“I regret what happened between us,” I say, my fingers cooled by the can tucked in my hands. “I just . . . I got so overwhelmed with everything that was going on, I needed to press pause.”

There’s a childlike sympathy on his face. “I understand why you did it.”

“You do?”

“It totally makes sense. And I figured if I gave you space . . .” He trails off, and I feel my eye twitch. “You might come back.”

My grip tightens on the beer. “Well, you were right. I miss you, Damien.”

Hope sparkles on his features, and he reaches out, taking one of my hands between his. This recording is going to be brutal to listen to later. “I miss you too. So much. I don’t want us to be apart anymore.”

“Me neither.” I squeeze his hand, resisting the urge to drop it like it’s on fire. “But I need you to tell me something first.”

Damien tilts his head, confused.

I concentrate on keeping my face a combination of soft and stern. I can’t sound angry or accusatory because it could scare him away.

“Damien,” I say, and his eyebrows pull together. “I need to know what you did.”

“What do you mean?”

“When we broke up, you said you wanted to take something back. I need to know what it was.”

Slowly, the meaning of my words dawns on him, and his frown clears. He slides his hand out of mine, and I feel my heart clench, worried I’ve screwed everything up. But then he leans forward, burying his face in his hands.

“Shit,” he mutters.

The woods are eerily hushed as I wait for him to continue. He takes in a ragged breath, and I run my clammy palms over my jeans as my legs begin to shake.

“I didn’t mean for it to happen,” he finally says, voice hollow and muffled.

I lean closer, wanting the audio on the recording to be clear, and place a comforting hand on his back. “For what to happen? You can tell me.”

After a lengthy pause, he sits up, on the verge of tears. “I shouldn’t have kissed Zoe.”

It takes me a second to realize what he said. I blink, giving my head a shake, certain I must have heard wrong. “Huh?”

“It happened on the night of your accident,” he continues, sniffling. “You guys were fighting. Zoe got me alone. She was really drunk and she told me everything. About you and Parker.”

My stomach flips. “What are you—”

“And then she came onto me,” he blurts. “I kissed her back because I was really upset. I felt like I took advantage of her.” He sighs, dragging a hand through his hair, looking guilty. “I guess I always kind of knew she had a crush on me. I didn’t think it was that serious, though.”