’m getting better,” I say softly, holding his gaze.

For a moment, he simply glares at me. And then, it’s almost as if he deflates. His expression softens, the hard edges of his face easing just slightly. “Yeah,” he says, his voice quieter now. “You are.”

There’s a pause, and something unspoken lingers in the space between us. His eyes shift, watching me with a look I can’t quite place before he nods, almost to himself.

“It’s…good,” he says, tone thoughtful. “I’m proud of you.”

The words land heavily, and for a moment, I don’t know what to say. It’s not just the words themselves. It’s the way he says them, like they’re not something he’s used to saying but something he genuinely means.

“Thank you,” I whisper.

“But I did,” he whispers after a moment. “Ididhurt you.” His gaze shifts to mine. “Don’t ever forget that.”

The words hang between us, heavy and damning. I don’t know how to respond, so I don’t. I just watch him, the weight of his self-loathing pressing against me like a physical living thing.

But I don’t want him to stop talking.Idon’t want to stop talking.

“You missed Finn’s heat,” I say finally.

The flash of pain that crosses his face is so brief I almost miss it, but it’s there, cutting deep.

“I know,” he says simply, voice hollow.

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