Page 89 of The Wilder Widows

“Stop! Stop fucking apologizing. How could you? How could you not tell me? Wait for me? I would have been there for you, Sylvie. For her! I would have married you, like I wanted to, and taken care of you.”

Sobs wracked my shoulders as I clutched the rail of the bridge for support. “I know that now, Tom, but I didn’t know that then! By the time you came back, it was too late! Bruce and I were married, and he thought she was his. I was stuck! It was an awful situation, and I didn’t know what to do when I saw you again. Please, you have to forgive me.” I reached for him, but he stepped away.

“I... I can’t even look at you. I can’t.”

The soft glow of the lamps illuminating the bridge showed the shimmer in his eyes. The hurt. The anger. The sadness. And all of it I’d put there.

He spun on his heel and walked away. I wanted to go after him, but I didn’t deserve him. This. This is what I deserved after what I did. To be alone after a life tied to a man I never loved.

Listening to the soft rush of water beneath my feet, I let all my emotions rip out of me. Sobbing into my arms, I finally let the consequences of my decision sink in. I could have had an entire life with that man if I’d just been braver. Had more faith. Trusted. Instead, I chose the safe path—a path that took me away from the one man I’d ever loved.

As the pain broke me open, I welcomed it like a punishment I deserved.

“Fuck!” His deep voice startled me as it rumbled through the night, and I spun to see him at the far side of the bridge. He turned and stormed back toward me.

“Tom?” I whispered as I watched his long strides swallow the distance between us.

Fire burned inside his eyes when he stopped in front of me. “I’m mad as hell, Sylvie. Fucking livid, in fact.”

Swallowing my tears, I shrunk beneath the weight of his stare.

“But I’ve already lost almost forty years with you. And to hell if I’m missing another minute more.”

Before I could speak, his arm snaked around my waist, drawing me into him. His kiss crashed down on my lips, pain and pleasure twisting together while he claimed my lips again. Passion exploded between us while I surrendered, melting into his embrace. As he deepened our kiss, I let his love travel through me, creeping into all the cracks of the broken heart I’d nursed for all these years. It smoothed over the edges, sealing the holes and making my heart whole once again.

“I’m so fucking mad at you,” he whispered between kisses. “But I love you, Sylvie. Always have, always will.”

“I love you, too, Tom. Always.”

Our lips drifted apart, and I pressed my head into his chest.

“Thank God for those Wilder Widows dragging you back into my life,” he said as he pressed soft kisses to my forehead. “And now I’m never letting you go.”

“Thank God for those Wilder Widows is right,” I said with a smile.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

“Good morning, ladies,” I said as I settled into the booth at the brunch restaurant I’d told them to meet me at.

Three sets of expectant eyes stared back at me.

“Well?” Doris said, leaning forward. “What happened?”

Marge leaned in next to her. “Your message last night just said you weren’t coming back and to meet you here in the morning. So that means it went well?”

“Look at her face!” Alice grinned. “That’s a hootie face. It went very well from the looks of that sex glow.”

Biting my lip, I wiggled my brows and smiled.

They erupted in a unified cheer and startled the other diners around us.

“I knew it!” Doris practically screamed. “True love! It’s true love!”

I could only muster a giggle while I sat back against the booth.

“Good for you, Sylvie.” Marge grinned. “I’m so glad it worked out.”

“Thanks to all of you,” I said, reaching to the center of the table and opening my hand. They each leaned forward, and together we held hands. “It’s all thanks to you.”