Page 78 of Rebel Protector
Which only made it worse seeing Becca’s reaction to him.
How could shenotregret leaving a guy like that? Not only was he good-looking and a great guy, but he was also a fucking billionaire.
And now he was engaged to someone else.
Becca had missed her chance.
“I’m sorry it didn’t work out between you two,” he murmured, ignoring the gnawing feeling in his gut. How could he compete with that?
Her eyelids flickered open. “Why would you say that?”
He shrugged, covering his inner turmoil. “I saw how he affected you. I know it can’t be easy seeing him again. You obviously cared about him.”
Becca gave him a small smile. “I did, and I still do. He’s a good man.”
Ghost felt his heart shatter, like an IED going off inside him.
Then, something unexpected happened. Becca took his hand.
He froze, his gaze locking with hers.
“I’m glad he came to see me,” she said softly. “Because now I can let go of the guilt I’ve been carrying around for the last decade. I felt terrible leaving him the way I did. I don’t think aday has gone by where I haven’t regretted it. But now that he’s found someone else and he’s happy, I can finally move on.”
Ghost stared at her, hardly daring to hope. “You really mean that?”
“Of course. I don’t have any romantic feelings for Damian anymore. I haven’t for a long time. I don’t think I was ever really in love with him. Not the kind of love that’s real... not like...” She trailed off, her eyes flickering away from his face.
“What?” he whispered, gripping her hand tighter.
“Nothing, it’s silly,” she muttered, biting her lip.
“Tell me, Becca,” he urged, sitting back down on the bed. “What were you going to say?”
She hesitated, her eyes darting back to their entwined fingers. “I was going to say, nothing like what I feel for you.”
Ghost’s heart stopped. Had she really said that? He waited, his mind racing, barely able to process the words.
He broke into a broad grin. “It’s not silly, Becca. Shall I tell you why?”
She looked up at him, her eyes wide.
“Because I feel the same way about you.”
“You do?” she whispered.
“Yes, I do. The first time I saw you, I knew you weren’t like any other woman I’d ever met. Then, when we... well, after that first night in your apartment, I knew there was something special between us, but I couldn’t admit it to myself. I figured I’d be going my way and you’d be going yours, so there wasn’t any point in thinking about it.”
He paused, searching her face for any sign that he’d said the wrong thing. She squeezed his hand, silently urging him to continue.
“When I saw those pictures of what Carlos had done to you... I’ve never felt rage like that in my life. I knew I had to get back to the hacienda and get you out of there.”
“How did you get back?” she asked, her voice hitching. “I told Carlos about you. They knew who you were. I thought for sure they’d kill you in Colombia.”
“They used the photos to blackmail me into cooperating. They took my phone, so I had no way to contact anyone. I had to go ahead with the mission, despite the risk to you.”
She shivered. “Carlos told me my fate was in your hands. I didn’t understand what he meant, but now I do. He was going to kill me if you didn’t cooperate.”
Ghost clenched his jaw, the memory of those photos making his blood boil all over again. “He was going to kill you no matter what,” he said quietly. “But I wasn’t going to let that happen. I hijacked a plane and flew back through the night to get to you before the authorities did.”