My heart softens, any resentment toward him melting away. “Ugh. That is one of the many reasons why I love you.”
He stops in his tracks. “You love me?”
“Yes,” my gaze meets his. “From the moment I first saw you, I’ve had love for you.”
He puts his hand on mine. “Same. And from the moment you turned twenty-one, it changed into something other than it originally was.”
When he puts his arm around me, I don’t pull away. For the first time in what feels like forever, I feel genuinely loved. Secure. Not in a hyped-up, manipulative way, but real, solid, and grounding.
“I really care about you, you know,” he says, his voice low.
“I think I might finally be starting to believe you,” I reply softly. “Thank you for not rushing me.” It’s been fast, overall, but not in the scheme of our entire friendship. Not when we’ve both had feelings all along.
“I’ll wait as long as it takes,” he says, his tone gentle but certain. “Seriously, until the end of my life and beyond—if that’s what it takes to be with you, so I can make you feel loved. To make you feel safe.”
“Preferably not too long,” I tease. “It’s hard to do much from beyond the grave.”
“Oh, I’d find a way,” he replies, grinning. “You can count on that.”
His words linger in my mind long after our coffee cups are empty.
Later, as I lie in bed, I think about what Alice said during one of our conversations.
“Dex was obsessive, yes,” she’d told me. “But he wasn’t Timmy. He wasn’t trying to manipulate you or control you. He was looking out for you the only way he knew how. If he’d intervened sooner, you probably would’ve pushed him away completely. And knowing you, you’d have clung to Timmy even harder just to spite him.”
I’d hated hearing it, but I knew she was right. If Dex had revealed himself earlier, I wouldn’t have seen his actions for what they were—protection. Care.
I would have pushed him away, never willing to see him again.
My love is a pure love. A loyal love. Once I’m in it, I’m in.
I’ll never look at another human in the same way again.
Loyalty, devotion. I’m all fucking in.
I want to be with someone I can trust. Where there’s no agenda other than to get to know each other. Is that so bad or wrong?
I’m worth it. I’ve worked hard. I’m not a bridge troll. I’m a smart, beautiful woman and I’ve worked really hard to get to this point.
Sure, I let an idiot nearly destroy me for 18 months. But that’s a blip in the timeline of my entire life.
And I’m more than ready for the next chapter.
And now, as I replay today’s conversation in my mind, I know I’m truly ready to give Dex a second chance. Not because I owe him anything, but because I’m beginning to see that maybe he really is different. Maybe he really does love me.
And maybe… I’m ready to start loving myself again, too.
CHAPTER 143
CUTTING THE CORD
MARGAUX
When I hear Timmy has been arrested shortly after our breakup, I’m shocked—but not for the reasons one might think. His return to jail was inevitable—he’s a ticking time bomb who’s sure to end up in prison or dead.
But the speed of it—within a week of his move—is what catches me off guard.
The details trickle in slowly, and each revelation feels like a punch to the gut. His record stretches far beyond what I knew.