Stricken by the bitterness in his gaze, Lexi clasped his hand. Her throat stung with unshed tears, but she forced herself to say it, forced herself to see the truth she had been dancing around for so many days. “Listen, Ty. Yes, you hurt me. But I’ve no doubt that there was a reason behind it. This is you and me, Ty. We do this a lot. We fight, we yell and we make up. It’s just that this time things are different.”
He ran a hand through his hair, his gaze pained. “I...can’t believe I said those hurtful things to you, Lex, on top of everything else...”
Lexi felt as though someone was sitting on her chest. “It’s all forgiven, Ty. Truly.”
His blue gaze shone with affection, his palms clasped her cheeks. The familiar smell of him settled in her gut, infinitely comforting.
“I messed up everything with us so badly. And now, I have to break Venetia’s heart, too. I—”
Clasping his face in her palms, Lexi shook her head. “I have no idea what went wrong.” Her breath faltered in her throat. It would never go back to what it had been. But her love for Tyler, it would never waver. Knowing that Nikos would roast her alive for it, she said the words. “You don’t have to decide anything now, Tyler. About Venetia. Do you understand?”
His eyes glittering with the same pain, he shook his head. “I can’t face myself right now much less Venetia. You’re all I’ve ever had in the world, and I hurt you.”
Lexi closed her eyes as he pulled her closer and pressed his mouth to hers. But the only thing she felt was a sense of comfort, and a growing desolation as an inescapable truth began to inch around her heart. It was the loss of a dream more than anything else. Had he felt this same desolation that day? Had he known that something was irrevocably wrong between them but hadn’t known how to tell her?
He met her gaze, the same realization dawning in his. “We’re going to be all right, Lex.”
They were. Lexi curled into him and hugged him tight. He had always been there for her, had always made her feel as if she mattered to at least one person in the world, that she wasn’t an unwanted orphan. They had no future together except as friends. The realization instead of hurting her only strengthened her.
She had her only friend in the world back, and she wanted nothing more.
Her skin prickled, the hair on her neck standing to attention. Without turning, Lexi knew it was not Venetia.
Nikos was close.
Bracing herself, she didn’t know for what, especially because she was doing what he wanted her to do, she turned around.
And stared up at the open terrace of the beach house where Nikos and Venetia stood. They looked like a vengeful Greek goddess and god, come to cast a curse on them.
Focus on reality, Lexi.
She felt Tyler stiffen next to her and squeezed his hand. “Don’t do this, Ty,” she whispered in his ear, knowing that whatever her faults, Venetia did love him. “I’ll always love you but there’s nothing more between us. Don’t ruin what you have with her.”
Tyler turned toward her, a sad smile on his face. “If I really loved her enough to hurt you, it will come back, Lex. But no more of Venetia looking at you as if you were the cause of her problems, no more of her brother looking at you as if he wants to devour you.”
Stunned, Lexi looked up.