chocolate and a cup from a bag on the counter. She had gone out and bought groceries, a mug, because her belongings were at his house.
And she was apologizing.
He moved, trapping her between his body and the counter. She didn’t react, just broke off pieces of chocolate and placed them one by one into the mug. “I’m the one who should be saying sorry,” he told her. “I—I didn’t tell you all of my story before. I was engaged right when the company was taking off. She stole from me, from us, and . . .”
“I see.”
She poured milk into the mug, pushed against his arm, and placed the cup into the microwave.
Still with her back to him, still hardly acknowledging his presence.
“I assumed wrong, and I treated you . . .” He blew out a breath, stared down at his feet, wondering how he could make this right. “I was wrong.”
“I forgive you.”
Surprise had his eyes flying up. “You forgive me?”
“I do.”
But there was something off with her voice, with her expression.
“I forgive, but I want you to leave. To not come back. To—”
“Stef, no.”
Her throat worked. “I can’t hate you because you showed me what I deserve from a relationship, and I forgive you because we all make mistakes. But I can’t have you in my life. You need to go.”
“Stef,” he said, getting onto his knees, grasping onto her thighs. “I’m literally begging you to give me another chance. To let me be the man you deserve.”
Silence as she studied his face closely.
“No.”
His heart sank.
“Leave, Ben. And don’t come back.”
He didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know how to make this right, couldn’t treat this like a business deal that had gone this wrong, couldn’t salvage something this fucked, and he certainly didn’t have the words to ensure she gave him another chance.
So, he did the only thing he could.
He walked out the front door and left Stef to her life.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Stef
The letter arrived the next morning, left on her front porch.
But she didn’t open it.
Just set it on the counter, met her Lyft out front, and went to work, her first day back in weeks.
Heidi took one look at her and opened her mouth, but Stef merely lifted a hand and begged to give her an explanation another time. Preferably never, but she knew she wouldn’t be so lucky, so she just had to hope that it would hurt a little less by the time she was interrogated by her friend.
Then she’d worked.
Straight through breaks and lunch and all the way until it was time to leave. Heidi had only spoken to her about non-work stuff once, asking softly, “Are you okay?”
To which she’d answered, “No, but I will be.”
And when she got back home that evening, saw the letter on the counter, she read it . . . and it didn’t change anything. He’d explained more in depth about his former fiancée, who betrayed him and hurt his business right when it was just getting underway, but . . . it didn’t make one fucking bit of difference.
Not when he’d thought she was capable of that.
Not when she’d thought he was different, and he’d broken that trust.
Not when . . . she had loved him and—
So she forgave him because she understood how the past might hurt someone, might make it so damned difficult to live in the present . . . but she’d given him every part of her, and he’d thrown it back into her face.
She wasn’t a punching bag. She deserved respect.
One apology and a letter didn’t erase that.
Flowers arrived the next day. Sunflowers, in fact, which were her favorite, of course. She’d expect nothing else of Ben, the sweet Ben, trying to win her over.
She wanted to throw them in the trash.
Because when would he become angry Ben again?
Despite that, the cheerful yellow blooms stayed on her counter, and every time she looked at them, her heart melted a little bit.
She hadn’t told him her favorite, but he’d found out.
Stupid? Yes.
But just because she kept the flowers didn’t mean she was going to let Ben back into her life.
There was a car in her driveway.
She wanted to ignore it, but the driver exited it the moment she stood on the porch, pausing to lock her door.
“Ms. McKay?”
Stef glanced up.
“I’m to drive you to work.”
She sighed, thought about arguing, but instead just canceled the Lyft she’d ordered, allowed the driver to assist her into the car, and accepted the ride.
She didn’t