“Willa…”
“I know. You don’t have to say anything.”
“No, let me finish.”
He rubbed a hand across his face.
“I care about you. A lot. But I’m with Delaney, and I won’t betray her.”
I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat.
“I wouldn’t ask you to.”
He looked genuinely troubled.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were struggling?”
“Because you’re her boyfriend.”
He stared at the closed curtains.
Then he said something that made my heart ache.
“Maybe we need to stop being alone together for a while.”
“I agree.”
We stood there in silence.
Then Caleb picked up his drill.
“I’m sorry, Willa.”
“So am I.”
He left.
I watched him cross the lawn through the narrow gap between the curtains.
For the first time in months, I felt as though I had done something honest.
It hurt, but it was honest.
I thought the hardest part was over.
