Page 33 of Mercy Lake

A flash of regret ignited when I watched her in that new role.

All of it could have been mine. It was everything I had always envisioned—my wife with our children, laughing and playing under the cloudless sky, seeping sheer happiness and nothing else.

It was a lost moment that could not be relived, but it was bittersweet to dream about all the same.

My intuition felt her before my body could even react. I was staring out over the water as she tentatively came up beside me.

“I forgot how beautiful it was here,” she said, her tone soft and wistful.

I didn’t reply—I couldn’t.

“Owen.” She turned full-bodied to look up into my face, and I had no choice but to return her attention. Alexis’ expression was hesitant, almost scared.

I did that to her.Baby, don’t be scared.

I braced myself, but once again, she bulldozed through my expectations.

“I think I’m ready to hear the truth of everything,” she blurted. Then, after that, it was like she found her courage, pushing ahead with haste. “I know it’s been a long time, and I honestly don’t even know why I’m doing this now. But ever since your apology, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about what happened. Of course, we don’t have to rehash anything if you don’t want to—”

“Yes, Alexis.”

“Huh?”

“I agree”

“Oh, okay. Um. How should we…”

“I’ll pick you up for coffee. We can talk after?”

Alexis sighed, unsure. “Owen. I’m not promising anything. I have no idea how this is going to play out.”

“It’s been a long time coming, Lex, and you know it. There are no expectations from me. No pressure on my end. Nothing other than us taking care of our past. In whatever capacity we need to.”

She gave me a shy side smile. “Since when did you get so good at communication?”

“Years of therapy will do that, I suppose.”

Her features dropped in sadness as she bit into her lower lip. I couldn’t help but pull it out with my thumb. “No more running, Lex.”

Her eyes sparked. “No more running.”

Chapter 20

ALEXIS

“Do you think it’s too sexy? Like it’s giving the message that this is a date?” I asked Alicia, who was on video chat while I modelled my outfit for her.

“Is it a date?”

“No?”

“Then why did that sound like a question?”

I huffed, and Alicia smirked.

“I’m nervous,” I admitted. I was on the verge of breaking out in hives.

“You used to be married, Lex. You’ve seen each other’s private parts. You’ll be fine.”

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