Chapter 67 A Truth Too Hard to Ignore
A Truth Too Hard to Ignore
She barely made it through dinner.
Ben was kind.
Kind enough to notice when she wasn’t really there. Kind enough to pick up the check without hesitation. Kind enough to offer a small, understanding smile when she apologized.
“Hey, it’s okay,” he said as they stepped outside into the crisp evening air. “You’re clearly not ready.”
Savannah exhaled sharply, guilt tightening in her stomach. “I’m sorry.”
Ben smiled. “Don’t be. Whoever he is… he set the bar high, huh?”
Her throat constricted. She nodded. “Yeah,” she whispered. “He did.”
Ben shoved his hands in his pockets, studying her for a moment before offering a small, knowing smirk. “Then don’t settle for anything less.”
Savannah blinked. She wasn’t expecting that.
But somehow, it was exactly what she needed to hear.
She offered him a soft, grateful smile before getting into her car.
And as she sat there, gripping the steering wheel, exhaling a shaky breath, she finally let herself accept the truth she had been running from for an entire year.
Maybe she wasn’t supposed to move on. Maybe she wasn’t supposed to force herself to be okay. Maybe she wasn’t supposed to forget.
Maybe—She was supposed to find her way back.
And for the first time in twelve months, Savannah Monroe allowed herself to whisper the words she had been too afraid to say out loud.
She had left Wrightsville Beach—but she had never left him.
And she never would.