Page 51 of Scarlet Wars
James nodded, his face tight with tension. “Which is why I didn’t contact you for five months while you were at Crown, with…him. You were already pulling away from me. Telling you then wouldn’t have helped. I wanted to wait until we got back together, but I didn’t want to lie to you anymore, so I just…”
“So, you just decided to tell me the second I walked back in?”
James nodded again, and I could see what it cost him. What it meant.
Growth, however overdue.
“Yes, well,” I said, managing half a breath of a smile. “I can appreciate you wanting to be honest for once…”
The words faltered, enough for him to hear it.
“But?” he asked quietly. He knew me too well to miss the shift.
I scoffed. “Do you have any idea how selfish it is for keeping me in the dark for over five months? You were living with the certainty we’d end up together, have a kid together, but I didn’t. You left me to deal with real doubts, fears, and insecurities about us, all this time. You didn’t even try to reassure me, didn’t talk to me about how you felt.”
I paused, forcing myself to add this truth. “You didn’t fight for me, James. You didn’t even nex me once to apologize for lying throughout our entire relationship!”
The sound was jagged and raw as I struggled to keep my composure. “And now…” I sucked in a shaky breath, forcing my expression to harden again. “What the hell do you expect me to do now?”
"Forgive me for all of it, while we try to work through this," James said, his voice tight, barely held together.
I could see it, the way he clung to those words like they were his last lifeline, desperate to grasp onto any shred of hope.
“I forgive you, yes,” I said, calmly but with unflinching resolve. “But you and me, back together…” My words trailed off, heavy with finality.
His face crumpled slightly, and for a brief second, I saw the cracks in his armor—the vulnerability he always tried to hide. But then, as I expected, he fought back, clinging to his denial.
“Yes, Emma,” he said, louder now with a desperation that bordered on panic. “You and I are getting back together, and we will provide the future with its savior.”
My body stiffened, all the blood in my body rushing to my head as anger flared inside me.
“I will do nothing I don’t want to,” I snapped with every ounce of strength I could muster, letting him see my fire.
He fucking rolled his eyes at me. “Not suggesting anything against your will here. Merely pointing out the future proves it’s what youwillwant.”
I stared at him, my heart pounding with a mix of anger and pity. How could he not see it? How could he not understand the pieces of us, even if I’d wanted to, could never fit back together the way they had before?
He wanted absolution, but he wasn’t willing to face the truth. And the truth was, I wasn’t the same girl he’d broken, and I wasn’t about to pretend I was for his sake.
"I will not be forced into anything, least of all into a future I’m not even sure will happen. Even if we do get back together someday, it is not how I feel right now."
His stare hardened slightly. "And howdoyou feel right now?"
Good question. One I wasn’t sure I had the answer to.
"Is this about Colt?" he asked suddenly, his tone laced with something between jealousy and accusation.
My gaze shot up to meet his. "What about him?"
"You two spent a lot of time together," he said, his jaw tightening. "Did… Did something happen between you two?"
I frowned, shaking my head quickly. "No, of course not."
Except that wasn’t exactly true. A small, nagging voice in the back of my mind reminded me of that last moment between us, right before James had interrupted us. What would’ve happened if he hadn’t? I had been so close to kissing Caden, so close to…
"But," I added hesitantly, the words trailing off as the memory tightened in my chest.
James’s expression froze. "But?"
