Chapter 73

Aria

I slowly turn around, and there he is, standing on stage with the mic in his hand. Everyone’s staring now. Great, just what I needed…a live audience for my personal soap opera.

“Aria, I want to publicly apologize to you,” Lucas says, his voice shaking just enough to make me wonder if he’s about to cry in front of everyone. And honestly? I wouldn’t mind if he did.

He clears his throat and continues, gripping the mic like it’s the only thing keeping him upright. “For everything I’ve put you through—because of my incompetence, my cowardice. All the hurtful things I said to you? Yeah, I didn’t mean a single damn word. I said those things because I was scared. Scared of fighting for you. Scared of losing you. Scared of…” His voice falters, and he looks down at his shoes like they have the answers he’s struggling to find.

Meanwhile, I’m standing there, trying to keep my breathing steady. My chest feels tight, like I’ve just run a marathon in heels, and