?


    "That''s all the time we have," he retorted, not meeting my eyes. "I need to know if I have to quit my job."


    "But you''re not leaving for months!" I was practically yelling now, my voice steeped in incredulity. "Why do we have to decide this right now?"


    "Because I need to be prepared to give the hockey team ample notice. I can''t just drop out at thest minute, Nina. It''s irresponsible, both to the team and to myself," he argued, his voice steady, almost calcted, as if he had somehow been rehearsing this over the past two hours.


    I fell silent for a moment, my mind racing. This wasn''t fair. None of it was fair. I looked at him, really looked at him, and what I saw broke my heart-his mouth set in a grim line, a finality in his eyes that I hadn''t seen in a long time.


    "So that''s it then. You''ve made up your mind, I murmured, my voice tinged with a sadness that took us both by surprise.


    He shrugged. "I don''t want to do this, Nina. I don''t want to force you into making a decision like this. But given the circumstances, I don''t feel like we have a choice," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.


    "The circumstances? You mean the pregnancy? Edwarding back? The incident at my dad''s party? Or the burr?" My voice cracked as I listed off everything that had been guing ustely.


    "All of that. It''s too much, Nina. I can''t leave you here alone knowing what might happen," he replied, his tone firm, unyielding.


    "I''ve handled threats before, Enzo. I''ve faced danger before you were in the picture. I''m not some fragile porcin doll!"


    "I know you''re not," he snapped, his own frustration finally spilling over. "But the fact remains, I can''t be here to protect you when I''m gone. And that makes all the difference to me."


    "I never asked you to protect me," I shot back, but the words made even me wince, and I knew that wasn''t true. "It doesn''t matter. I already made that promise when I married you," he retorted, his eyes zing now.


    The tension in the room was so thick you could cut it with a knife. I felt trapped, cornered, as if the walls were closing in on me. "You think this is easy for me? You think I want to be the cause of you having to give up your dreams?" My voice wavered, my eyes stinging with unshed tears.


    "No. But sometimes, we have to make hard choices for the people we love," he said quietly.


    I felt a tear escape, trickling down my cheek, the salty trail it left a testament to the bitterness I felt. "Fine," I choked out, finally breaking the taut silence that had enveloped us.


    "Fine? So, what are you saying?" he asked, his voice tinged with something I couldn''t quite ce-hope, maybe, or even desperation.


    "I''m saying ''fine, Enzo. If this is how it''s going to be, then fine. You''ll get your answer in 48 hours," I said, my words sharp.


    "Don''t do it like that, Nina. Don''t make it seem like I''m forcing you into this."N?vel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive ? material.


    "Aren''t you?"


    He sighed, a deep, weary sigh that seemed to age him right before my eyes. "I wish there was another way. "But there isn''t," I said softly, more to myself than to him.


    "No, there isn''t."


    I felt my lips tremble, my resolve weaken for just a moment. But then I steeled myself, just as I always did. I had been backed into a corner, but I''d be damned if I let him see me crumble. "Then I guess that''s that," I said, my


    voice barely above a whisper.


    Without another word, I turned on my heel and stormed out of the room, the door mming shut behind me with a deafening finality.