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“I don’t like the thought of you with anyone else in any other way.”
She stared at me for a moment. “I won’t apologize for how I handled the pain I was feeling. I didn’t have many choices. I was tired of being haunted by your ghost.”
“I’m not a ghost anymore, darling. I’m here now and I have every intention of correcting the mistakes I’ve made in the past.”
“I changed my mind about letting you fix the things you’ve broken.” A ghost of a smile played on her lips and she shook her head once more. “There’s nothing we can do about the past. What is done is already done.”
Defeat rushed through my system. “So, I’m too late.”
“I didn’t say that.” Her brow furrowed before they softened again. “There’s still time, but not to fix what has already been broken. To start again, to start over.”
My eyes were cemented to hers. “You want to start over?”
Winter nodded. “We can’t forget our history and I would never want to.” She paused for a breath as she smiled at me. “I want to start from the beginning. Our new beginning.”
“I don’t deserve your forgiveness, Winter.”
She continued to smile. “How unfortunate that you don’t get a say in that.”
“Why would you forgive me so easily?”
“What does holding the hate in my heart do for either of us?” Her voice was soft as she questioned me. “I choose to forgive you because I want to give you the chance to make things right. I can’t do that if I continue to hold on to the past between us.”
I did not deserve her. It didn’t matter what she said, I would never accept it as the truth. After what had happened between us in the past, I could not fathom why she would be so forgiving. Why would she still even want me? I was grateful that she did because I had every intention of making her mine, but I didn’t expect her to be like this, especially after the rocky start we had after that charity event.
“Regardless of starting from the beginning, I have a lot of things to make up for.”
Winter nodded. “We will see where things go from here. I can’t promise any of it will be easy. We both have a lot we need to heal from.”
“When does our new beginning start?”
She smiled. “Whenever you’re ready.”
For the first time in a long time, I couldn’t fight the smile that pulled on my lips.
“I’ve always been ready for you, darling.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
WINTER
Kai was quiet as he held my hand in the car. We had finished with dinner and there was a difference in the air between us. It was no longer as heavy as it once was. There was still so much that was unknown about where the future would take us, but I was ready to find out. After everything Kai and I had been through, I really wanted to give this one last chance.
There was a part of me that was giving myself a suspicious look. Did I give in too quickly to him? It was highly probable. If there was anyone who deserved a bit of grace, it would always be him for me. The demons he struggled to fight were enough for him to be dealing with. If I could offer him some sense of peace and freedom in life, I was going to do that.
He had my heart in his hands and I didn’t want to have to ask for it back. I wanted him to prove me wrong, to challenge my thoughts. I wanted him to make me believe there really was hope for us. That there could actually be an us. Punishing him and making him continue to jump through hoops wasn’t conducive to a healthy relationship. It would only push us back further instead of moving forward in life.
The moment there was a shift between us tonight, I knew I had a choice to make. I had chosen to forgive him, but I would never forget the heartbreak I experienced at his hand. I just hoped it could be a part of our story instead of the way it ended.
The sun was already hidden beneath the horizon and the moon shone brightly in the sky above. I looked out the window, up at the night sky as the stars danced around the moon. Kai’s hand was warm against mine and his touch was soft as he lightly stroked the back of my hand with his thumb.
“You’re quiet, darling,” Kai said softly as I noticed we were now on my road. He said after dinner that he would take me home since it was getting late, but I couldn’t help but feel a mixture of excitement and anxiety in the pit of my stomach.
I turned my head to look over at him. The soft glow from the lights on the dashboard illuminated his features and I studied the side of his face. There was a small tattoo, tucked just behind his ear that I hadn’t noticed before. It must have been hidden by his hair before. I tilted my head to the side, attempting to get a better look.
I reached out to touch him, my fingers trailing along his skin. “What is this?”
“A tattoo.”
