Weston (Broken Falls #6)

Chapter Thirteen

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Weston

A nger courses through my body like I’ve touched a live wire. Is she fucking with me right now? I'm her home? She unraveled the life we had woven together and threw it away as if it meant nothing. I clench my jaw, grinding my molars, trying to tame the fire within.

“Start talking, Mel. I need an answer that’ll put an end to this madness,” I demand, voice laced with desperation and a hint of vulnerability.

Her fingers cling to the blanket, an attempt to shield against the storm brewing in the room. A part of me wishes I could hold her instead, our bodies as close as our hearts once were.

"There were things... shadows over our marriage, secrets I kept out of fear you’d walk away," she admits, her words a whisper, yet they crash through me like a thunderstorm.

My heart stutters, an echo of loss beats through my veins.

“Me? Leave you? That’s bullshit, Mel and you know it. You were my everything; since we were teenagers, you've been all I’ve ever wanted. To share a life, to build a home together," my voice falters, raw with emotion. "And you took that dream and shattered it without a second thought.” Sadness drips from my words, mingled with a plea, “I’ve searched for answers in the darkness of bottles, in fleeting touches of others... but none filled the void you left. And you," I stop for a second, trying to keep it together. "You vanished without a trace. I tried, and I couldn't find you.” I pause, my voice dropping to a whisper, “And I am begging you. Begging you. To care again.”

I feel something shift as I search her eyes, hanging on every breath of distance between us.

“Please help me understand why you walked away, why I wasn’t enough," I say, the pain straining my voice.

She bites her lip, eyes glistening under the dim light, and my resolve goes up and down like a teeter totter, not sure where it wants to land.

“I’m begging you to trust me,” Mel murmurs, her voice as gentle as the breeze that used to ruffle our carefree days. “I thought sparing you from what I found out was the only way. I didn’t want to drown you in the uncertainty of my situation.”

My heart stirs at her revelation, yet the ache remains. “And in doing so, you unraveled everything we had. But I still don't know the situation. How can I help you if you don't let me?”

“I know,” she murmurs, a tear slipping down her cheek, “I know I ruined what we had.”

The confession hangs between us like a ghost.

“Then maybe…” I begin, unsure of the path ahead, “we’re at a crossroads.”

“I don’t know how to navigate this either,” she confesses, her voice breaking, raw and real in a way that tightens the space between us.

“You don’t know me,” I growl, a surge of anger hiding the tremor in my soul. “You don’t know the darkness I let take hold. It's funny you're the only person I wanted, and now you're here and I don't know if I can accept it.”

“That’s because you won’t let me in,” she fires back, eyes locked onto mine, challenging but hopeful. “Can we start over?” she asks, voice now as fragile as porcelain. “Let me show you the truth, as I can.”

For a moment, I teeter on the edge of leaving the past in the past, then concede with a sigh, resigned yet clinging to the hope she holds out like some prize.

“Alright, Mel. A new beginning. But know this,” I pause, ensuring every word resonates with our shared history, “I can’t promise anything, my heart’s still fuckin' broken, but I'm open to it. I'll stop with the blame game if you start talking. Doesn't have to be all at once, but it needs to happen.”

Her smile is bittersweet, full of unspoken history and tentative hope.

“I can't promise anything either, other than trying,” she whispers, and it feels like the first step toward a thousand promises we might discover together.

I get up, and run my fingers through my hair, trying to come down from the huge emotional battle we've just waged. "I need to get some sleep, and so do you. Big day tomorrow." I offer her a smile.

"Yeah, I can't wait to work for Kara."

A laugh works its way out of my chest. "You might have something else to say when you see how busy she is. Wear some comfy shoes."

She licks her lips, that tongue of hers teasing me. "Thanks, West."

I nod, and then head to the solace of my room. Where I don't have to see her body, lips, or tongue, and think about all the amazing things we used to do together.