Page 58 of Boards & Betrayal

“But you do now, and you still won’t leave him,” he barked, stepping closer. The heat of his anger was palpable. "You-you got back with him. Even after everything. He hit me, Ally! I could have gotten hurt. It could have ruined my career!"

"Now, who's the one being dramatic?" I shot back, feeling the heat rise in my cheeks. "He only hit you because you hit me."

"I didn't mean to," Nick said, his voice cracking. "You got in the way. You weren't supposed to get in the way?—"

"I know that," I interrupted, my tone softening despite my anger. "I don't blame you for it. But I also don't blame him for reacting either."

"I'm his son," he said, his eyes pleading now. "He shouldn't hit his own blood."

"You're also a grown man," I countered, crossing my arms over my chest.

Nick clenched his jaw, his face twisting with frustration and disbelief. "I can't believe you're this vindictive," he said through gritted teeth. "That you could be with him, knowing how it affects me."

"It has nothing to do with you?—"

"I'm his son!" he bellowed, the veins in his neck standing out. "It has everything to do with me!"

The force of his words hung heavy in the air between us, like a thick fog neither of us could see through. I took a deepbreath, trying to find some semblance of calm amidst the storm of emotions swirling inside me.

"Nick," I said slowly, carefully choosing my words. "This isn't about you or your father. It's about me trying to move on from everything that's happened. And the fact that I can't because your mother is blackmailing me is infuriating."

"Move on?" he scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief. "By jumping into bed with him?"

"It's not like that," I insisted, feeling the sting of his accusation.

"Then what is it like?" he demanded, stepping closer, his eyes boring into mine.

"It's complicated," I admitted, hating how inadequate that explanation sounded.

Nick laughed bitterly. "Complicated? That's your excuse?"

I bit my lip, struggling to find the right words to make him understand. But how could I explain something that even I was still trying to make sense of?

"I care about him," I finally said, meeting Nick's gaze head-on.

"More than you cared about me?" he asked quietly, his voice barely above a whisper.

The question sliced through me like a knife. How could I compare the two? My feelings for Thomas were tangled up in so many layers of grief and longing and guilt that they defied simple answers.

"It's different," I said softly.

Nick's eyes flashed with hurt and anger. "Yeah," he said bitterly. "It's always different with him."

“I love him,” I confessed, the words surprising even myself. They felt raw and real in the open air.

Nick’s eyes widened in shock. “Take it back,” he whispered fiercely. “Do it. Now.”

“No,” I replied firmly. “I won’t. It’s the truth.”

Without warning, he slapped me across the face.

The sting of his hand left me reeling, my cheek burning from the impact. I blinked in shock, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Nick had never raised a hand to me before.

I took a step back, feeling a rush of emotions—anger, betrayal, and an overwhelming sadness for what we had become. The weight of his actions hung heavy in the air between us.

"I warned you, Ally," he murmured. "I warned you. What happens now is on you."

Chapter 18

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