Page 80 of Ashes of Us
Now I had to sit here, alone, with my overpriced latte and my racing thoughts, watching the door like some kind of anxious teenager waiting for prom. I should have timed it better. Should have arrived exactly on time, or maybe even a few minutes late, so I wouldn't have to do this… this waiting, this wondering if he'd show up, this internal debate about whether I should leave before he got here.
I didn't leave.
At 4:03 PM, he walked in.
He saw me immediately and raised his hand in a small wave. The sling was gone. His arm hung at his side, but I could tell from the way he held himself that it still hurt.
He got coffee—black, no sugar, same as always—and walked over to my table.
"Hey," he said.
"Hey."
He sat down, and we both wrapped our hands around our cups like we needed something to hold onto.
This was a terrible idea. What was I even doing here?
"Thanks for meeting me," Liam said. "I wasn't sure you would."
"I wasn't sure either."
He almost smiled.Almostbeing the key word. "Fair."
Silence settled between us. The coffee shop was half-empty—a couple in the corner on laptops, an older man reading the newspaper, the barista wiping down the counter.
"So," I said.
"So," he echoed.
Neither of us knew how to start.
He took a breath. "I need to apologize to you. Properly. Not… not like at the bakery, when I just showed up and made it about me. A real apology."
I wrapped my hands tighter around my cup. "Okay."
"I cheated on you." The words came out flat, direct. "For four months. While you were planning our wedding. While you were making cupcakes at five in the morning and addressing invitations and doing everything to build a life with me. I lied to your face every single day."
My throat felt tight.
"I was a coward," he continued. "I got comfortable. Stopped seeing you…reallyseeing you. We fell into routines and I stopped appreciating what we had. What you were." He looked down at his coffee. "When Jenna paid attention to me, made me feel like I was more than just... routine, I took it. I chose the easy thing over the right thing. Every single day for four months."
I watched his face. He wasn't making excuses, nor was he trying to explain it away or make me understand. Just stating facts.
"You were planning our wedding," he said. "Making lists, tasting cakes, excited about our future. And I was lying to you. Every morning when I kissed you goodbye. Every night when I came home. Every time you asked about my day." His voicecracked slightly. "You trusted me completely and I used that trust to hurt you."
Something tightened inside my chest. I took a sip of coffee just to have something to do with my hands.
"I destroyed us," he said. "I destroyed you. And I've spent the last year and a half trying to figure out how to live with that."
The silence stretched. The espresso machine hissed behind the counter. The couple in the corner laughed about something on their laptop.
"Why are you telling me this?" I asked quietly.
He looked up and met my eyes. "Because you deserved a real apology. One that wasn't about me feeling better or getting closure. One that was just... the truth."
I nodded slowly. Traced the rim of my coffee cup with my thumb.
He shifted in his seat. "I started seeing someone. A therapist. Dr. Taylor, through the department." He said it like he was admitting something embarrassing. "After I transferred to Station 34, my captain told me I needed to get my shit together or I was going to get someone killed."
