Page 76 of Obsession (Dark Revenge)
I hesitated, uncertain of what to say. Of course, he didn't believe me. Trusting my words was something he would never do, and perhaps, that was for the best. Because in that moment, an unexpected urge surged within me, compelling me to utter words I had never imagined saying to Jared.
"I'm sorry."
His eyes widened, and he instinctively pulled back, a flicker of surprise crossing his face as his mind processed the words I had just spoken. I meant every word, though. For the first time, I genuinely meant them, and Jared, of all people, could always discern when I spoke the truth and when I didn't. Despite that knowledge, he steadfastly refused to place trust in me, even when I spoke the truth.
“You don’t mean that,” he retorted.
“I do.”
“Stop it. The game is over. We’re going to sleep now,” he informed me.
“I know, but that doesn’t mean I don’t mean it.”
“You’re never sorry!”
“This time I am. I didn’t know, but I should have.”
“Really?” he mocked. “How?”
“Because I think I did see it, but I didn’t realize what it was,” I whispered, my hand inching toward him. But Jared’s wrist was firmly locked to mine, and he quickly intercepted my gesture, cautioning me with a piercing look not to get too bold.
“What it was?” he echoed, his grip on my hand tightening slightly.
“I always felt like something was off about you,” I continued. “Sometimes you just... accepted whatever was about to happen. You had no fight in you. You just allowed me to hurt you, and now I understand why.”
Jared appeared somewhat surprised by my words, his intense gaze locked onto mine. However, I wasn’t finished.
“I don’t know if you remember, but do you recall that party where Kyle and the others kidnapped you from your home?” I asked.
“I remember,” he replied.
“I drove you back,” I continued.
“You did.”
“But I noticed that you took forever to get out of my car,” I revealed.
He looked away from me, his expression revealing the reason he had hesitated to exit my car.
“You didn’t want to go inside, did you?” I pressed.
There was a moment of silence before he turned to me, his eyes growing cold as he seemed to shut down, obviously reluctant to engage in this conversation. However, I pressed on.
“Did you?” I asked firmly.
“I think you know the answer,” he snarled.
“Yes, I do, but you don’t know what I was thinking.”
“That I made your car smell,” he retorted.
“No, I said that because I couldn’t let you know that I wanted you to stay in the car,” I confessed.
His eyes widened in response to my admission. I had never told him that I wanted him close, but I wanted to tell him now. I knew I couldn’t change the past, but maybe I could make it hurt a little less. By revealing more about myself, perhaps it would bring him some satisfaction, help him let go of his anger, and finally be free of me and his old life.
“Why?” he asked incredulously.
“Because...” I trailed off, hesitating. From the changing expression on Jared’s face, it was clear that he had already grasped my unspoken truth. I looked down, my heart racing. Perhaps now was the time to say it out loud, but would it make things better?
