“Oh, fucking hell,” he says over a sigh. Yes, fucking hell. “I thought I told you to stay put,” he barks at Kate. “Damn you, woman.”

“I think we need to go.” Kate claims Sam and leaves us alone, her face grave.

“Thank you.” I only just manage to push the words past my thick tongue, my body getting tighter by the second, tension mounting. Sam shakes his head at me, his expression also sombre. He doesn’t need to tell me I’ve royally fucked this up.

My lip gets a punishing chew as I stand, frantically searching for a way forward. A way to a happy outcome. I take my eyes away from her, unable to face her shock. “Ava, why didn’t you wait at home for me?” I ask.

“You wanted me to come.” Her voice isn’t raised, but it’s on its way.

“Not like this.”

“I sent you a text. I told you I was on my way.”

“Ava, I haven’t received a text from you.”

“Where’s your phone?” she asks, looking at my pockets. I’m about to feel at them myself, but I remember . . .

“It’s in my office.”

“Is this what you wanted to talk about?” she asks, and I look up at her, facing her. I see her swallow. I see her eyes awash with devastation. I’ve imagined—or dreaded—how this might play out, but her face now? Nothing could have prepared me for this. I’m at a loss. I want to go to her, hold her, make our problem disappear. Make her forget her reality and leave only space to feel how fucking good we are together.

“It was time you knew.”

She balks. “No, it was time for me to know a long time ago, Jesse.” Her body is starting to shake as it turns, and she takes in our surroundings again. “Fuck.”

I flinch. It’s a natural reaction. “Watch your mouth, Ava,” I say gently.

She spins back around, glaring at me with something close to hatred in her eyes. It’s a killer, even if I know she doesn’t really hate me. She can’t hate me. She can’t love me one second and then hate me the next. “Don’t you dare.” She starts rubbing at her forehead, her eyes closed. “Fuck, fuck, fuck!”

Jesus, the language. It’s unnecessary, and not even my fear in this moment can make me disregard it. “Watch—”

“Don’t!” Her jaw tenses to a point it could snap. “Jesse, don’t you dare tell me to watch my mouth. Look!” She indicates the room, a room I’m all too familiar with. And for the first time in my life, I wish I’d never stepped foot in here. In The Manor. My sanctuary is fast becoming my ruin.

“I see it, Ava.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”