Chapter 463

Since we broke up, I hadn't been this close to him. I hadn't even really looked at him.

And now, here he was, right in front of me, badly hurt.

The crash came flooding back, and it hit me—he'd shielded me, using his body to protect mine. That's why he was in such rough shape.

"Jace, talk to me," I begged, my voice shaky. If I stopped, he'd just drift away.

"What... do you want me to say?" he mumbled.

"Anything. Tell me what you've been thinking since we broke up. Talk about Tanya, even. Or where you've been these last few weeks," I blurted, desperate to keep him awake.

He went quiet, and I panicked, thinking he'd passed out. But then, his voice, barely a whisper: "Rea, I really do love you."

I froze, staring at his pale, blood-smeared face. I couldn't say anything.

"You were the only girl I ever really liked. Since I met you, no one else... even felt like a woman to me."

His words came slowly, each one hitting harder than the last. "There were women—business trips, some even t