Page 300 of The Sinner: James

“Yes, there are,” he says.

“Can we go see them?”

He smiles softly.

“Sure.”

He blows out the candles, gently takes my hand, and walks me out of the gazebo.

“Were you watching me tonight?” I ask, realizing he must’ve sat there in the darkness the entire evening.

“Yes, I was.”

“And what did you see?” I ask as he paces himself so I can walk in step with him.

His beautiful smile gleams in the dimness.

“An alluring, wounded woman,” he murmurs before we both go quiet.

Soon, we follow the gravel path snaking around the building, and reach the parking lot in the back.

He motions me to his black Lamborghini. We head that way.

I slide into my seat while he starts the ignition and rolls the windows down. The breeze flows in.

The engine rumbles as he propels his sports car onto the open road, and before long, we slow down, the quiet evening enveloping us as we drive through open fields and dark forests, leaving the magnificent estates behind.

The air is warm and smells like flowers and freshly cut grass while the wind blows in my hair.

As the car eats miles, I relax and let my mind unwind.

Propping his elbow against the door, he threads his fingers through his hair, his fist latched onto the steering wheel.

His muscular arms catch my eye before my gaze slides over his chest.

His eyes stay on the road as I let my gaze float over his body and study him as if I see him for the first time.

Handsome as ever, he breathes calmness and peace.

He still affects me badly, and that will probably never change.

Sunk in thought, I tear my gaze away from him and look out the window.

“You lost your trust in me, too,” I say after a moment.

Out of the corner of my eye, I notice him flicking his gaze in my direction. “And I miss that too,” I add, glancing at him.

The wind blows a few strands of hair over his eyes.

He combs it all back with his fingers, shifting his focus to the road.

“I miss your emotions,” I murmur. “The awe I saw in your eyes. The way you touched me as if I were the most fragile thing in the world, and you knew I couldn’t survive without your heart. I remember those moments when you breathed me in as if I were the only person that mattered to you. Yes, I do… That’s why I responded to you the way I did. That’s why you were so special to me too.”

He glances at me, his eyes glinting.

“And then… Like you, I didn’t feel needed anymore,” I continue. “You made it clear to me you didn’t need me. And there was no doubt in my mind that you had had an endless supply of women, and replacing me was a matter of days, if not hours. You made it no secret, either. You told me you were never going to be mine. You worked so hard not to need anyone.”

“Things have changed,” he says.

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