Page 142 of Far

“Patience, maybe. But—”

“Are you ready to go?” Connor steps into the kitchen.

“Uh, yeah.” I catch his eye for a moment, searching for signs of that little boy who begged for his mother’s love, but all I see is the man before me, a careful blend of strength and vulnerability.

“I packed up plenty of leftovers for you both to take home. Chicken pot pie, mashed potatoes, green beans, and cornbread. There’s a container of apple crumble for you as well.” Margaret hands Connor the bag with the containers.

“You’re an angel, thank you,” Connor grabs it. “Shall we?”

“Yes,” I say.

He reaches out, taking my hand in his, leading me into the hallway.

“Goodbye.” Our voices blend together.

“It was our pleasure,” George says. “You’re welcome here anytime.”

Margaret smiles at us while Ezra offers a small nod.

We leave the house, and Connor leads me to his car, his hand still entwined with mine.

“Will you please take me home?” I ask.

His fingers tighten their grip. “I thought… we’ll go to my place this time.”

I rise up on my toes, pressing a sweet kiss to his lips. “That’s what I meant. Home.”

He’s become my home in more ways than one.

Connor gives me another big kiss. “Home.”

The drive to his apartment is filled with silence, which makes me nervous. Especially after what happened.

“Are you over at Elijah’s place often? Or Brandon’s? Bash’s?” I ask.

“Often enough.” Connor fixates on the road ahead. “We meet a lot in the evenings and work out at the gym.”

“Sounds cozy.” 4 guys training at a gym. Cozy.

He glances at me, a flicker of something unreadable crossing his features. “She left when I was seven. I promised myself that one day I would find her again and ask her why. And I did.”

I place my hand on Connor’s thigh. “I’m sorry.”

And I mean it with all my heart. No child deserves to feel so abandoned, so unwanted. The one person who should have stayed… didn’t.

Connor maneuvers into the parking garage beneath his building, the engine’s purr fading to silence as he cuts theignition. For a moment, we sit there, the weight of his revelation hanging heavy between us.

I unfasten the seatbelt and reach out, my fingers brushing against his arm. “Connor.”

He flinches, and my heart clenches at the pain in his eyes. “She looked right through me, Blue. Like I was a fucking stranger.”

“I’m so sorry.” The words feel inadequate, but they’re all I have. “You didn’t deserve that. No one does.”

His knuckles turn white as he grips the steering wheel. “I begged her. I fucking begged her to come back, to explain why she left. And she just walked away, calling the security on her own fucking son.”

I can’t even begin to imagine the depth of that kind of rejection.

“Connor, look at me.”

---