Page 50 of King of My Heart

A lump formed in my throat, but I swallowed it down. I’d never said this out loud before. Not to anyone.

Darwynn looked down at our joined hands, rubbing her thumb absently over my skin. “I don’t understand,” she murmured. “If you tried, why was he so convinced that you didn’t?”

I sighed. “Because when his mother and I divorced, he was young. And I was working hard, for my career but also for them. To give them everything they needed, and most importantly, shield them from the public eye. My schedule was demanding, but I never let that stop me from being there for him. I flew back to them whenever I could, made time in between projects, did everything in my power to be present. His mother, though…she made sure he saw it differently. And soon she started to not let me visit Julian anymore.”

I hated to bring my ex into this, but she plaid a big part in the story. To Darwynn, she was irrelevant though.

She looked up sharply. “His mother did that?”

I nodded slowly, feeling the old bitterness rise in my chest. “Our marriage ended because we fell out of love. It was mutual, and when Julian was still little, she always let me go seehim. Then, with time, she made excuses why I couldn’t come by. When Julian was around eleven, his mother stopped answering my calls. When I finally pushed through, when I showed up at their door one day unannounced because I couldn’t bear the silence any longer, Julian had already been fed a different version of the story.”

Darwynn’s brows furrowed. “She told him you abandoned him.”

“Not in those exact words. She was smarter than that. But she let the silence do the talking. The missed visits. The unanswered calls. Years went by again, and when I finally did get him on the phone, Julian was angry. He thought I had just…disappeared.”

Darwynn’s grip on my hand tightened, her thumb still absently stroking over my skin. “That must’ve been awful.”

I exhaled slowly, rubbing my free hand over my face. “It was. And the worst part? I couldn’t prove him wrong. He wouldn’t let me. Every attempt I made to fix things only pushed him further away. It was like trying to hold onto smoke.”

Silence stretched between us, filled only by the distant sound of waves crashing outside. Darwynn leaned into me, resting her head against my shoulder again. “Do you hate her for what she did?” she asked, her voice low.

I let out a soft chuckle. “I did, for a long time. But hate doesn’t fix anything. And it sure as hell won’t bring my son back.”

She turned her face up to me, searching my expression. “I suddenly don’t feel so hopeful that I can get you two to talk again. Not because of you…but because of Julian.”

I wished I could tell her that there was still a chance for reconciliation but knowing Julian and how deeply brainwashed he had been by his mother, I had no hope myself. “I’ve alwayshoped that he’ll eventually realize the truth. I don’t think it will ever happen, though.”

Darwynn reached up, cupping my jaw gently. Her touch was warm, grounding, and her eyes lingered on mine. “I still want to try. Will you let me?”

I took a deep breath, soaking in the quiet comfort of her presence and touch. For the first time in a long time, I allowed myself to believe—just a little—that maybe, one day, Julian would listen.

“Okay,” I told her, smiling tightly before I pulled her into my arms.

Chapter 15

DARWYNN

We spent most of the afternoon in bed, kissing and touching each other. And I thought about everything he told me. About Mom. About how unfairly she treated him. And he didn’t push me any further.

I didn’t urge him to talk about Julian again. Not that I would’ve wanted to, anyway. He was hurt—and I was disappointed in Julian—and I figured we both needed to let it settle for a moment now.

When our stomachs started growling, we finally got out of bed to shower and head out.

I held his hand as we stepped out of his house, but he dropped it immediately, reminding me that we couldn’t let anyone know about us.

Not just yet.

“Sorry,” I said quietly, gazing up at him as we walked along the small gravel path.

“Don’t be. It’ll take all the strength in me not to touch you in public.”

I smiled softly, loving that he struggled just the same.

What we had was bittersweet.

We walked in silence as we headed to the bar. Once we arrived, Caspian opened the door and held it for me. I squeezed past him, touching his arm gently to thank him.

The jukebox was playing softer than usual, and more people were there than the other nights. To be fair, it was a Friday night.

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