Chapter 116 : I Came Home After Kissing My Ex

Chapter 116: Chapter 116 : I Came Home After Kissing My Ex

Audrey sat in her parked car for nearly an entire hour.

The construction site had completely emptied out. The sun was starting to set, casting long, dark shadows over the dirt lot. She gripped the leather steering wheel so tightly her hands ached, but she simply could not put the car into drive.

She just kept replaying the kiss over and over again in her head.

She remembered the heavy heat of his palm against her cheek. She remembered the desperate, aching way their lips had finally met after seven long years of silence.

But what hurt the absolute most was what happened after.

She remembered Mason stepping back. She remembered the immediate shock on his face when she told him about Alexander. He did not get angry. He did not demand that she choose him. He just apologized and gave her space.

She hated herself even more because of it. If he had been possessive or angry, it would have been so much easier to walk away. But he had completely respected her.

Her phone buzzed in the cup holder.

Alexander: Hey, everything okay? Dinner is almost ready. Are you on your way?

Audrey stared at the bright screen. Her chest felt like it was caving in. She slowly typed a reply with shaking fingers.

I’ll be home soon.

---

Audrey did not go straight home. She couldn’t.

Instead, she pulled into the parking lot of a quiet, dimly lit wine bar downtown and immediately called Chloe.

Chloe knew exactly what her voice sounded like when she was falling apart. She didn’t ask questions. She just promised to be there in ten minutes and told her she was bringing Zoya.

The three women sat in a small, private booth in the back of the bar.

For the first twenty minutes, Audrey said absolutely nothing. She just stared down at the dark red wine in her glass. Chloe sat next to her, gently rubbing her shoulder. Zoya sat across the table, watching Audrey with calm, analytical eyes.

Finally, Audrey took a shaky breath.

"I kissed him," Audrey whispered into the quiet booth.

Total silence fell over the table.

Neither Chloe nor Zoya gasped. Neither of them instantly judged her. They just let the heavy words hang in the air.

"Did he force it?" Zoya asked flatly.

"No," Audrey shook her head, fresh tears welling in her eyes. "He didn’t. I... I closed the distance. I kissed him back."

Chloe let out a soft, understanding sigh. She leaned her head against the back of the booth.

"Audrey, you have been carrying completely unresolved feelings for that boy for seven years," Chloe said gently. "It makes sense that seeing him again brought it all back to the surface. It was a mistake, but you are only human."

"I have a boyfriend, Chloe," Audrey choked out. "Alexander is a good man. He doesn’t deserve this."

"No, he doesn’t," Chloe agreed softly. "And he deserves your honesty now."

Zoya took a slow sip of her drink. She set the glass down and looked Audrey directly in the eyes.

"The kiss wasn’t the real mistake, Audrey," Zoya stated logically.

Audrey looked up, completely confused. "What do you mean?"

"People make emotional mistakes," Zoya said, keeping her voice incredibly steady. "The real mistake would be going home tonight and pretending absolutely nothing happened. Alexander loves you. If you lie to him, you completely remove his ability to make his own choice."

Audrey stared at Zoya. The words cut straight through the fog in her brain. It was sharp, it was entirely logical, and it was undeniably true.

"I don’t want to hurt him," Audrey whispered.

"You already did," Zoya replied without an ounce of cruelty. "Now you have to decide if you are going to respect him enough to tell him the truth."

---

Audrey rarely drank. She hated the way alcohol made her feel out of control.

But tonight, she drank her wine.

She didn’t drink enough to black out or forget her own name. She just drank exactly enough to make the heavy, professional walls she had built all day finally fall apart.

She sat in the quiet booth and just let herself cry. She cried for the boy she left at the airport. She cried for the kind man waiting for her in their apartment. She cried because no matter what she chose to do next, someone was going to get their heart completely broken.

---

Across the city, the apartment was warm and quiet.

Alexander stood in the kitchen. He had already cooked dinner. There were no romantic candles lit. There was no fancy music playing. It was just their normal, comfortable Tuesday night routine.

Two plates of roasted chicken and vegetables were sitting perfectly on the kitchen island.

He checked his phone for the fourth time.

He was starting to get worried. Audrey was always incredibly punctual. If a newsroom deadline was keeping her late, she always called to let him know.

He wiped his hands on a kitchen towel and looked at the front door. A strange, uneasy feeling settled in his stomach.

---

It was nearly ten o’clock when the front door finally unlocked.

Audrey walked inside. She dropped her heavy leather bag on the floor and slowly took off her coat.

Alexander walked out of the kitchen immediately.

"Hey," Alexander said gently. "I was getting worried."

He walked closer to her. He immediately smelled the faint, sharp scent of red wine. He looked at her face. Her eyes were slightly red, and she looked completely exhausted.

Alexander frowned. "Bad day?"

Audrey avoided his eyes. She looked down at the hardwood floor.

"Just work," Audrey lied. Her voice sounded incredibly hollow. "The site visit ran long. I met the girls for a quick drink after."

Alexander didn’t believe her. He knew her too well. He could see the heavy tension weighing down her entire body.

---

Alexander didn’t push her. He just wanted her to feel safe.

He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a warm, comfortable hug.

"It’s okay," Alexander murmured into her hair. "You’re home now."

Audrey squeezed her eyes shut. The guilt completely swallowed her alive.

Suddenly, she pulled her head back. She grabbed the collar of his shirt and kissed him.

She didn’t do it because she was confusing him with Mason. She did it because she was completely desperate. She was desperately trying to convince her own racing heart that Alexander was her home. She wanted to prove to herself that this was the life she chose, and that it was enough.

The kiss became entirely desperate. She pulled him closer, kissing him harder, trying to completely erase the memory of the metal trailer.

Alexander didn’t kiss her back.

He gently gripped her shoulders and pulled back.

"Audrey..." Alexander said softly.

He reached up and placed a warm hand gently against her cheek.

"Look at me," he whispered.

Audrey slowly opened her eyes.

She looked up. She saw Alexander’s kind, worried eyes. She saw the soft lighting of their shared apartment. She didn’t see Mason’s dark eyes. She didn’t see the construction site.

Reality violently crashed back down on her.

---

Audrey immediately stepped away from him.

She broke his touch and took two steps backward. A fresh sob ripped out of her throat before she could stop it. The tears instantly spilled over her eyelashes.

Alexander looked completely lost. He didn’t understand what was happening. He thought something terrible had happened to her at the newsroom, or that she had gotten fired.

He took a step toward her, reaching his hand out.

"Audrey, talk to me," Alexander pleaded gently. "What’s wrong?"

Audrey shook her head. She wrapped her arms tightly around her own stomach.

"I’m sorry," Audrey cried quietly. "I’m so sorry."

Alexander lowered his hand. His brow furrowed in deep confusion.

"For what?" Alexander asked.

Audrey opened her mouth, but the words wouldn’t come out. Zoya’s logical advice echoed in her head, telling her to be honest, but looking at Alexander’s worried face completely broke her courage.

She couldn’t answer him.

---

Audrey turned away. She practically ran down the short hallway and disappeared into the bathroom.

The heavy wooden door clicked shut. The lock turned. A few seconds later, the sound of the shower turning on echoed through the quiet apartment.

Alexander stood completely alone in the center of the kitchen.

He slowly lowered his arms. The apartment was completely silent except for the sound of the running water.

He turned his head and looked at the kitchen island.

The two plates of roasted chicken were sitting exactly where he left them. The food had gone completely cold.

Alexander looked at the untouched dinner on the table. For the first time since they started dating, home no longer felt like the safest place in the world.