Chapter 40 No More Pretending

• Juliet Morgan's POV
• For several seconds after the call ended, I couldn't move.
• The phone remained pressed against my ear even though the line had already disconnected, while the sound of the water crashing softly against the dock seemed to fade into the background. My heart was still racing, but for an entirely different reason now. Beside me, Charles was watching closely, his attention fixed on my face as though he was trying to read the answer before I spoke. A few minutes earlier we had finally admitted what neither of us could keep pretending anymore. We had confessed , chosen each other. We had somehow survived four months of confusion, jealousy, fear and stubbornness. Now the future had decided it wasn't finished surprising us.