Page 111 of Redemption

I take a deep breath and I inhale his smell. The cedarwood and spice mixed with that lingering scent of smoke. “I-I was drunk.” The words fall out of my mouth so quickly I don’t even know why I said them.

“I see,” he says.

“I mean… I just—”

“Is that why you’ve been checking that phone every day, multiple times a day?”

My jaw drops open. “How did you know?”

He gets that sexy smirk on his face that causes me to clench my thighs. “I didn’t. But you just confirmed it.”

He takes a step toward me, and I take a step back. I notice the slight limp in his step and I wonder if he never fully recovered from his dad shattering his kneecap.

“Kilian…”

“Bella,” he says.

I swear my heart shatters hearing him say my name. Not Mirabella but Bella. And I know, I know that’s him waving his white flag.

Tears fall from my eyes as I speak. “I’m so sorry, Kilian. I never should have said those things to you that day. I was just so scared. Scared of what could happen. Scared of what we could become.”

He takes another step toward me and I take a step back with each one of his until my back hits the wall.

“I never believed a word you said that day. I saw your heart break as you lied to my face. And I knew it was only a matter of time until I could have you back.”

His fingers trace up my bare arm and goose bumps ignite across my skin. “N-no,” I stammer. “I meant what I said. We can’t do this because of Aria.”

“No, we do this for Aria.” His voice is a command.

“But what about the darkness?”

“She is only light and she will never succumb to the darkness that I live in.” He presses his body into mine and cups my cheek. “And neither will you.”

I bite my lip, wanting to believe the words he is saying. I can see the truth in his gorgeous blue eyes. See his need for me. His want. His desire. I see that we can really have it all.

“I love you, Bella. I’ve loved you since that day we met as two lost kids twelve years ago. I never thought my life would get better. Because after I lost you, every goddamn day, it was like a piece of my soul dissipated into nothing. But then I got you back. And I thought my best days were ahead of us. Because I finally had the woman I’ve loved for so long. But that was a false hope. Because just like ten years ago, our families tore us apart. And these last months without you nearly ripped me in two. All I could think about were those months we spent together where I thought that our best years were ahead.

“Then you threw it all away with just a few words. But I won’t accept those words from you anymore. I know what we have is real. I know what it’s like to live without you. And I know what it’s like to live with you. And all my best days are when we are together. I know what I want, Bella. What I need in this life. It’s you. Only you.” His other hand lands on the other side of my jaw and his forehead touches mine. “Fuck, Bella, I love you and Aria more than I could ever say. And I know that our lives won’t be easy. That we will have to fight for what we have every single day. But just know that I would kill a dozen more men, a hundred, a thousand if it meant I could have you for the rest of my life. And that is all I want. You and Aria for the rest of my life.”

I can’t hold back the tears anymore. And I can’t fight my brain. Because my heart is begging me to tell this man yes. Tell him that I need him in my life. That I have barely breathed since the day I walked away from him. But I struggle to get the words out. Struggle to do anything but cry.

“Bella,mo stór, mo anam cara. Can we be an us again?”

I nod as I wrap my arms around his neck. “Yes,” I mumble through my tears. “A thousand times yes, Kilian. I can’t go on without you anymore.”

His lips touch mine in a soft kiss. And I know this right here is right. This man is what I need in my life. His body, his heart, his soul.

“I’m sorry,” I mutter against his lips.

I can feel him smile against mine. “You were always stubborn when it came to me.”

“Never again, Kilian. Never again.”

“It will always be us, Bella. You, me, and Aria. Our family.”

“Our family,” I repeat his words as I crash my lips back to his.

EPILOGUE

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