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"You don't have to⁠—"

"I know I don’t have to do anything, but you need to hear this. You’re not stupid."

"I should've known."

"How?"

"There were signs."

"There are always signs when you know what you're looking for. But when you trust somebody, you don't spend every second trying to catch them lying."

I thought about what he said.

"That's not stupidity, sweetheart. That's what trust is supposed to look like."

My eyes burned. Dammit. "I thought I told you not to be nice to me."

"Yeah. Never been great at following directions."

I laughed. Then promptly started crying again. Not a delicate, cinematic cry. Actual tears falling down my face.

"Oh, for fuck's sake.” I wiped my cheeks, then buried my face in my hands. “This is humiliating."

"No, it's not."

"I'm crying over a man I don't even want."

"I don't think you're crying over him."

I dropped my hands.

"I think you're crying because somebody you loved made you feel like loving them was something to be ashamed of."

And there it was. The thing I hadn't been able to put into words. "How do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Say things like that. Like you're secretly emotionally intelligent."

He put his finger to his lips. "Shh. Don't tell anyone. I've got a reputation to maintain."

I chuckled through my tears.

He brushed his thumb across my cheek. "You know what I think?"

"I'm afraid to ask."

"Kenny is a damn fool."

"Not controversial."

"And Annie is an even bigger one."

"Again, not groundbreaking."

"And I think anybody who gets the chance to be loved by you and screws it up deserves every miserable second of regret coming their way."

My heart swelled. "Damon."