Page 17 of Let it Ignite
My jaw aches from how hard I’m clenching it. The thought of his hands anywhere near her makes my blood go cold. If I’d walked in five minutes later—
I shake my head. I can’t think about that. Not now.
The road curves gently through the trees, the town lights still a ways off. The quiet stretches until I can’t take it anymore.
"I want you to chase your dreams, Cassie," I say, my voice rough, low, like gravel dragged across asphalt. She doesn’t move, doesn’t look at me, but I keep going. "You deserve that. You’re talented, and brave, and... fuck, you’re magic, Cass. But I won’t ever be sorry for wanting you safe. For wanting you to be mine."
Her head turns slowly, eyes meeting mine, and just like that, the air shifts.
Not soft.
Not sweet.
But charged.
Like she’s about to say something that’s going to change everything.
"I don’t think I want that world anymore," she whispers. "The one that wants to change me. That looks at me like I’m not enough until I take off more clothes or smile just right or starve myself into something prettier."
She swallows hard. "I thought I had to make myself smaller to make room for my dream. But maybe the dream was never worth it if I had to lose myself to get there."
I flick my gaze from the road to her, heart thundering. "What are you saying?"
Her lips press together for a beat, then she exhales shakily, like she’s been holding this inside too long.
"I’m saying I want to stay."
I blink. "Stay where?"
"With you."
The weight of her words slam into my chest, cracking me wide open.
She’s choosing me.
She’s choosingus.
"I’m not giving up," she adds quickly, like she needs to explain. "I’m choosing myself. And you. Because when I was in that room, scared and humiliated and so goddamn small—I didn’t think about the role or the dream or any of it. I thought about you."
My throat tightens.
"I thought about your hands on my waist when you’re helping me down from the counter. The way you laugh under your breath when I burn the toast. The sound of you hammering nails into the wall like you’re fixing a damn kingdom for us. The way you encourage me to go after what I want. That’s what felt real."
"Cass..."
She reaches over and grabs my hand, threading her fingers through mine like she’s anchoring both of us.
"I still love acting. I always will. But I don’t want to be in a world that punishes me for who I am. Not when there’s a man who looks at me like I’m already enough. More than enough."
My heart pounds so hard it feels like it might crack open. I grip her hand tighter and pull off the road, gravel crunching beneath the tires. I throw the truck in park and turn to her fully, my chest rising and falling with each uneven breath.
"Say it again," I murmur.
She blinks. "What?"
"That you want to stay. That you choose me."
Her gaze doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t waiver. "I choose you."
