Chapter 24

The quietness engulfed the room.

I stared down to my hands, as they weakly held onto the papers. We were officially over now. We no longer were a married couple. We were over and there was no going back.

“It’s done,” I said, shaking my head. “We’re over.”

“We were over a long time ago, Skylar. We just didn’t realize it.” Ethan said, crouching down across from me. “You should have talked to me about the divorce, Skylar. At least then I would have known I shouldn’t have any expectations from this relationship.”

I looked up at him. “I knew this was bound to happen, but I just didn’t expect it to happen so soon. I thought we had to stay together for at least a little more time for our careers at least.”

“Don’t try to sound like you regret it, Skylar. I know you wanted this. Honestly, I’m just mad at you because you didn’t say it to me but preferred to tell it to Ben.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked him in surprise. I never told Ben anything about divorce.

“Ben told me at the party that you wanted a divorce as soon as possible. I thought we were happy, Skylar. Where did I go wrong?”

“What the hell are you talking about? I never told Ben anything of that sort!” I said. “And how can you accuse me of that when you’re the one who told everyone that you wanted to get out of this marriage as soon as possible. Do you know how humiliated I was to hear it from Kyle?”

“Don’t fuck with me, Skylar. I’ve had enough for the night.” He said.

“I’m not lying!”

“I overheard your conversation with Kyle. You said I want this marriage to end as soon as possible."

I gathered my head in my palms in anger. “I only said that after Kyle told me how you wanted a divorce. I’d look like a fool if I hadn’t said that.”

“You mean you never wanted a divorce?” He asked me incredulously.

I shook my head and tears fell on my cheeks. “I never wanted one, Ethan. Why would I want to get a divorce from you when I’m in love with you?”

Ethan stiffened in his place. He widened his eyes at me and spoke. “What?”

I brushed the strands of hair falling on my face with the back of my hand and shook my head. I couldn’t repeat it for him and make myself look like a fool again.

I didn’t know why I always admit my feelings when I know he doesn’t have the same feelings about me. The first time I told him that I love him, which was seven years ago, he told me how he never had any interest in me and that he only just dated me to get back at my brother.

And now, I told him I love him right after giving him a divorce.

“You can’t say you love me after you send me those goddamn divorce papers, Skylar.” He grumbled.

“Do not accuse me of anything like that,” I said. “I never sent you any papers.”

“I found the papers on my desk this morning.” He said. “It fucked with my brain, Skylar. I couldn’t work, and did you know how hard it was for me to come to the premiere after knowing that you wanted me out of your life? I almost decided not to show up, but this was important to you. I changed my mind in the last second.”

I shook my head as his words confused me further. What was he even saying?

“I don’t know who sent those to you, but I swear I didn’t,” I said. “Heck, why don’t you still believe me? I just told you I’m in love with you!”

Ethan growled in frustration and clutched the papers in his hands. Without giving me any moment to breathe, he grabbed them and tore them into pieces.

I gasped in surprise. He just tore the papers. What was he doing?

“Ethan.” before I could complete the sentence, he pushed himself off the ground and came to crash his lips against mine.

He grabbed my head and fiercely pressed his lips to mine. I broke apart after a good few seconds to suck in some air. But as soon as I was done, Ethan lunged at me again.

I pushed myself off of him when his hand went to the zipper of my dress. “Ethan, what are you doing?”

“Don’t stop me, please,” he said. “I’m done fighting with you for seven years on pointless stuff.”

“But.”

“Do you still love me?” He asked, my face still between his hands.

I hesitated for a second as I watched his eyes. But before it is too late, I nodded. “Yes.”

“Do you trust me?” He asked me again.

“Yes. I do.” I replied.

“Then, Skylar.” He said, his fingers going back to the zipper. “Don’t stop me.”

And I didn't. I surrendered to him.

He claimed my lips with his and bit down on one of them. I remained motionless against him when he brought the dress over my arms and threw it aside.

His eyes grew dark when he realized that I didn't wear anything underneath. Looking back into my eyes, he got back to my lips and pulled my head toward his to deepen the kiss. Trailing his lips across my jaw, he went all the down my neck, paying kisses across my collar and then to my firm mounds.

