Page 77 of Second Sin

Seconds pass. Maybe longer. The kind of silence that echoes.

Cold rain needles down, soaking through my coat, slipping past the collar to chill the skin at the nape of my neck. My hands tremble, teeth pressing hard into the inside of my cheek, but I don’t step back.

Ican’tstep back.

His gaze doesn’t falter. Doesn’t soften. Just holds mine like he’s daring me to look away first.

A shiver racks through me.

He mutters a quiet curse under his breath—barely audible over the rain—and then he moves.

One step. Then another.

Close enough now that I can see the droplets caught in his lashes. The tension in his jaw. The war still playing out behind his eyes.

He stops just short of touching me, voice rough.“I don’t know what the fuck this is, but I know it’s the first real thing I’ve felt in...”He drags a palm roughly over his face, exhales hard.Then his gaze snaps back to mine—pointed, unwavering.“I know you feel it, too.”

"It's not that simple."

He grunts. "Nothing's fucking simple, Olivia."

I swallow hard. My throat is raw, like I’ve been screaming inside my own chest for hours.

“I didn’t plan this,” I whisper. “I didn’twantthis.”

“Bullshit.”

His voice cuts through the rain—sharp, guttural. But it’s not anger. It’s hurt. Stripped down and bare.

“Youdidwant this. You still do.” His eyes flash. “You just hate that you can’t box it up and make it neat.”

“I’m trying to do the right thing.”

“For your career? Not an excuse now.” He drags a hand through his hair, rain flinging off his fingertips, jaw clenched so tight I can see the muscle twitch. “So for who? For Ethan’s memory? Or for some version of yourself that doesn’t exist anymore?”

My stomach twists. Hard.

“That’s not fair.”

“I’m not him,” he bites out. “And I’m not trying to be.”

His voice drops—gravel scraping bone.

“I don’t come with peace and promises. I come with a shit-tonne of wreckage.”

He doesn’t blink. Doesn’t soften.

“I’ve fucked up more than I’ve fixed. Hurt people. Lied. Crossed lines I should’ve never gone near.” His gaze digs into me. “Including you.”

My breath catches.

“I’m not safe, Olivia.”

Silence. Just rain hammering down, and the sound of me breaking from the inside out.

“But I’mhere. I’m not going anywhere.”

That splinters the last bit of steel I’ve been clinging to.

---