She stepped to the side, letting him into our home, but before he spotted me, she held up her hand. “This is your last chance, Damien. You mess this up, and I’ll make your life a livinghell.”
He smiled sadly at her. “It already is.”
As Damien crossed over the threshold, his dark eyes met mine. My heart pounded in my chest, so loud, I was sure everyone else in the room could pick up on it. It felt like just yesterday we’d shared this space, since he’d crawled into my bed and held me through the night.
But time had taken its toll on him.
Damien seemed more disheveled than the last time I saw him, his dark hair now curled at the edges, brushing the tops of his shoulders. His facial hair had gone from a dusting to almost a full beard, and I had to admit—I liked it. It was a rawer version of him, one without the shiny veneer of the Erie Hawks on his shoulders.
The last time we’d seen each other, it had been in the hospital room almost a month ago, when he asked me for space. The words had cracked open all my barely-healed wounds, sending me to a dark place. Heading back to New York was one of the hardest moments of my life, every mile away from him tugging at the ties in my heart. But even as I sobbed into my pillow, my naïve heart convinced me it was temporary, that Damien needed me to be strong—to hold out hope until he was ready to face his new reality.
However, with every passing day, that hope dwindled until all that remained were embers, painful memories of empty promises in the dark. It had become clear that while I’d clung to Damien in my darkest hours, he didn’t trust me enough to do the same.
Sometime over the past week, I’d made peace with his choice. After all, I’d spent so much time fighting this—fighting us. Why would he think I wanted to stick around? And why would he even want to? Our arrangement had been born out of convenience, a way for him to spend time with someone without affectinghis baseball schedule.
Now, that wasn’t as much of an issue. Damien wouldn’t be traveling for a while, and maybe he’d realized he wanted someone more, someone to build a life with. While even I could see my growth over the past few months, it was no secret my divorce damaged my heart. Maybe after his injury, with everything else in upheaval, Damien had decided I wasn’t worth the fight.
These thoughts had plagued me ever since I came home, since the first unanswered message to Damien. The longer the silence stretched, the more I’d convinced myself of those dark truths until I could barely breathe at all, sure I’d never see Damien again.
And now, he stood in my home, in my city. I desperately wanted to crawl to him, wanted to hold him tight, to beg him never to let me go. I wanted his touch, his taste, his love, wanted him to overwhelm me in the best way, especially after so much time apart.
The anger in my chest ebbed and flowed, unable to handle the discrepancy between my brain and the rest of my body. Why did he have to look so good? It would have been so much easier to stay mad at him if he’d just let himself go.
I crossed my arms over my chest to stop myself from reaching out for him. “What are you doing here, Damien?”
“I came to see you.”
He stepped closer, and I finally noticed the contraption on his knee. It looked like a smaller brace than the one he’d had at the hospital, which had to be a good sign. My heart ached at the sight, knowing how much the injury had cost him. But in the aftermath, he’d used his pain to break us apart,forcing me away to fight his battles all alone.
I swallowed, keeping my face as neutral as possible. “That was kind of you, but it was unnecessary. How’s your leg healing?”
Damien’s dark eyes met mine, and the longing etched in them almost knocked me to the ground. “It’s fine. Still throbs and aches, but I’m getting better. PT’s been kicking my ass, but I’m getting there. Healing takes time.”
“Glad to hear it,” I said, stepping toward the entry hallway. “But if you don’t mind, I have a lot to do.”
“Just a few minutes, please.” Damien swallowed and ran his hand through his hair. “Five minutes, and then you don’t ever have to talk to me again.”
Ollie glanced over at me, arching a brow—do you want me to kick him out?I subtly shook my head.Not yet.As hard as it was, I needed to hear him out.
“I’m going into my room. Let me know if you need anything.” She stopped in front of Damien. “Don’t pull any more stunts, Ramos. You have no idea what I’m capable of. No one hurts my girl and gets away with it, not even you.”
I grimaced, waiting for Damien to bite back a reply to Ollie’s harsh words. Instead, he placed his hand on her shoulder. “Glad she has you, Ol.”
Her grimace fell away, and she stared at him as if she wanted to say something, but he’d killed every comeback. She turned around, squeezing my hand before walking back into her bedroom and shutting the door.
Once we were alone, I turned and walked into the living room, already overwhelmed by the growing tension. Space. I needed space. Otherwise, I didn’t know if I’d fall apart or fall into Damien’s arms. Neither seemed like the rightoption.
As soon as I got to the other side of the living room, I turned to face Damien. “Okay, you have five minutes. What do you have to say?”
“I’m sorry, Bri.”
THIRTY-EIGHT
“I’m sorry, Bri.”
Damien’s quiet words cut through my defenses, striking me in the heart. Tears tickled the corners of my eyes, but I forced them back down, determined to keep up my unflappable exterior. Even though inside, I was crumbling.
“Thank you for the apology, but like I said, it’s unnecessary.” I smiled tightly. “You needed to focus on getting better, and you needed space for that. I understand.”
