Page 12 of His to Destroy

But he left me there.

He made me vulnerable.

He humiliated me. Shattered what little trust I had. Left me exposed, broken, and ripe for harm.

That’s what I can’t forgive.

That’s what I carry in my bones.

The betrayal.

And the suspicion that maybe, just maybe, he planned it.

There were times—early on, when the bruises were still fresh, when Luca was still kicking inside me and I cried myself to sleep—when I truly believed he’d set it up.

That he wanted to punish me.

That he’d handed me to the wolves.

Even now, the doubt creeps in. Twists in my gut.

But then I remember his face the other day. The shock. The regret.

Maybe he didn’t know.

Maybe he was just a boy then. Angry. Foolish. Reckless.

And maybe I was just collateral damage.

That doesn’t excuse him.

But it changes things.

I crawl into bed beside Luca, careful not to wake him. He shifts in his sleep, his arm draping across my waist.

I press my lips to his forehead.

I don’t know what comes next.

Gaspare says he can protect us.

I don’t want his protection.

But I might not have a choice.

Because the past is here. And this time, it’s not just a memory.

It’s a man in a suit, with guilt in his eyes.

And if he thinks I’ll forgive him just because he’s sorry now—

He has no idea what I’ve survived.

Chapter 4 – Almeria

There are moments that mark you.

Moments when the world you so carefully built is torn apart in the space of a heartbeat.

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