Chapter 20

Could she trust a relationship with Steve?

What if he let her down? What if she ended up hurt again?

What if he turned out to be no better than a cheater?

Steve studied her quietly as he bit into his burger. “What are you thinking about?”

“Just ... everything.” Diana looked up and met his eyes. Those hazel eyes would undo her every time.

He broke the silence again. “Remember the first day I met you? You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to, but ... after meeting Scott, I started to wonder.”

She stared at the table, weighing whether to tell him everything.

If she was going to start trusting men again, maybe it had to begin with honesty.

She swallowed hard and continued. “I thought Scott was the one. I’d dated a few guys before him, but they never really seemed to care. They moved on—found someone else—and I started to wonder if I just wasn’t enough. Like there was something in me that always came up short.”

Steve sat up straighter and turned to face her. He laced his fingers with hers. She wasn’t sure if it was meant to comfort her or to prove she wasn’t repulsive—but either way, his touch felt grounding.

“About four years after graduation, I ran into Scott. I’d known him my whole life—we grew up in the same neighborhood but hung out with different crowds. When he asked me out, I said yes.”

Steve gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

“Unlike my previous boyfriends, Scott seemed to care. He wanted to be involved in every aspect of my life. It wasn’t until we broke up that I realized how controlling he’d been. He slowly isolated me from my friends, convinced me to give up my hobbies, and even pressured me to resign from teaching—he didn’t want his wife to have a job.”

Her voice faltered. “We got engaged six months in, and I really believed I’d found my happily ever after.”

“He was already living in the condo, but I chose to stay with my parents until the wedding. The only thing I stood firm on was not moving in with him before we were married—and I think that’s what ended it.”

“That’s not your fault,” Steve said. “Scott should’ve respected your choice.”

Diana nodded. “One night, I decided to surprise him with dinner. His car was in the lot, so I figured he was home early and probably napping. I let myself in ... and found him tangled up in our bed with another woman.”

She shook her head, trying to banish the image.