My chest goes tight.
No, I did not know that.
I go still, every muscle clenched. Rage coils in my gut like a living thing. But she doesn’t need my jealousy. Not now.
What she needs is someone steady.
A man she can lean on. A man who listens. A man who stays.
So I rein in the beast and whisper, “Come here.”
She lets me pull her down with me, her head resting over my heart like it belongs there. I settle us beneath the thin blanket, arms wrapped around her like armor.
“Tell me,” I murmur, kissing the soft curls on her head because I can’t seem to help myself.
“It was five years ago,” she says into my skin, her voice just a breath.
I wait. I listen. I hold her.
Because whatever story she has to tell, I’ll take every word.
And I swear—on the gods, on the sea, on my fucking soul—that I’ll never make her feel that kind of heartbreak again.
Chapter Nineteen-Cecilia
I don’t think of myself as an emotional woman.
I’m a lawyer, for fuck’s sake. I’ve stood in courtrooms and gone toe-to-toe with prosecutors, CEOs, and more egos than I care to count. I’ve been called intimidating, cold, even unflappable.
But that doesn’t mean I don’t have emotions.
Or dreams.
Or hopes I tucked away under power suits and bulletproof confidence.
Like everyone else, I imagined my wedding when I was a little girl.
Puffy white dress. Mile-high cake. String quartet playing something soft and sweet as I walked down the aisle. A handsome Prince Charming waiting for me at the end, promising forever with just one look.
Silly? Maybe.
But it was mine.
And then I met Alfred after law school. He wasn’t a prince.
Not even close.
But he was smart. Steady. Reasonably attractive. Polished in that boring, buttoned-up way that felt like safety. He fit.
Or I thought he did.
“Dad hated him right away,” I tell Atlas, curled against his warm chest. “Mom waited to make up her mind. She said she wanted to support my decision, knowing if she said no, I’d just dig my heels in.”
Atlas chuckles, low and rough. “Smart woman.”
I smile weakly. “Yeah. She knows me better than anyone. I guess, I’ve always been trying to prove myself.”
“What was his name?”
