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“I can’t believe I’m processing the excuse, ‘It was never you, it was me,’” she said.

He winced. “It’s the truth. I was searching for an answer. When my grandfather’s friend Jim reached out and asked if I’d be interested in coming to LA to intern with Animal Welfare, it seemed like the answer I’d been searching for. He was on the Board, so he could get me the position.”

“I remember when you told me,” she murmured. The memory of that awful night, when he explained he wanted to leave permanently for California, was etched in her vision. “I wanted to try and make it work long distance. You never gave us a chance.”

“Because I needed to be on my own to figure out who I really was.” His jaw clenched, and within his eyes, she glimpsed a flash of shame. “I needed to leave you in order to find myself.”

The brutal words attacked her like stinging knives. “Yet you never thought to share this with me? You figured the best way to accomplish your task was to break up with me, give me no real explanations, and make me think it was something I lacked the entire time?”

“I was stupid. Scared. I was ashamed I couldn’t be the man you thought I was, so it was easier to hide my reasons and escape. If only you knew how much I missed you. Four long years and I never stopped thinking of you. I always planned to come back.”

She choked out a laugh. “Right. And what if I’d decided to marry someone else during that time stretch while you were finding yourself? Did you actually believe I was putting my life on hold for you, Owen?”

He shook his head. “It was a huge risk. I kept tabs on you constantly. Social media, the press, the Bishops, and some friends I’d kept in contact with. But I can’t say I wouldn’t have dropped it all and come back if there was someone you were serious about.”

It was too much. She’d tried to make peace with the fallout, and now he was back, blowing it all back up. A part of her heard and understood his words. As horrible as his actions were, if he’d truly believed he was trying to find himself in order to come back to her, maybe there was a chance of forgiveness.

But she knew for a fact he was a liar.

Chloe stayed silent as the waitress cleared their plates and brought them two coffees. “And now you’ve decided it’s time to stake your claim on me?”

He jerked back slightly, but his voice remained calm. “No. I decided I couldn’t stand being away from you any longer. I kept watch on all the cases in New York, and when Advocates for Animals put out a call for legal help, I immediately requested to transfer. I always intended to come home, but this seemed like a sign.”

“So after this case, no matter what happens, you’re staying?”

“Yes. I’ll be working in the central Animal Defense Fund office, helping organizations with their legal battles. I’m done running.”

His declaration shot chills through her body. She sipped her coffee, seeking a different type of warmth. “I see. And you still attest you broke up with me because you wanted to become your own person? It had nothing to do with other women? Craving to play the field before you settle down? Be honest with me.”

“No, Chloe. There was no one but you. I haven’t been with another woman. That’s the truth.”

The breath was knocked out of her lungs from his statement. Wild hope surged, but she slammed it back down, refusing to be taken in again by declarations that were untrue.

“I saw you with that girl,” she finally said, meeting his gaze head on. “On your Facebook page. She was half naked and all over you. So please don’t lie and pretend there was no one else. I saw the post two weeks after you left, and you certainly weren’t grieving. In fact, you’d refused to answer any of my desperate texts. Clearly, you’d moved on, and it wasn’t just about a job.”

Regret carved out the features of his face. The buried pain rose up again, but she choked it back. She refused to let him spin the past in a way that made him look misunderstood. Chloe sat in the chair, took another sip of coffee, and regarded him with a calm that belied her racing heart.

“There was no girl, Chloe,” he said. “I put her up there on purpose because I knew you’d see it.”

She jerked back, her fingers trembling around the mug. “You really are a bastard.”

“You don’t understand. You never did. I loved you too much. It took all the strength I had to leave you, and once I was in California, stuck in the life I thought would be the best, I was miserable. I got all of your texts, and I responded a million times, deleting each one. I knew if we spoke at all, I’d scrap it all and return to New York. To you. So I did the only thing to guarantee you wouldn’t reach out to me again. I went to a party, had a few drinks, and took that selfie with a girl.”

A humorless laugh ripped from his lips. “I didn’t even know her name. But the moment I posted it, I knew I’d shut the door for good. I got home from that party and stayed in bed for two days straight, not able to leave the house. And then I got my ass up and got to work, because damned if I was going to lose you without making it worth it.”

Her brain sifted through his words to find the real meaning, but it was like sludge through a filter. “Why, Owen? Why would you hurt me on purpose? Don’t you know I would have supported anything you wanted to do? God, you make it sound like I wanted you as my damn boy toy rather than a partner. I knew there were things you dreamed of too! Why couldn’t you have let me be part of it?”

“Because I never thought I was worthy of you.”

The admission tore the breath from her lungs. She stared at the man across from her, the one who’d held her heart and soul with gentle hands and a sweet smile. Familiar blue eyes gleamed with too many emotions and memories, and the past and present tangled up together, blurring the boundaries. He’d changed, grown into a man with his own plans, exhibiting a confidence that had never been there before. Yet her heart recognized the seeds of the man she’d fallen in love with. “Why would you ever say that? Think that? Did I ever give you a reason to believe I was better than you?”

He shook his head, his hair catching the light and turning it to spun gold. “God, no. You made me feel the opposite, but it wasn’t about you. Don’t you remember how it was? I’d graduated from college with a half-assed degree I wasn’t even going to use. You were already setting the world on fire. You got hired by the law firm, graduated with a business degree, and were making real changes with animal rescues.” His gaze sparked with intensity. “You exhibited a fire and passion I’d never experienced before. You believed you could change the world, and I knew you could. Yet here I was, tagging behind you, trying to pretend I knew what I was doing.”

Her jaw dropped. Why was he twisting the past to suit his vision? “You were just as involved! You worked at the Bishop farm, signed up for an internship at Pets Alive, and decided to go back to school for your master’s.”

“Sure, because I still had no idea what I wanted to do with my life.” He leaned in, frustration flickering from his figure. “Because that’s what you suggested I do.”

“Are you blaming me for your insecurities?”