Yep. She did. But that was okay. I already knew she had, I just wanted to hear her say it. I wanted us on the same page for once. “It’s okay if you did, Kiera. I just…I would like to know.”
She sighed as she looked back at me. “I have always felt…something for you, but…yes, the first time I did use you, and I’m so sorry, that was incredibly wrong of me. If I’d have known that you loved me, I never would have—”
Pride swelled in me that she had admitted it. Admission was the first step…“It’s okay, Kiera.”
“No, it’s not.” Her expression was still glum, but then it softened, along with her voice. “The second time I didn’t. That had nothing to do with Denny. That was about us. That was real. Every touch after that was real.”
Lightness buoyed my heart as her words echoed around my brain. Every touch after that was real. “That’s surprisingly good to hear,” I whispered, staring past her as her spoken thoughts became my own. That was about us. That had nothing to do with Denny. Thinking of Denny, I frowned. He was a good man. He didn’t deserve this. And I didn’t deserve her. I was the odd man out in this triangle, the third wheel, and if I were a good person, I would do the honorable thing and bow out. But hadn’t I tried to do that already? It just never seemed to stick.
“You should be with Denny…not me. He’s a good man.”
“You’re a good man too,” she said, searching my face. I shook my head. Not like him. He would never do the things I had done. Kiera ran her fingers through my hair with a sigh. “Don’t let our relationship make you think that you’re a bad person. You and I are…complicated.”
“Complicated…” I mused. “I suppose we are.” Yes, that was a good word to use for us. Cupping her cheek, I ran my thumb along her skin. And I was the one who’d made us that way. I’d crossed a line. I’d fallen where I shouldn’t have fallen, and I’d dragged her with me. I was the weight around her neck, pulling her down when she should be soaring. I dropped my hand from her cheek. “That’s my fault—”
Her brows drew together in annoyance. “Don’t, Kellan. I’m just as culpable as you. I’ve made mistakes—”
Because of me.
I tried to interrupt, but she spoke over me. “No, we both messed this up, Kellan. It takes two to…you know. I wanted you just as badly as you wanted me. I needed you as much. I wanted to be near you just as much. I wanted to touch you as much. I care for you…”
Heartache, grief, pain, and remorse swelled in me. All of it was being contained by a paper-thin layer of hope. Hope for a future with Kiera. Even if I didn’t deserve it, I wanted it. “I’ve never been very clear with you. Maybe, if I had just told you that I loved you from the beginning? I’m so sorry, Kiera. I hurt you so many times. There’s so much I wish I could take back. I—”
She stopped my rambling with her lips, and I was grateful. I didn’t want to open any more scars and insecurities. That wasn’t the point of tonight. I’d wanted to tell her the truth. I’d wanted to tell her how much I loved her. And I had. I’d confessed all my sins, and with Kiera, I had no more left to share.
Denny, however, was another matter.
About the Author
S.C. Stephens is a New York Times #1 bestselling author who spends her every free moment creating stories that are packed with emotion and heavy on romance. In addition to writing, she enjoys spending lazy afternoons in the sun reading, listening to music, watching movies, and spending time with her friends and family. She lives in Washington State with her two children.