I conclude they do, and every other part along with them. It strikes me hard in that moment—even with as many times as Natalie’s pointed it out—my mother was going to marry this man. She was going to build a life with him, and maybe he loved her just as fiercely then as I do his daughter now. From my father’s confession, my mother still harbors love for him and always will. I try to reason with that man even though he’s almost impossible to see. “Please don’t make her choose—”
“You have no right to ask me for anything,” Nate clips out. With a slight tilt of his head, I see the resolution in his eyes along with his declaration of war. A war he has no fucking intention of losing. We hold eyes a beat longer before he brushes past me.
Biting my tongue, I fist my hands at my sides as Nate slams the door closed with his exit. Nothing I can say to him will make a difference. He wants me gone, and he’s hell-bent on making it happen.
I feel the first pang of genuine fear as Natalie stares back at me, looking utterly lost.
“I’m so sorry, baby,” I murmur.
“I’m okay,” she sniffles. “I mean, I’ll be okay. I knew this was going to be bad.”
“Not this fucking bad,” I murmur, gathering her to me tightly before she pulls away with her question.
“Is Stella—”
“She’s home with Lexi. I’m going straight to her.”
She nods.
“Dad got in last night. I’m willing to bet he and Joel had it out in a way they never have before to keep him at bay. They’re overreacting.”
“Are they?” She croaks. “Jesus, Easton,” she glances toward the closed front door, “I’ve never seen him like this. Ever.”
“He’s never going to accept us,” I relay, knowing it’s the truth of it.
“He’s my first love and sadly the only man you’ll ever have to compete with for my affection…and it may not seem like it right now, but he’s a good and typically more reasonable man. He’s just unimaginably hurt.” She shakes her head. “It’s not just who you are. It’s the culmination of everything. The extent of my deception. I did this in an unforgivable way.”
“We did this. Which he will also hold against me.”
Are you going to choose him?
Irony of the worst kind strikes me as I realize Dad’s right. History is repeating itself to an extent. Her love and loyalty for Nate is our biggest threat. It’s been our only real issue from the start. What’s worse is that I can’t ask or force her to choose.
“I’ll get through to him,” she declares, despite a shaky conviction.
But will she feel the same conviction she did two days ago when the dust settles? In a week, a month from now?
Even as my heart demands an answer, I have to believe the ring on my finger is all the assurance I need. I keep the question brimming beneath the surface because if I do ask it right now, it may sharpen the point of a wedge capable of separating us.
“Let me go home. Let me try and figure out a way to get through to him.”
I shake my head, unable to let it go yet. “He’s not going to let you find one—”
“I love you,” she burrows further into me. “I love you. I belong to you. I meant every word I said.”
“Then remain my wife,” I plea, unable to help myself. “Keep your promises, your vows to me.”
“Don’t do that,” she whispers.
“Okay.” I relent easily and pull her to me, and we cling to each other, her tears coming freely as she cries into my shoulder. Even with her close, there’s not an ounce of solace to be found. There’s no solution, and it irks me that I can’t find one. I can’t see one, either—at least, not in the near future. The overwhelming feeling hits that in her mind, she might no longer see a future for us on the other side of that door. The thought starts to eat at my resolve to give her the decision to fight alone as we break in each other’s arms. Preparing myself for war, I pull back and firmly cradle her face. “It’s up to us. It’s our fucking choice.”
“I know.”
“Please don’t let go.”
“Stop! Easton, please,” she cries, “I’m paralyzed!”
My throat burns as my head begins to pound. Every tear gliding down her beautiful face eating me alive. In our shared silence, we fruitlessly search for a potential solution and find none. She’s right. For the moment, we’re completely gridlocked. If we continue like this—the way things are—we’ll destroy our relationships with our parents, eventually destroying us. We can’t allow it. Dad’s warning and our vows reverberate through me.