I started to speak but he raised his hands higher.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve let you say everything you have to say, every angry word and accusation, but now it\u2019s time to listen to me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
too?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I closed my mouth and stared at him, feeling something uncomfortable shifting in my chest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you think Athena doesn\u2019t love her kids the way you love them?\u201d Orion asked, his voice steady but hard. \u201cYou think she\u2019s not scared of losing them\u00a0<\/p>\n
He moved closer and I could see something fierce in his eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cRemember you\u2019re not the only one that lost a child.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The words hit me like a physical blow and all the anger that had been burning inside me died down in an instant, replaced by something cold and\u00a0<\/p>\n
horrible.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Oh my God.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What have I done?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Athena had lost a child too, had carried a baby that never got to take a breath, had blamed herself for not being able to protect them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She\u2019d told me once that she was terrified of failing as a mother again, terrified that she wouldn\u2019t be able to keep these babies safe.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And I\u2019d just thrown that fear in her face, had told her she was reckless and careless with their lives.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFuck,\u201d I said, and my hands went to my hair, fisting in it roughly and pulling hard enough to hurt.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Orion turned his back to me and started walking toward the door.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is she?\u201d I asked slowly, my voice coming out rough and broken.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He stopped but didn\u2019t turn around.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018In a place you can\u2019t see her tonight,\u201d he said. \u201cYou need to rest, the both of you, you\u2019ll see her tomorrow.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He still didn\u2019t turn, just walked out and closed the door behind him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He was angry.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I knew he was angry even though he\u2019d kept his voice level and calm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He was pissed but he was holding himself back, controlling it in a way I clearly couldn\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n
All the years of his and Sarah\u2019s marriage and I\u2019d never once heard him speak to her the way I\u2019d just spoken to Athena.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He\u2019d always respected her in his actions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
11:00 pm G P P P\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 344\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maybe he did when I wasn\u2019t around but I doubted it, that wasn\u2019t who Orion was.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He\u2019d trusted me with his sister, didn\u2019t even disagree when I decided to man up and fight for my feelings, had stood by us through everything.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And the only thing I\u2019d ever done was hurt her over and over again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I moved to the bathroom and splashed cold water on my face, staring at my reflection in the mirror.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked like hell.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My eyes were bloodshot and there were dark circles under them, my jaw was tight with tension and I could see a vem throbbing in my temple.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I freshened up mechanically, going through the motions without really thinking about what I was doing, then laid down on the bed fully clothed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
her?\u00a0<\/p>\n
But I couldn\u2019t sleep.\u00a0<\/p>\n
How could I when Athena wasn\u2019t by my side, when I knew she was somewhere else hurting because of words I\u2019d said, because of the way I\u2019d looked at\u00a0<\/p>\n
Fuck.\u00a0<\/p>\n
How do I make this right?\u00a0<\/p>\n
What do I do?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stared at the ceiling and watched shadows move across it as cars passed outside, counting the hours until morning, until I could see her and apologize and try to explain that I\u2019d been scared out of my mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
mally\u00a0<\/p>\n
The next morning came slowly, each minute dragging by like an hour.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was sure I looked like a ghost because I hadn\u2019t slept at all, hadn\u2019t even closed my eyes for more than a few seconds, had just laid there waiting for daylight to break through the windows.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I almost ran down the steps when I heard voices in the living room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When I got there Orion and Sarah were sitting together discussing something in low voices but as soon as they saw me they stopped talking.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sarah didn\u2019t even turn toward me, the smile she\u2019d had on her face disappeared completely.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As I got closer to the dining area she stood up abruptly and excused herself from Orion, walking past me without making eye contact.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was pissed at me, they all were. They might all be thinking that I don\u2019t deserve Athena, and I deserve whatever they were feeling.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I deserve all of it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When she was gone I turned to Orion and asked him the question that had been burning in my mind all night.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He looked at me and I could see my unspoken question reflected in his eyes but he didn\u2019t say anything, just went back to looking at his phone like whatever was on the screen was more important than anything I had to say.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018Where\u2019s\u2026 Athena?\u201d I finally asked, the words coming out hesitant because I knew he might not tell me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
11:01 pm GP PP.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 344\u00a0<\/p>\n
He looked up at me and I thought for a moment he wouldn\u2019t answer, would just ignore the question entirely.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018She went back to her apartment,\u2018 he said finally, his eyes dropping back to his phone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The color drained from my face and I felt my stomach drop.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d I asked, hearing the panic in my own voice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause you\u2019re being a jerk, Sarah said, coming back out from the kitchen with a cup of coffee in her hands. \u201cSomeone risked her life and the life of her unborn kids for you but you decided to let your pride out, decided that being right was more important than being kind. I\u2019m beginning to regret my\u00a0<\/p>\n
decision now\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I had nothing to reply because she was right, my mind was just circling around the fact that Athena had left, that she\u2019d gone back to her apartment instead of staying here where I could see her and talk to her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Was she done with me?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Was she about to call off the wedding?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou want to call off our wedding?\u201d I heard Athena\u2019s broken voice behind me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Had I said that out loud?\u00a0<\/p>\n
But that wasn\u2019t what I meant, that wasn\u2019t what I was thinking at all.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stood and turned around and saw her standing there in the doorway looking small and fragile and devastated.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou want to call off the wedding?\u201d she repeated, and I could see tears already forming in her eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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