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My hands tremble slightly as I push open the back door and step outside. The cool air is a welcome relief from the diner's warmth and buzz. River follows, shutting the door behind us with a soft click that feels oddly final.
The last time we stood here, things were entirely different. There was a lot I didn’t know.
It was a sweeter time.
"Talk," I demand, crossing my arms. As if such a gesture can build up a barrier against whatever River's about to say.
He takes in a deep breath and runs a hand through his perfectly styled hair, making it stand on end in a way that would be comical if my stomach wasn't tying itself into knots. "All right, Pearl." He shakes his head. “God, I think I’m nervous. That’s what you do to me.”
River pulls out a picnic table bench with a scrape against the gravel and gestures for me to sit. My fingers trace the rough edges of the wood, focusing on the table in front of me to keep myself grounded.
"First off," he starts, still standing. His voice strained, as if the words are being dragged out of him, "I owe you an apology, Pearl. A big one. I am so sorry. I didn’t mean for you to find out this way."
My expression contorts and he is quick to add, “I shouldn’t have done it at all. I have more regrets about it than you know.”
“Uh huh. What way would you have preferred I find out that you were selling me out for thirty pieces of silver?”
River frowns. “When you told me about the IRS and your family’s land, I should’ve offered my help right away. Again, Pearl. I am so sorry."
I stare at him. I study the tension in his jaw. The way his hands clench and unclench. The apology hangs between us, heavy and unexpected, but somehow it doesn't soothe the tightness in my chest.
It doesn't change the past. And honestly, I'm not sure it changes the future either.
He stops pacing and meets my eyes, his own filled with a turmoil that echoes the churn of emotions inside me. "There's more. You deserve the whole truth." He takes a hesitant step closer. "Part of me, a selfish part, was afraid you wouldn't agree to let me help.”
A bitter laugh escapes me before I can stop it.
"And…" River continues, hesitating as he searches my face, "I liked the idea of you being my fake fiancée too much. It was thrilling. Having everyone believe we were deeply in love made my life more interesting."
"Even though we weren't?" I can't help the edge in my voice, or the way my hands ball into fists on my lap. Games of pretend might be fun for people like River. He has everything he could ever want already. But for people like me, these games can be dangerous. They can threaten everything.
"Especially because we weren't in love," he admits. There's a raw honesty to his words that stops me cold. "It felt like... control, I guess. I was tricking everyone into believing that I’d found love. The one thing they never stopped bugging me about. And when you said you'd do it, under one condition..." He trails off, looking at me with an intensity that makes my heart skip a beat.
"Getting pregnant," I say softly, filling in the silence. "That's what I needed from you."
"Right." River nods, his throat working with a swallow. "You are incredible. You make me feel so damn wanted, too. How could I refuse?” He thrusts a hand through his hair roughly. “It felt too damn good to be so fake. I didn't even realize that I had messed up until it was all slipping through my fingers. And then I fell for you… and ruined the whole plan."
His confession hits me like a storm deep in the heat of summer. It’s sudden and overwhelming and makes me gape. I stare at him, trying to decipher the emotions swirling behind his sapphire blue gaze. Is this just another tactic, another play in his bad boy handbook to get what he wants?
"Please, Pearl," he pleads, pinning me in place with his eyes. "Hear me out. I have a plan to fix this mess. For your family and for us."
Us. The word hangs in the air, fragile and potent. For a moment, I let myself imagine that it could mean something real. I can’t let him know that I’m feeling this way, so I fold my arms across my chest.
“You have until Gem comes out to fetch me,” I say with a sigh.
River leans against the picnic table, his hands braced as if he's holding himself steady. The late afternoon sun filters through the leaves above us, casting a mottled pattern of light and shadow across his face. I can tell this isn't easy for him. But there's a determination set in his jaw that tells me he's not backing down.
Not yet. Not this time.
"Addicted," he breathes out, the word hanging heavy between us. His gaze pierces me through and makes my breath come in shallow pants. "I've been addicted to you since the first time we slept together, Pearl. I can't stop thinking about you. And the worst part is, I don't even want to try."
My stomach knots at his admission. The spicy memory of our first encounter sends a wave of heat through me despite my resolve to stay angry. Anger has its place.
And right now? That place is firmly between us. It’s a dense barrier of hurt and betrayal.
"Your feelings are intense, River," I say, keeping my voice steady. "But intensity doesn't erase what's happened. My Aunt Delta will lose the property, River. That's on you."
He flinches at that, his expression twisting with regret.
