“You’re scared of me,” I say.
Her blond, half-long bob frames her face well. “No.”
Her body stiffens, which tells me enough.
“I won’t hurt you,” I say, and I sigh out loud. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry. For everything I’ve done to you.”
She swallows.
“When Luca first came to find me, I was lost. My memories were erased. And when he brought back shreds of my past life, the mention of your name fueled my hatred for what had happened to me.”
She steps closer, despite her reservations, never breaking eye contact.
“I felt such rage toward you and what you put me through. I blamed it all on you and thought if I killed you, my pain would also die,” I explain, sighing again. “But now I know that’s not how pain works. And by trying to hurt you, I inadvertently also hurt the only girl I ever cared about.”
She makes a face. “I didn’t mean to crash the car. Or leave you behind in the water.” Her eyes grow watery. “I tried so goddamn hard to pull you out of that wreckage. It almost killed me too.”
She’s so close I can almost touch her hand, but I refrain out of respect for my brother’s wishes.
“Your death haunted me for years. And when I found out you were still alive, a burden fell off my shoulders, you can’t even imagine,” she continues. “But you tried to kill me. Twice. How could I forgive that?”
I lick my lips, trying to find the words, but it’s hard. Even though the agony still eats away at my heart, I refuse to give into it. For her. Because Jasmine deserves a better me.
“I understand if you don’t. I wouldn’t either. I just want you to know how sorry I am. I was a monster.” My fist tightens. “But I don’t want to be that monster anymore.”
Tears run down her cheeks, and suddenly, she grabs my hand.
I’m too stunned to even say anything.
“I don’t want to hate you,” she says. “I never did. You know I once loved you.”
I nod. “I remember.”
“Even when the love wasn’t reciprocated. I cared,” she says. “And I still do. I even helped Jasmine get you to safety.”
“Thank you,” I say. “Thank you for giving me another chance at life. For believing Jasmine.”
Jill brushes the tears away. “She says she loves you. And I want to believe her.” Jill sits down on the bed. “Show me I can believe her. Earn back that trust.”
I nod. “If you’ll let me …”
“That’s up to Jasmine,” she says, rolling her eyes. “Though, I think she’s already made up her mind.”
“I will prove my worth a thousand times over to Jasmine, as well as you and Luca.”
She nods a few times. “Luca seems cold on the outside, but he still cares, even if he won’t show it.”
“He’s grown a lot since I last saw him,” I reply.
She laughs and lets go of my hand to tuck a strand of her blond hair behind her ear. “You’ve missed a lot.”
“I wish I hadn’t,” I say.
The room grows awfully quiet again.
“So what now?” Jill asks.
“Now, I have to wait until this fucker heals.” I point at my thigh. “And then I go back to where I belong.”