“You can be funny sometimes,” she says, amused.
“I hope that’s not my only quality.”
“No,” she says, distracted again.
And sad.
My chest tightens with apprehension.
I hope it’s the alcohol.
I hope it’s anything other than what I think it is.
As we near her home, she’s even more distracted. And I get tenser.
I pull the car to a stop and wait.
She doesn’t say a thing. I crack the driver’s door open to climb out and help her. Her hand grips mine, stopping me.
“Don’t. I’m fine.”
My heart shatters into pieces.
“You’re not giving up on me, are you?” I ask.
She turns her eyes to me, filled with tears.
“I’ve never given up on you, Jaden. Even when I wanted to, I couldn’t.”
“What is it then?”
She slowly shakes her head, a tear streaming down in silence, starkly contrasting her beautiful face.
I slide my hand on top of hers and slowly run my thumb across her knuckles.
“What is it, Senna?”
She runs a trembling hand beneath her eyes.
“Tonight was one of the best nights I’ve ever had...” she says. “I was so happy. I haven’t felt so good and normal in a very long time. And as I was sitting there, I couldn’t forget how we all got there.”
She bites her lip to stop the quivering of her chin, more tears trickling down.
“And I felt so bad for everyone around the table. For Harper and Abel. For me being part of his past. And then for you and me. For us trying to build a normal life on what’s practically a ruin.
I shake my head.
“It’s not a ruin, baby. The past serves a purpose. I no longer think about it. And you shouldn’t either.”
“I don’t want to be that woman, Jaden. The one who destroys other people’s lives.”
“You’re not.”
I wrap my arms around her. To my surprise, she also curls her arms around me, and hope flares in my heart.
I frame her face and wipe her tears away.
She raises her eyes.