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“Tori,” he murmured, his voice barely a whisper.
I closed my eyes, letting the moment stretch and expand around us.
His touch was gentle, steady, everything I hadn’t known I wanted.
Without another word, I leaned into him, closing the distance between us as his lips met mine.
The kiss was soft at first, tentative.
But it quickly deepened, turning into something more intense, more consuming.
His hand moved to the back of my neck, pulling me closer, and I felt my heart race in a way it hadn’t in years.
When we finally broke apart, breathless, he rested his forehead against mine, his thumb tracing gentle circles along my jaw.
“I’m glad you brought me here,” he murmured, his voice rough with emotion.
“Me too,” I whispered, feeling a strange, giddy warmth spreading through me.
For a while, we simply sat there, wrapped up in each other as the breeze rippled across the lake.
The world felt distant, as if it was just the two of us in this little pocket of peace.
It was a feeling I didn’t want to let go of—a feeling that maybe, just maybe, there was something real here.
As the afternoon wore on, the sun dipped lower, casting a golden glow over the lake, and I felt the last of my walls start to crumble.
TORI
After spending afternoon by the lake with Cole, everything felt lighter.
For the first time in so long, I felt like I could actually breathe—like I was free from the weight of the past.
But that sense of calm was quickly shattered as soon as I stepped inside my apartment.
The silence that had greeted me when I walked in now seemed oppressive.
I kicked off my shoes, letting the quiet swallow me, and moved toward the kitchen.
But before I could even get there, my phone buzzed on the counter. The message flashed across the screen.Marcus.
I froze, staring at the number, my heart skipping a beat.
I hadn’t heard from him since he confronted me at the boutique. I thought he was gone for good.
My stomach twisted into knots. I didn’t even need to open the message to know what it would say.
It would be a manipulation, a guilt trip, maybe even an ultimatum.
It’s what he always did.
I closed my eyes and tried to ignore it. But it was like a magnet, pulling me closer, urging me to open the message. I reluctantly picked up the phone.
Marcus:Samantha called me. I hope you’re happy with him, Tori. But it’s not too late to come back. You know where to find me.
I sucked in a breath,the words ringing in my head.
It wasn’t just the message—it was the reminder of how easy it had been for Marcus to control me.