As his tongue expertly twirled on my body, I clawed on his back in an attempt to get rid of the tension. He was driving me insane and I couldn't put to words how I felt within. I was intensely driven by passion. Passion for him. Passion for my love for him.

"I was a fucking fool, Skylar." He said, "I can't believe I waited for so long to do this. I can barely stop myself. I need to be inside you."

He took his sweet time savoring every inch of my body until he couldn't hold it anymore. Pulling my legs, he wrapped them around his hips and positioned himself.

With every thrust, he drove me to insanity. His movements were slow and intense in the beginning but soon he picked up the pace. I had never felt so satisfied in my entire life until now. Having him within me felt right. It quenched my thirst for craving him for so long. It was only then that I realized how much I wanted this with him.

It was the first time I felt so intimately connected to him.

All the while he made love to me, he held my eyes caged within his. Any previous questions I had with regards to my feelings for him vanished into the thin air. That moment, there was no denying, I knew I was in love with him.

After what felt like forever, I threw my head back on the pillow and let out a shaky breath. Ethan propelled down beside me, his arms and legs still running down my naked body. I closed my eyes to calm my body and pulled the duvets over myself.

“You okay?” He asked, breathless himself.

I nodded, “Yea.”

“I can’t believe you didn’t sleep with anyone else but me, Skylar.” He said.

I shot him a look. “I’m not you. I couldn’t fall in love with someone else.”

“Skylar, I never fell in love in these seven years. Nor have I ever said I love you to the women I slept with.”

“Which doesn’t make me any different,” I said, in a low voice.

He left a soft growl and twisted his body so he could look at me. I looked away from him and tried to twist around. But before I could, he grabbed me by my waist and pulled me closer to his body.

“Skylar, I thought you knew how I feel about you.” He said. “I don’t regret marrying you or making love to you. You’re the best thing that happened.” He kissed my forehead. “I think that I should tell you how much I love you.”

Since I was anticipating for him to reciprocate the feelings towards me, his words completely took me off-guard. Tears started to well in my eyes, “Why can’t you tell that to me in simple words?”

He gave me a small smile and pulled himself off the mattress to hover on top of me. Leaning down slightly, he planted a kiss on my forehead and continued to trail it down my nose. He reached my ear lobe and kissed me beneath it, before pulling away to look me in the eyes.

His lips were inches away from mine when he muttered, "Skylar, I love you." He said, and claimed my mouth with his, "I'm so in love with you, Skylar, and I'm beginning to realize that I could never stop loving you. Even when I hated you, I loved you. I knew there wasn't going to be anybody else for because they're never going to be you."

Tears streamed out of my eyes at his declaration and he was quick to kiss them away, and then he kissed both of my eyes. "I love you." He said.

Every time he said that he pecked me on my lips and stopped only when my face broke into a huge grin and it was impossible for him to continue.

"I love you so much," I replied.

Ethan got off his arms and propelled down beside me. Grabbing my elbow, he turned me around so he could hug me from behind. Securing his arm around my waist, he buried his nose in my hair.

“Do you have to work tomorrow?” I said.

“I do, but I won’t if you want to do something.” He said. “What are you thinking about?”

“Nothing.”

“Hey,” he said and looked at me. “What’s bothering you?”

I shook my head. “I don’t how I’m going to tell Nick about what I feel about you.”

Ethan sighed beside me and withdrew his hands from around me. “Is that what it comes down to for you? So, what now? You’re going to break up when Nick doesn’t approve of this scandalous relationship you have with your husband?”

“Ethan, let’s not fight over this now, please,” I said. “Why do you hate him so much? He’s my brother. His opinion matters to me.”

“More than being with me?”

“No, Ethan, not more than being with you. I’ll stay with you no matter what. Don’t think that I don’t love you enough.”

I regretted saying that to him. Of course, he was right. Why should Nick’s opinion bother me so much? I know he wasn’t fond of him but I still fell for him. I love Ethan, and there shouldn’t be anyone’s opinion that has the power to sprang us apart.

