Page 118 of Bound Bride
The sweet pet name is enough to end my grief-riddled tirade and I gasp through my tears, finally looking up at him.
"I do not hate you. I do not even blame you. Admittedly… I struggled at first. When the truth came out and I found out the true reason that you were even here, I feared that everything was a lie. That what I felt for you was false and what you felt for me was just a performance."
A tremble rumbles through me from head to toe and I grit my teeth together to swallow another weak sob.
"But I was soon reminded that even though you came here for a reason, what we shared together remains real. The fun we had together. The laughter. The long conversations. The shared passions and love of food. Everything I admire and love about you is still you, Rose. You are real and that is what I fell in love with. And you are right. You fought against your captors every step of the way. Calvin told me that you kept the pregnancy a secret because you feared for my safety. That alone tells me that despite the horror that brought you here, the realness of who you are as a person and how deeply you care is true."
I hiccup and my free hand darts up to my lips.
"What they put you through? The torture and the torment and then the task of coming here under threat of harm to your family? You are stronger than half the men who walk these halls. Your dedication to your family is to be greatly admired, and your determination to save all of them, myself included, is something I will forever be grateful to be in the presence of. And do you know what it tells me?"
Every gentle, understanding word is like a small blade against my skin, but the warmth with which he talks doesn't allow space for any pain.
"No," I whisper.
"It tells me that you are the strongest person I have ever met and that you are going to be a truly amazing mother if you decide to keep this baby."
My eyes widen and more tears spill unhindered down my cheeks. "I-I don't understand. How are you not angry? Back… back in the kitchen, when you left, I was so sure you were furious? How can you sit there and not hate me?"
"I was hurt, yes," Kon admits and his gaze falls to our hands. "I will not deny the pain or the doubt that entered my mind. In the end, I think I owe Ethan a pay raise for how often he lets me talk things out with him. I came to realize that, despite your initial goal here, there were infinite ways you could achieve it, and you chose to come at me like a real person. You got to know me. We had fun together. You even threw yourself into helping me unearth a traitor. You spent so long fearing the truth that you did not realize you had earned my trust and love through everything that makes you who you are.Your warmth and your grace, your understanding, and even your desire to protect Calvin when I let my anger get the better of me."
I must have died.
I've died and gone to a forgiving heaven that I don't deserve.
"I…" My hand slides down to my chest. "I don't know what to say."
"You do not need to say anything," Kon replies. "Just know that I mean it when I say I love you. Because I do. I love everything about you and I am here to support you in whatever you decide about the baby."
My brows knit together. "The baby?"
Kon nods. "I understand they drilled it into you, getting pregnant. If that is not what you want, then I will support that. I will also help you find a therapist you are comfortable with so you can talk to someone and work through everything those bastards put you through. If you need time then I will give you all the time in the world." His hand tightens briefly over mine. "I am just thankful you are alive."
I tear my gaze away as a stunned numbness settles over my shoulders. Is it really over? Mathew is dead. Kon is beyond understanding, likely because my sister and my mom would have had horror stories of their own to share with him about those brothers. He even talks as if he's willing to give up on being a father, despite how I know deep down he wants to be.
"You don't hate me?" I whisper, turning my attention back to him.
"No, Rose. I do not. The only person I am angry with is myself for not seeing that you were in pain. I was blinded and for that, I am sorry."
As my lips part to assure him that he shouldn't blame himself, something strikes me about all the details he's given me since I woke up.
He knows about the baby.
Mathew and his family are dead.
My mom and sister are here being helped.
So where is my dad?
"Kon?"
"Yes?"
"You said… you said my mom is here."
"Yes."
"And my sister."
