I press my palm to my forehead, fingers gripping my hair.
He’s right.
He’s right and that terrifies me more than anything.
“You want to know something?”
His voice softens.
Darkens.
Becomes something lethal.
“You weren’t the only one drowning.”
I freeze.
My breath stops.
“I died every fucking day you didn’t come see me.”
A sob punches out of my chest before I can swallow it.
“Every letter you returned…” He laughs, but it sounds like it hurts. “I kept them.” My vision goes black around the edges. “Every one.”
My hand presses to my mouth, trying to hold myself together.
“You think I didn’t know you were lying in court?”
His voice cracks once—just once—like something inside him fractures.
“Scarlett, you’re the worst liar I’ve ever met.” My chest caves. “I watched you break when you said those words.”
A breath.
A soft curse.
“I broke too.”
I shake my head even though he can’t see it.
My tears drip onto the screen.
“You asked me not to hate you.”
My heart stops.
He pauses long enough to make me sick.
“I don’t.”
My knees pull up against my chest slowly, like my body is trying to make itself small enough to disappear.
“I could never hate you.”
A beat.
A breath.
