His to Consume

Trouble in Paradise

Lena's POV

I averted my gaze, embarrassed. "Because I thought I would be able to manage it myself. I didn't want you to think of me as a pathetic person who needed to be rescued. I believed I was strong enough to handle it all, but I was mistaken. I hurt you, and I hurt myself."

Damien let out a long sigh and stared at his palms. "Lena, I appreciate that there was pressure on you, but I need you to know that it is not true. There is no need for you to bear the burden all by yourself. I wanted to help you... if only you allowed me to."

It was a moment of stillness, and I felt my eyes begin to get watery. "I understand, and I apologize so much. If it were possible, I would turn back the clock and act in a different manner. While I do not ask you to simply let it slide, I wish you to understand that I am motivated to compensate you in any way I can, as best as possible."

He breathed out, if only to soften that rigid look a little in what seemed to be a pitying way. "Lena... I am not sure that I will ever be able to trust you again. What you did almost destroyed me."

"I know," I murmured, my voice shaky. "But I will go all out to show you my worth, if you will just grant me a chance. I will make you understand that I mean business in this relationship."

Damien's face was turned, clearly at war with his feelings. "This is hard for me, Lena. I do not want to let you go, but...I do not think I can just brush aside what has happened either."

I nodded, appreciating his risk aversion. "I do not want you to forget, Damien. I simply ask you to allow me the opportunity to rectify the situation. I will not stop until it is achieved, even if it means starting from zero."

He centers me, his eyes boring into my face as if assessing the truth of it all. After what felt like ages he gave in and spoke quickly.

"Fine, Lena," he said, dragging the words. "I will accept you this time... and for the last time, I am not saying that your task will be simple. I will not heal in a day and I expect you to give me reason to believe that there really is something between us."

Relief washed over me and I felt the warm trickle of a tear down my cheek. "Thank you, Damien. I swear I will do my best."

He nodded and looked away as if he could not stand to see me in tears. "We will take baby steps, yes? No jumping into it. This time I want to know that I can trust you again."

A flicker of hope brings me a slackened chest that was heated up by the previous static. It was no complete reconciliation, but at least it was a step forward. And I would do everything possible to untangle the mess I created.

In the next few weeks, I endeavored to show Damien that I was serious about him and us. On the other hand, I tried to keep away from Grant, making sure all our meetings were work-related only. He made attempts to contact me a few times, sending messages and even coming to my office without an appointment, but I managed to stay away.

One night, close to the end of my shift, I received a text from Grant saying he was out front and wanted to talk to me. Part of me wanted to tell him to screw off, but I understood that it was not feasible to get rid of him forever. I figured I could go see him, but I would make it clear that whatever this was, it was about business.

I saw him standing next to his car looking impatient. When he caught sight of me, he shot me that same cocky grin which had once fascinated me, but in this instance, it just managed to irritate me.

"What is it you want, Grant?" I inquired while folding my hands over my chest, and hardening my tone.

"I wanted to see you," he said nonchalantly and moved in. "You've been avoiding me, Lena. I thought what we had was special."

"That is not true. Whatever remote thing we had, is dead and buried," I snapped back. "This is all my fault, Grant. A big one. But I refuse to be submissive to you or anyone else ever again."

He raised a brow and his gaze turned icy. "So, everything we built, are you just going to waste? I thought you were not that shallow."

I inhaled sharply, deciding that I wouldn't let him come. "What we had cannot even come close to what is to be considered a relationship. I have no business with you aside from the transaction we have in place. I want you to understand that."

Grant intended to scream but stopped in the middle and smiled instead. "Fine. Lena. You want to break up, I will do as you say. But don't forget, you are the one who approached me. You are the one who was desperate for me."

I did not step back and tried to keep his gaze. "You're not needed. I am taking over my life which consists of a lot of things including people I do not want in my life anymore."

He studied me for some time, his eyes practically slit in disbelief. "Well, good luck with that, Lena. You will be back, sooner or later. They all come back."

Without a single word, I faced my back and walked away. It actually felt good. For the first time after such a long time, I felt light. I knew that it would take time and a lot of effort to regain whatever respect I lost with Damien, but I was ready for any kind of war.