“You look tired,” I say, folding my arms over my chest.
“I haven’t been sleeping.” He shrugs. “I can’t eat. I can’t think about anything except you.”
“That’s not my problem,” I say with a lift of my chin.
“I know.” He takes a step closer. My knees wobble but I hold my ground. “I’m not here to make excuses. What I did was wrong. I should have told you about the gala. I should have warned you. I was trying to protect my brothers, but I?—”
“Chose them over me.”
“Yes.” No hesitation. “And I will regret that for the rest of my life.”
My chest aches. It’s a familiar pain, one I’ve become intimately acquainted with since I overheard his conversation with Eamon.
“Lochlan.” I drop my voice. “You told me you would never lie to me. That I could trust you. And stupidly, I believed you, going against every instinct I had.”
“I know.” The flicker of sadness in his eyes grabs hold of my heart, somehow finding a path through all the barbed wire and disappointment.
“And then I found out you’d been keeping that secret from me the whole time we’ve known each other. That you watched me fall apart over my father knowing you could have prevented it.”
“Adriana—”
I press my fingertips to my temples, panicked at the thought that the rising sob in my chest will erupt in front of him. “I can’t do this.” I shake my head and step back. “I can’t let myself trust you again. I won’t survive being wrong about you again.”
The words hang between us like a guillotine blade hovering overhead. His jaw tightens, fingers clenching into tight fists.
“I love you,” he says, his voice cracking.
My throat tightens. I swallow past it, but the growing lump slowly chokes me.
“I know you do,” I rasp, my eyes burning. And I mean it. That’s the worst part. “But it’s just not enough.”
I turn and walk toward the door. My security guys take their positions next to me.
“Adriana, please?—”
Bobby’s eyes flash and he moves around me. “Make a move, Molloy,” he hisses. “Please give me an excuse to fuck you up.”
Lochlan raises his hands in the air and steps back.
I turn on my heel and walk out of the restaurant, leaving Lochlan Molloy in my rearview mirror.
Once I’m in the backseat of my car, I let my eyes float closed.
My hands are trembling. My heart is pounding. And there’s a tightness in my chest that won’t ease up no matter how many deep breaths I suck in.
I told him love wasn’t enough. I told him I couldn’t trust him.
I told him exactly what I needed to tell him to protect myself.
So why does it feel like I just made the biggest mistake of my life?
The car pulls away from the curb. I press my palm flat against my chest, trying to slow my heartbeat.
He’ll give up eventually. He has to. No one fights this hard forever.
Deep down, I know it’s not true. Lochlan doesn’t give up. He doesn’t back down. He camps outside buildings and fights through security and writes letter after letter even when I won’t open them.
He’s not going to stop.
