How could she believe this nonsense?
Why is she talking about herself this way? It makes me furious to hear Meadow belittling herself whensheis the most stunning, infectious woman I have ever met.
Silence falls between us as the waves roll in harder now, breaking against the shore.
“Meadow,” I start, my jaw flexing. “I’m not going to stand here and let you talk about yourself like that.”
“I’m just being realistic.”
“No,” I shake my head. “You’re being cruel.”
Her brows knit together. “Cruel?”
“Yeah,” I rumble, stepping closer. “To yourself.”
“You’re standing here telling me who I’m supposed to want,” I continue. “Like you know me better than I know myself. You don’t get to decide that for me, Meadow.”
“You don’t get it, Owen.”
“I think I do,” I push back. “You have yourself convinced that I want to be with someone like her, but Meadow, what you don’t understand is that I had that. And the whole fucking time I was with my ex, I wanted you.”
She steps back, like the ground beneath her just shifted.
I push my hands through my hair, tugging at the strands, trying to make herreallysee it.
“You,” I continue. “The girl who’d rather disappear into a book for hours than be stuck in a room full of fake-ass, pretentious people. The girl who thinks too much, who overanalyzes every little thing.” I let out a quiet breath. “The one who’s secretly the funniest person I know, even if no one else gets to see it.”
My voice eases, but it doesn’t lose its edge.
“Yes, you’re quiet, but not in a way that makes you invisible,” I mutter. “But in a way that makes everything you say actually matter.”
I swallow hard, my mind racing to get the words out right before I lose her.
“You’re… you, Meadow,” I smile softly, holding her stare. “You’re the most authentic person I know. You don’t do anything for show or for attention. You’re just you. And you care about other people in such a delicate but fierce way.”
Her breath hitches as I take another step closer.
“And for what it’s worth, you are the most mesmerizing, hauntingly beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on. You take my fucking breath away, Meadow.”
Her eyes dart between mine as she listens to every word.
“What I’m trying to say is, no matter who I was with, no matter how good it looked on the outside… it was never you,” I confess, my voice thick. “And that’s all I ever wanted.You.”
For what feels like an eternity, she just stares at me through glassy eyes.
Then her face crumples as her brows pull together with disbelief.
She shakes her head, tears cascading from her dark lashes as she wraps her arms around herself, gripping her upper arms like she’s trying to become her own anchor.
“Owen… you can’t say things like that to me.” Her voice trembles as she digs her fingertips into her arms. “Not now.”
“Why? Explain it to me, Meadow. Please.”
“Because we aren’t compatible. Don’t you see that?” she asks. “Your friends. Your life. This—” She gestures vaguely toward the five-star resort, the extravagant wedding, the people still partying away on the dance floor. “This world of yours… I don’t fit into it.”
Even though it feels like my throat is closing up, I wait for her to finish as she chews on her bottom lip to try to keep it from wobbling.
“People naturally gravitate toward you, Owen. And the funny thing,” she scoffs, “is that you don’t even try. You’re justthatmagnetic.”
