Chapter 112: Bonjour, ma belle Paris!
Craig wasn’t in a hurry to answer her question, because he could see the look in her eyes, the tremble just beneath her voice.
And God, he hated that she even had to ask.
Hated that somewhere along the way, the past few days had taught her to doubt things. That her instinct was to pull away before the blow ever came, like she’d rather bruise herself than wait for someone else to do it.
So he didn’t rush.
Not because he didn’t know the answer. But because she deserved better than an automatic one. She deserved the truth, exactly as it lived inside him.
He drew in a breath. Not sharp. Not shaking. Just steady, as if he needed the air to hold himself up.
"It’s the realest thing I’ve ever felt." He said quietly, his voice didn’t crack, but it sank, like it came from somewhere he didn’t show people.
Her gaze dropped to the floor, in fear that if she looked at him, she wouldn’t be able to hold it together.
"I’ve chased things I thought mattered. Fought for what I thought was real. But nothing’s ever fought back the way this does. You challenge every part of me." Craig continued, "Every instinct said turn away. But you were the only thing that ever made my heart remember what it meant to truly live."
He looked at her then, like someone reaching out without touching. Because even if he wasn’t saying anything, his eyes held everything else, everything he hadn’t known how to say until now.
"When I’m with you, I feel like... like I’m not lying to myself anymore. Like the noise stops. Even when we’re fighting or falling apart, you’re the only thing that makes sense."