Because I Love You✔️

Chapter 82: Unintentional Confession

Chapter Eighty-Two: Unintentional Confession

Ella sank into the hot springs with a sigh, but the moment she was there, her thoughts consumed her. She had been fairly collected on the ride back to the island, and not much had been said between anyone once they'd gotten there.

After everything that had happened, all of them had been too burnt out to discuss anything serious, so after a quick and unanimous agreement, the boys had all gone to wash off and turned in, one after the other. Amelia had already finished bathing, so she was alone.

She dipped under the water, opening her eyes so she could look at her pale body floating like a ghost. Hair fanned in front of her vision like a silver anemone, but when she surfaced it clung to her face like algae. She wiped the water from her eyes, but it didn't keep her from thinking.

From regretting.

From gnawing over what she could have done better.

Deep within her mind's eye, she kept seeing the knife entering Xaphile's back.

Her heart ached.

It ached because she had failed not just him, but herself.

I should have been able to do something, she silently muttered, splashing in agitation. Xaphile was beginning to trust me. After what I did to him, even under someone else's control or not, he probably won't. He'll distance himself again and... we'll be back to square one.

That made her pause, scowl, and feel chilly despite the warm spring water sloshing against her skin like liquid silk.

She didn't like thinking about Xaphile not trusting her, not after she'd slowly managed to break his walls down a little, so she decided not to think about that, either.

"There seems to be a lot of things I don't want to deal with," Ella grumbled, finally getting out of the hot springs. She sat on the edge of the huge of the stone outcrop, wiping off the water clinging to her skin, and wrapped a towel around her hair. "I hate it."

Once dry, she got up and put on her underwear, then took the towel off her head so she could slip one of the soft dresses that Amelia had given her over her body. It felt good to wear clean clothes; they made her feel more ready to deal with the rest of the world.

Maybe I'll even be able to deal with Xaphile, she sourly thought, slinging the towel over her wrist and snatching her daggers before heading towards the hut. I can't just sit around and leave him to think I'm no longer feeling guilty for what I did, can I? I have to make sure he knows the truth.

It was actually because she was thinking so hard that she didn't see him until it was too late.

When she was focused on something, she had a tendency to look straight at the ground, so she didn't actually recognize that she was walking into him until the top of her head smacked against his chest.

With a gasp, she jumped back, towel slipping from her arm and daggers clattering to the ground.

Her eyes darted up in shock, catching one brief glimpse of his bright aquamarine irises before her hair slopped forward and stuck wetly to her face, obscuring her vision.

Startled by the fact that she couldn't see anything, she stumbled back on slippery feet and started to fall, but his large hand shot out and latched onto her wrist, pulling her body forward with a rough jerk.

She ended up spinning in an inadvertent circle, and the weird pirouette slammed her back against his belly.

When she came to a halt against him, he released her wrist and cupped her shoulder in an attempt to steady her.