I sit there, drenched, my heart pounding as panic threatens to consume me whole. I feel like I’m suffocating, like I’m trapped in my own body, stuck in this horrible, awful reality I created.
No. I can’t let it end like this.
My hands shake as I yank my phone from my pocket, my fingers trembling as I scroll through my contacts.
I press Jaxon’s name.
The phone rings once.
Twice.
Then—voicemail.
My stomach drops, but I don’t hang up. I press the phone to my ear, sucking in a ragged breath before the beep sounds.
And then, I spill everything.
“Jax…” My voice cracks, the rain pounding against the pavement. “I—I don’t even know if you’ll listen to this. I don’t know if it’ll even matter after everything, but…I have to say it anyway.”
I stand abruptly, pacing the porch, my wet sneakers squeaking against the wood.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper. “For all of it. For hurting you. For leaving when all you ever did was stay. I was so goddamn scared, Jax. Scared of losing you, of ruining you, of how much I love you.”
The words slip out before I can stop them, and I freeze, my breath hitching. I wipe the rain from my face with the back of my hand, even though it’s pointless.
“I love you,” I say again, stronger this time. “And I don’t want to run anymore. I choose you. I choose us. I don’t care what happens. I don’t care about the risks. I just want you.”
My voice cracks, my chest heaving.
“I know I don’t deserve another chance, but if there’s even one part of you that still wants this, still wants me…” My voice breaks, and I have to press a hand to my stomach to keep from falling apart completely. “Call me back.”
A heavy silence stretches before I whisper one last thing.
“Please.”
And then, with my heart completely in his hands, I hang up.
I stand there, still gripping my phone until it might shatter in my hands, my chest rising and falling in uneven breaths. The rain hasn’t let up. It soaks through my clothes, clings to my skin, drips from my hair in cold rivulets, but still, I don’t move.
I can’t. I’ve just put everything out there. No walls, no defenses, no escape plan, just me—raw, exposed, standing in the middle of a storm I created.
I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to steady myself, but my whole body trembles. I don’t know if it’s from the rain or the weight of what I just admitted.
I don’t even hear the truck pull up. I’m so lost in my own swirling thoughts, in the pounding of my pulse, I don’t realize I’m not alone anymore, not until a voice—his voice—cuts through the storm.
“Well, that was quite the declaration.”
I jump, my whole body jerking as I whip around.
And there he is.
Jaxon Montgomery, standing at the bottom of the porch steps, soaked from the rain, his shirt clinging to every defined muscle, his dark hair sticking to his forehead. His hands are tucked into his pockets, his head tilted slightly, amusement flickering in his deep brown eyes as he watches me, fighting a grin.
Like he heard everything.
My breath catches in my throat, my mind racing to catch up, but I can’t process anything except for the fact that he’s here.
I take a step back, my pulse hammering. “You—” My voice falters. “I thought you left.”
