Page 62 of Choose Me

I don't know how long we lay like that. My arms still wrapped around him, but eventually, he pulled out of me with a groan, and I felt a warm wetness between my legs as his come spilled out of me.

He broke away and buried his face into the crook of my neck, attempting to hide the tears he cried. I reached up to stroke his hair, tears spilling onto my cheeks.

Neither one of us wanted to do this under these circumstances. The pain we both felt because of our love for James was unimaginable. I couldn't bear to look over at him for fear that seeing the pain in his eyes would kill me.

"I'm so sorry," Everett whispered in my ear. "I'm so fucking sorry."

My heart ached at the anguish in his voice.

"Bravo! Wow! That was stunning. The emotion, the tension, the love. That was even better than I imagined." Margaret's voice yanked me back into reality, her face beaming with delight.

I hastily pulled my nightgown over my exposed skin as my cheeks burned red with shame and embarrassment. Everett stood and dressed slowly, his gaze never leaving mine. We waited in silence for Margaret to resume speaking. Quivering, I kept my head down and laid my hands protectively across my pregnant belly while my heart shattered at the thought of James witnessing this moment of profound betrayal.

I didn't dare look up at James.

I knew the disappointment and hurt that would be etched on his face, and my heart was breaking.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for the grand finale," Margaret crooned happily, her smile almost predatory as she pulled out a set of keys from her pocket.

34

THIRTY-FOUR

AVA

A cloud of dread hung in the room as we all held our breath, waiting for what was to come. My stomach twisted with fear and anxiety. I was startled when Margaret unlocked Everett's shackles, keeping her gun trained on him.

"Come take a seat next to your best friend, James. Oh wait, that might be a touchy situation right now." She giggled.

Everett silently complied, sitting on the metal chair next to James. She cackled wickedly and roughly tugged on his arms, forcing them to the backrest of the chair, where she restrained them together.

"Your turn, Ava. Take your place right here." She hissed, pointing to a spot on the floor centered in front of Everett and James. She tapped her foot impatiently, forcing me to face them both. "Now that I've broken your baby daddy, it's time to break you by giving you a choice."

I lifted my gaze to meet hers. "A choice?" I stuttered.

"Yes, a choice," her lips twisted into a sinister smile. "You're going to choose one to save and one to kill."

My stomach lurched as I tried to wrap my head around her words. "Wh-what?" I stammered, unable to believe what she was asking me to do. My heart pounded in my chest, the blood rushing to my ears.

"You heard me," Margaret sneered, waving her gun in the air.

"I won't." Sweat prickled along the back of my neck, and I felt like the air had been sucked out of the room, threatening to suffocate me.

"Either you choose one, or I slit both their throats in front of you." She placed her gun in my hands, lifting my arms to point in their direction and taking her place behind them. She pressed the cold blade of her knife against James' throat first, prepared to slit his throat in front of me if I tried anything.

My eyes met James' gaze first, and the sadness in his eyes took my breath away. His eyes were full of tears, and I knew he cried for me--for the impossible choice Margaret gave me.

For my life, that would never be the same after this.

For the betrayal that ate us all alive.

For the pain, we inadvertently caused each other.

For our broken souls.

I looked over at Everett, and he wore an identical expression, but his bore an undertone of acceptance, and my heart couldn't take it.

He had resigned himself to death, accepting his fate so that I could save James instead.

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