Page 74 of I’m Already Gone

I place the last can of sauce on the counter. “Marcus took over as CEO, which gives me the chance to be here more. For you. For the kids.”

“Why?”

“Keeping my promise,” I say firmly.

“Ethan, you can’t do that,” she protests.

“Yes, I can, and I did. I won’t regret a second of it.”

Lily

I believe him.

Damn him.

Ethan still possesses an uncanny ability to dissolve the walls I’ve erected around my heart with just his words, that rich, deep voice, and that smile that lights up his face. And those sparkling blue eyes that shine with warmth and love often leave me breathless.

Yet I can’t help but seethe at the realization that it took being divorced and sick for him to truly see me. I want to unleash my anger at him, but a part of me is elated that he’s here for me.

He takes a tentative step forward, his face shadowed by apprehension. “I know I don’t deserve your forgiveness, Lily, and I’m not asking because I don’t have that right.” He swallows hard. “But I genuinely want to make things right. Not to erase the past, but to surpass the tension and fill this space with trust, friendship, and love in the present. In the now.”

He hesitates, looking at me intently. “To rebuild,” he adds softly.

“Rebuild?” I shake my head in disbelief. “Every memory of that night, every haunting moment from our marriage, still torments me, Ethan.”

The sorrow and regret etched on his face deepen.

“You disappeared from my life for so long. Now that the truth is out, do you truly believe I can wipe away the sting of your betrayal? You shattered our marriage with one mistake like it was easy for you to do,” I remind him.

“I know,” he whispers.

“You walked away, Ethan. You broke your vows. In sickness and in health, till death do us part. Remember?” He remains silent, his blue eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

“How can I trust you again? You turned your back on our marriage as if I were already gone.”

“I’m sorry,” he murmurs.

“Sorry doesn’t cut it.”

“I know it doesn’t.”

“And what did that leave me with?” I demand. “It didn’t matter because the seed of doubt was already planted, and my tears nurtured it over time, turning it into bitterness because the toxicity of your broken promise had already seeped in, not even your sorrys kept it alive.”

He shuts his eyes, drawing in a tremulous breath.

“I’m so, so sorry, Lily,” he pleads, opening his eyes, now clouded with anguish. “I will never forgive myself for how I treated you, for turning my back on everything we had. I can’t take back that day or the months that came before and after. But I can mend your broken heart if you are open to it. To take this new road with you. A road of healing. A road to where we were once friends before becoming lovers. Before starting a family. A new beginning.”

I’ve always taught our children the value of forgiveness, of transforming pain into something meaningful. Maybe it’s time to embrace that lesson and allow Ethan to mend what he broke and to start a new chapter.

“Okay.”

His face lights up. “Really?”

I can’t help but respond with a warm smile at his hopeful tone. This is the Ethan I fell in love with all those years ago.

“Yes,” I affirm. “But we need to establish boundaries first.”

His brow knits together. “What kind of boundaries?”