Page 66 of Ruin
“I just thought things would be different after this morning.”
I step to him, getting right in his face. “Make no mistake about it, Lucian. That was a mistake.”
“Don’t lie to yourself, Kolton.”
“I’m not lying. It was a mistake. It shouldn’t have happened.”
“Why not?”
“Because we did this already, and it didn’t end well for me.”
“It’ll be different this time.”
I frown. There it is. There’s the hope.
“What does that even mean?”
“I’ve been waiting to explain because I didn’t want you to think it was an excuse or a lie. I was hoping for us to build something first.”
“Tell me what?” I bark.
He blinks a few times, holding my gaze before saying, “Beth and I are separated for good. We have no intention of getting back together.”
Lucian already told me they were separated, but something about him saying it now? It feels like more. It feels… final.
“You already told me this,” I say through gritted teeth.
“Yes, but I want you to know that it’s for good. That it isn’t a temporary thing.”
This is the one thing I’ve always wanted. The one thing I need to hear. Hope blooms in my chest. This is dangerous. So fucking dangerous.
“How long?” I ask.
“A long time. Years. It’s another reason I came back. There’s nothing in Boston for me now. We aren’t d—”
“It changes nothing,” I growl, cutting him off and turning to walk out of the room.
I should be happy about this, but now all I am is pissed that it took him so long to come back here. If they’ve been apart for years, why did it take him so long to come back to me?
“Kolton!” he calls, his footsteps heavy as he comes after me. “Kolton, stop,” he demands.
And I do. I stop, my feet planting themselves to the floor.
He comes around to face me. “Don’t do this to yourself. You want this as badly as I do.” His hand rests on my hip, scorching my skin.
“Fuck you,” I hiss.
“I want to be with you, Kolton. And I’m sorry about what happened before—”
“Your sorry doesn’t mean shit.”
“I know that,” he snaps. For the first time, he looks pissed. “It’s why I’m here, trying to apologize and make things better. I know I fucked up, and I hate it. But we can move forward. We can get past all of it. Don’t you miss this?” he asks, his hand sliding from my waist down to my dick. He moves so close his nose brushes mine. “I wasn’t lying when I said I still love you. I have always loved you, and I will never stop loving you. Give me another chance. You won’t regret it.”
My eyes fall closed, and I almost give in and say yes when he squeezes my dick. But Anastacia calls out that dinner is done, and it breaks the spell, allowing me to step out of his grip and head downstairs.
“I asked your friend to stay for dinner. I hope that’s okay,” is what she says when I reach her. I nearly stumble to the ground because no, it isn’t fucking okay. But she looks so happy right now, and when she’s happy, the baby is happy too, so I can’t tell her no.
“I’ll go if you want me to,” he says softly behind me.
