“I know what happened to you.” My voice lowered. “That’s not the same thing as knowing who you are.”
That hit.
I watched it hit.
Her breath caught softly.
“You should go,” she whispered.
“Not happening.”
“Tessa—”
“I said no.”
“And I said I’m not leaving.”
Emotion flashed across her face again.
Fear.
Hope.
Anger.
All tangled together so tightly I wasn’t sure she knew the difference anymore.
“Why?” she demanded suddenly. “Why are you fighting this so hard?”
Because walking away felt impossible now.
Because every time she looked at me like she expected me to leave, something inside me wanted to stay harder.
Because somebody should have stayed before.
“I don’t think you’re lying.”
The words settled softly into the room.
But they hit her like a gunshot.
Her lips parted.
Her eyes filled instantly.
“No,” she whispered, shaking her head once. “You don’t get to say things like that.”
“Why?”
“Because if I believe you…” Her voice broke completely this time. “And you change your mind later…”
She looked away fast, blinking hard.
But not before I saw it.
Terror.
Pure terror.
