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What I said about loving her was true. I always had, and while pushing her away didn’t do me any favors, nothing could ever change that. It was almost engrained in me—something I couldn’t ever scrub away.
But knowing she had conspired against me was enough to taint that connection.
I wanted to trust her and believed that I could, but that trust had been abused, and I wasn’t ready to forgive her for it yet.
Tears gathered in her eyes, and while it hurt me to see them, I had to block it out.
“I’m so sorry, Liam. I had no idea…”
My shoulders deflated, and as much as I wanted to turn back around and make everything right, I didn’t have it in me. I was exhausted, and I didn’t know what to make of it all.
“I just hope it was worth it for you,” I said, giving in to that resolve.
There was no ignoring just how upset she was, on the verge of spilling those tears. She stood there helplessly like she was fighting an internal battle that involved me, yet I wanted nothing to do with it.
I didn’t know when I’d forgive her or if I ever could; the wound was too fresh. The deceit was too present in my mind for me to simply forget about it. She betrayed my trust, and once that was tainted, it wasn't easy to regain.
I wanted her safe and as far away from the Gleason’s as possible, but at that moment, I couldn’t be there a minute longer.
Cora opened her mouth to say something, yet my hand was already on the doorknob, and I was out the door before she even had the chance.
My heart fractured at the thought of leaving her, even if it was the best thing for me.
Chapter 25 - Cora
There was no way to possibly describe the sheer shame and regret I felt the moment I was swathed in it, left alone in my apartment.
I wanted to run after Liam the moment he walked out, but I knew it wouldn’t do either of us any good. It was clear that I had messed up beyond belief, and he needed his space.
While I knew there was nothing I could do about that, everything else felt like it was up in the air, and I had no way of knowing what would become of us.
Was he done with me for good, or did we just need time to come to terms with everything? Was he going to lie low in town, or leave for his safety?
All the questions moving through my head brought a pain with it, accompanying the hurt in my chest.
His words echoed in my mind, and the guilt I felt was so intense, I could hardly stomach it.
Even if it had been the center of my focus for some time, I couldn’t bring myself even to consider writing the piece on him. It was long dead, and it was hard to believe I even thought about writing it in the first place.
I cursed myself for letting it get in the way of everything.
Not only did it ruin what was beginning to form between the two of us, but it halted all the progress I had made on myself. I was no better than the resentful, damaged girl I had been by the time Liam left town to begin with.
I never wanted to admit to even myself, but Liam had been right about it all. Every last accusation he made was all true.
At the start, I just wanted to get back at him for everything he had done, and for how he made me feel. But that was before I realized he wasn’t as bad as I originally made him out to be. Before I gave him a chance.
Snooping into his past was wrong of me, and it only landed me in a world of trouble.
Even worse, I put Liam right in the middle of something he tried so hard to escape. I was afraid for his safety, and just as worried that he would have no choice but to leave town again.
Just thinking about it made me feel sick.
I never meant for everything to go as poorly as it had, even if I was after revenge. It was supposed to be just enough for the others to question his merit or honesty, and to give him the chance to see that he couldn’t belittle others and get away with it.
But instead, I put his whole life in jeopardy.
I dug where I shouldn’t have, and I led through men right into town. I told them everything, and now it was only a matter of time before it all blew up in my face. They would likely be after him, and it was all my fault.
