Chapter 129: The Rainbow After the Storm
She was blaming herself again.
Charlotte looked away, her eyes flickering with guilt. It brought back memories of all the wrong choices she had made ... of the time she had chosen Julian over Damon. A choice she had convinced herself was the right one at that time.
But what hurt even more was the thought of Damon, who had been alone through all those years.
"Because I couldn’t do it," Damon whispered. "Even when I tried to convince myself it didn’t matter ... deep down, I knew it would never feel right."
"It felt like the universe kept telling me to wait," He leaned in closer, until their faces were just an inch apart.
"I didn’t understand why I had to wait," he murmured, "because I thought ... I thought you had already found your happiness with Julian."
Damon gently caressed her cheek, his touch so tender it almost brought tears to her eyes. He lowered his gaze and guilt filled his heart.
"But I was wrong," he said softly. "Sometimes, I blame myself for letting you go so easily. If only I had marked you from the beginning ... maybe you wouldn’t have had to suffer like that."
"No, don’t say it like that." Charlotte reached up and brushed the damp strands of hair from his forehead. Her touch was gentle, and her eyes softened as they met him.
"If you had marked me by force back then," she said, half teasing, half serious, "I probably would’ve reported you to the Nocturnal Order instead of falling in love with you."
Damon chuckled softly. "Yeah ... you’re right."
Charlotte smiled, but then her expression shifted into something more thoughtful.