His turn to be silent.
"I've been in love with you since we were twelve years old. I'm still in love with you and I know that's not fair to put on you after everything I've done. But you asked for honesty."
My breath catches. "Ethan?—"
"You don't have to say anything. I'm not asking for anything back. I'm just..." He lies back down, carefully maintaining his distance. "I'm just tired of lying. About all of it."
I don't know what to say. Don't know how to respond to that kind of confession after everything that's happened.
So I don't say anything. Just lie back down, staring at the ceiling, my mind racing.
Everything I thought I knew about that night, about Ethan, about us has been turned upside down.
And I have no idea how to feel about it.
Chapter 10
Ethan
Morning comes too early.
I barely slept, too aware of Ivy three feet away, too anxious about having finally told her the truth, too terrified of what happens now.
She's still asleep when I get up. I grab clothes as quietly as possible and escape to the bathroom.
Under the shower spray, I let myself process what I did last night.
I told her everything. The ultimatum. The threat. My feelings.
Three years of secrets, exposed in one conversation. A conversation I didn’t think would happen, but the weight was killing me. Having her so close to me, eager to kiss her was crazy, and I told her anything.
She said she didn't believe me, but she also said she understood and that maybe she could hate me less.
It's more than I deserve. More than I hoped for.
But it's also not enough. Because understanding isn't forgiveness and until she forgives me, if she ever does, there's no path forward for us.
When I come out of the bathroom, Ivy's awake. Sitting up in bed, looking at her phone.
"Morning," I say carefully.
"Morning." She doesn't look at me. "We need to be downstairs for breakfast in twenty minutes."
"Right. I'll be ready."
She disappears into the bathroom, and I hear the shower start. Use the time to check my own phone.
Multiple missed calls from my mother. Texts from my father demanding I call back.
I delete them all without reading.
Whatever consequences are coming from my conversation with them, I'll deal with it later. Right now, I need to focus on surviving this trip without making things worse with Ivy.
The company visit goes smoothly. NovaShop's headquarters are impressive, modern office space, enthusiastic employees, executives who actually seem excited to talk to us about competitive strategy.
Ivy and I work together professionally. Taking notes, asking questions, comparing observations. To anyone watching, we're model partners. Colleagues who respect each other's work.
No one would guess that last night I confessed I've been in love with her for nearly a decade.