I ran my palm soothingly over his arm and muttered, “I’m sorry.”

He didn’t say anything until I got up to face him. “It’s okay.”

“I wish things were different between you two.” I said. “It would’ve been so good to see you get along with each other. Things got worse after you almost killed him.”

“I never-”

“Let’s no talk about it. We know what happened seven years ago.”

He sighed. “That’s the goddamn problem, Skylar. I’ve been trying to tell you about it for the past seven years but you never listen to me!”

I almost flinched at his voice. “Why are you yelling at me?

“Because I’m sick of getting the blame. I know I fucked up when I got into that fight with your brother but I had a fucking reason to do that. I don’t just get into a fight and let the situation get out of hand if I wasn’t triggered to do that.”

“You didn’t believe me when I told you that Jake roofied me!”

“Would you believe me if I fucking told you that Lexi was pregnant with your Brother’s baby?!”

As soon as his words left into the thin air, the room left us in silence. His outrageous expression stunned me further. Although a million thoughts ran through my brain to process what he just said, I managed to get just one word out, “What?”

“Yes.” He said. “He didn’t just date her to get back at me for being his rival. He slept with her without using any protection. And he forced her to take pills to terminate her pregnancy.”

I knew about how Nick dated Ethan’s sister, Lexi, to get back at Ethan. But this was a completely new story.

“I didn’t know about it until that night.” He said. “Lexi tried to slash her wrists because she killed her own baby. Not because she found out that Nick doesn’t love her.”

“But. Nick told me.”

“He lied to you!” he said. “He didn’t want you to know the truth because then, he’ll have no one. I got into a fight with him because I found out what he did to Lexi, Skylar. He didn’t even regret doing that to her and had absolutely no shame in killing his own baby! What kind of a person would that make him? I couldn’t control my anger, and I beat him into a pulp. I didn’t know that he’d end up in coma!”

I didn’t realize that I was crying until the wetness pooled on my cheeks. “How could Nick not say that to me?”

Ethan shook his head. “You didn’t know anything, Skylar. Anything. I regret not believing you when you told me what Jake did, but Jake was a great friend to me. He took care of Lexi when I couldn’t, and I couldn’t just believe you without knowing if it’s true. It was all a shock to me.”

“Ethan, I.”

“I know you didn’t know any of this. Which was why I coming to tell you everything in the hospital. But you broke up with me and told me that it was a mistake to love me. I couldn’t face you after that.”

“I realized that I was wrong and came back for you,” I said, sobbing. “But I found you with Cassidy that night, you were.”

“I didn't sleep with her, Skylar. I wanted to, but I couldn't. Because I couldn't imagine having sex with anyone but you!” He said. “I just found out the reason why Lexi almost took her life and you broke up with me and refused to believe. I needed to get over that. And I almost didn’t care about what you’d think when you find out about it.”

I put my face in my palms and wiped the tears. “Why did this have to happen?” I said. “We broke up over nothing, Ethan.”

“I’ve been dealing with that for the past seven years Skylar. Do you know how much it fucking hurts to stay away from you because you think I’m a monster? It killed me.”

“I’m so sorry,” I said, choking out in pain. “I’m so sorry for. everything. I regret doing that to you, Ethan. I’m so sorry.”

He shook his head, and I noticed his moist eyes. “I love you, Skylar. I’ve always loved you. Even when we were apart, and you were hating me.”

“I love you too,” I said. “I’m sorry for saying this so late. I shouldn’t have left you.”

“Yes. You shouldn’t have,” he said. “I needed you.”

“I needed you, too,” I admitted. “God, I wish we could go back in time.”

He pushed a strand off my face. “We can’t do that, Skylar. It’s too late for us to regret it. What happened with us wasn’t supposed to happen. But letting it go is the only way. We can’t ruin our present.”

I nodded. I brought his lips closer to mine and kissed him. “I’m sorry for doing that to you.”

“It’s okay,” he said and kissed my forehead. “I love you, Skylar.”

“I love you too.”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx