Page 45 of The Broken Keys

“I just…” My throat constricts. “I need time to process everything.”

“Of course.” He lifts my hand to his lips, pressing a soft kiss to it. “I’m not trying to rush you. I just want you to know that I’m all in. Whatever you need, however long it takes, I’m here.”

The promise should be a gift. Instead, it’s a weight I can’t carry. He’s offering me patience, love, presence, commitment, and all I can think about is the man who just told me goodbye with the efficiency of ending a business meeting.

“What if I’m not good for you?” My gaze connects with Callum’s.

His brow furrows. “Why wouldn’t you be?”

“What if I’m too messed up emotionally? What if I can’t get all the way there again, and I end up hurting you?”

“Hey.” He leans forward, his grip on my hand tightening. “Where’s this coming from? Just a little while ago, you seemed ready to try.”

Yeah, when I thought Jax had abandoned me without explanation. I didn’t know about the two pages of love letters I never received.

I was running toward you to escape the pain of losing him, convincing myself I was trying to give us another shot because the things I thought were true never were.

“Callum, I just don’t want either of us to get hurt. You especially.”

“That’s my risk to take.” His voice is firm but gentle. “Lily, I’ve been waiting years for this chance. I’m not afraid of messy. I’m not afraid of your past, or your scars, or whatever demons you think make you unworthy of my love.”

The tears I’ve been holding back finally spill over. “You should be.”

“Why? Because you’ve lived a life without me and made mistakes? Because you’re human?”

He reaches for a napkin, dabbing at my cheeks with the same tenderness he has shown me since we met up at Coachella.

“Lily, I’ve made mistakes just like you. Fucking big ones. But that doesn’t mean we don’t deserve happiness.”

“What if I can’t give you what you need?”

“What if you can?” He cups my face in his hands, forcing me to look at him. “What if we stop focusing on all the ways this could go wrong and trust that maybe, finally, the timing is right for us?”

I want to believe him. I want to fall into his certainty and let him love away all the jagged pieces Jax just left behind.

But sitting here, letting Callum comfort me while my heart is still bleeding for another man, is the cruelest kind of lie.

“I don’t deserve you,” I whisper.

“Let me decide what I deserve.” His thumb traces mycheekbone. “I love you, Lily. The broken parts, the scared parts, and the parts you think are unlovable. I love all of it.”

And that’s what breaks me completely. Because he means it.

He’s here, present, offering me everything I thought I wanted from Jax. The truth is, I can see my future with Callum spread out before us, built on shared history, comfort, and genuine affection.

But love isn’t always about what’s comfortable. Sometimes it’s about the person who sees your chaos and loves you anyway.

Sometimes it’s about the man who builds panic rooms because he understands that some pain is too big for normal coping mechanisms. And sometimes it’s about the love that scares you because losing it would ruin you completely.

“What are you thinking, Lily?”

“You’re patient with me, and I love you for it.” It’s true. But it’s not the whole truth.

Sitting here in the sun, letting him plan our future while I mourn the loss of the man I can’t have, I realize that sometimes the worst thing you can do to someone is love them halfway.

Which means I have to make a choice that’s going to wreck one of us.

Chapter Ten