“I didn’t know. Sean,” I plead with him, “you know me.”
“I thought I did,” he replies hoarsely.
“You couldn’t even trust me enough to tell me where you were going.”
“That wasn’t the deal we made,” he swallows, eyeing Tobias, who’s deathly still as he darts his gaze between the three of us, swallowing repeatedly.
This is what selfish does, Cecelia. This is the mess selfish creates.
“Sean, I didn’t know,” I step toward him, and Tobias intercepts me, unwilling to let me past his barrier as he addresses Sean.
“She was your toy.”
Sean cocks his head. “You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. And what is she to you? A means to an end? The ultimate revenge against Roman? And there we were feeling guilty, carrying out your fucking orders and you go and gut us like this? What was this meant to be? A taste of our own medicine? Nah,” he says, nothing but contempt in his eyes, “for you, it was misery loves company, right?”
Tobias steps toward him, his face riddled in a mix of jealousy and guilt. “I didn’t overstep. The punishment goes for anyone who fucks up. You know that,” he exhales. “It wasn’t my intention—”
“That’s a lie. You wanted her the minute you saw her. Don’t forget, brother, I know you. You saw what we saw. Except you knew how we felt about her because we fucking told you.” Sean snaps out his arm, pointing at him to stay back. “You asked me if she was worth it, and I told you she was. If you take one more step toward me, I’ll forget our past, and I’ll fucking end you.”
“Remember your place,” Tobias snaps, his tone molten.
“You made this personal, and you lost my loyalty in the process.” Sean shakes his head. “This is on you.” I can physically feel the break between the three of them as Sean addresses me.
“Cecelia,” he whispers, the lilt in his tone breaking me apart as he brings his hazel eyes to mine, drawing me back to a time when things were so much simpler. A time where I could love him freely, reach out and touch him. “You were the first goddamn person I thought of every morning and the only woman I have ever dreamed about. And if you would have waited for me, I would have given you the opposite of nothing.”
Tears fill my eyes and spill over as my heart reminds me exactly which parts were mapped by him. “I wish I could have believed you.”
“I wish you would have believed in me, too.”
“Sean, I—”
“You love him.” It’s not a question, it’s a statement, and I feel all three stares on me as I lower mine. A long, tense silence follows before Dominic turns and heads toward the gate. Finally able, I lift my eyes to see Sean glance at Tobias behind me before running his hand through his hair and pulling on his cap. He turns his red-rimmed eyes to me before he gives me a solemn nod. “I guess we both fucked up. Take care, Pup.”
I cup my mouth, sobbing into my hand as Sean joins Dominic where he waits, sparing one last look at me before they walk out of the gate, the loud clang of it slamming behind them making me flinch. I push the tears away from my eyes, unable to move and nowhere near ready to take a single step in any direction.
I stand there for endless seconds, unbelieving of what just happened before anger wins, seeping into my every pore as I turn and face Tobias.
“They told you.” My voice rattles in my throat on the verge of explosion. “They told you how they felt about me. You knew it. They told you, and you sent them away.”
“Cecelia—”
“You led me to believe they were done with me. Why? Because you were jealous? As if that’s an excuse. Jesus, Tobias!”
“You know I didn’t mean for us to happen. I stayed away for eight months before our run-in. I had no intention of laying a hand on you.”
“Until you did. The whole time they were coming back for me. They wanted me! They loved me!”
“And what kind of relationship would that be?”
“It was up to us to decide,” I shake my head incredulous. “What have you done?”
His eyes dim as he looks on at me, utterly lost.
“I was going to tell you. I was trying to figure out a way.”