Doing anything without Dash put Owen's nerves on edge, but taking a dog into a movie premier would attract too much attention. The one thing he didn't need. Especially tonight. It'd taken every ounce of courage he could muster to show up at the event, and now he couldn't get out of the car.

"We gonna sit here all night? I paid good money to park this close, we should at least go inside."

Owen couldn't argue with that. He'd about swallowed his tongue when Dante handed five crisp Benjamins to the burly guy directing traffic. "I thought the premier was invitation only. I didn't expect to see all these people."

"Fans, bro," he rolled his eyes. "Silbie has thousands. Hell, probably millions. From what I hear, this movie is going to be a block-buster. That's why they set up the bleachers. So fans can at least get a glimpse of her."

Owen rubbed his palms up and down his thighs. "You're not helping."

"Take some deep breaths. You'll be fine."

He unsnapped his seatbelt and opened the car door. "I feel like I'm gonna throw up."

"Put your head between your legs!"

Owen swung his feet to the pavement and lowered his head. He sucked in air and swabbed the sweat from his brow.

"You want to leave? You can see Silbie later."

Leaving is exactly what he wanted to do, but if he did, he might never have the courage to face her again. For the past two weeks, he'd thought of nothing but life without her—and it'd gnawed at him day and night. This was her world, and if there was the smallest chance he could be a part of it, he had to tame his demons. He shook his head. "No. I've come too far to give up now."

With three more heaving breaths, he straightened his shoulders and rose to his feet. "Come on. Let's go."

Once inside, Owen scanned the surroundings. People milled about. Cameras flashed. A constant drone of conversations filled the space. His heart picked up speed. Beads of perspiration formed on his forehead and above his lip. He swallowed hard, closed his eyes, and counted to ten.

Dante latched onto Owen's elbow and nudged them through the crowd until they were inside. "I'm going to find the rest of the fam. You get Silbie's attention," Dante said. "And remember, speak from the heart. Don't forget to grovel. Women love that shit."

Owen started to say something, but Dante was already gone. He blinked to stop the room from spinning. People bumped past him. He side-stepped one way, and then another to avoid getting lost in the throng.

Within a minute, he was only a few feet away from where she stood arm-in-arm with her co-star posing for pictures. They made a beautiful couple. Owen's stomach churned. What did he have to offer her? Nothing. He'd been right from the beginning. She didn't need a man with his problems. She'd end up hating him, and that was worse than giving her up.

He wheeled around, and someone caught him by the arm. Dante ran his arm around Owen's shoulders. "You can do this."

Owen fought back tears. Damn, could things get worse than turning into a blubbering mess in front of the world? "I've been an idiot. Treated her terribly. This is a mistake. I'd made a clean break, I should leave it that way."

Dante nudged him. "If you leave, are you going to be able to live with yourself?"

"I'll just fuck up her life."

Owen inched forward two steps, then stopped.

A cameraman shouted, "Silbie, you ever gonna reveal the identity of the man you're in love with, or does he really exist?"

She turned to face the guy and plastered on the fake smile Owen knew so well. And her answer stabbed a knife of guilt deep into his chest.

"He exists, but unfortunately, he doesn't love me."

Owen shoved his way through the photographers until he was within a few feet of her. When he spoke, his words came out in a whisper. "I never said I didn't love you."

Silbie snapped her head toward him, and any warm recognition he'd imagined, vanished, replaced with an icy stare. She motioned for Jeb, and in a flash, he stopped next to Owen.

"I'm sorry. You don't have to throw me out, I'll leave." Owen's throat closed off, and tears burned the back of his eyes, but he'd be damned before he cried. He deserved this. Had no one to blame but himself, but he'd leave on his terms. Then the voice he'd been longing to hear, spoke the sweetest words.

"I'm not throwing you out," she whispered. "But I can't do this here." She turned to Jeb. "Please take him to my dressing room."

She smiled at Owen, albeit another fake. "I'll join you there shortly."

Jeb opened the door and gestured for Owen to go inside. He turned to leave, then stopped and faced Owen again. "Unless you've come to say you want to be in her life, you should leave. You've hurt her enough."

"I know."

Jeb nodded and started to close the door, but Owen yelled. "Dont! This room doesn't have any windows. I need the door open."

Silbie's heart raced so fast, she felt faint. Owen was here at her premiere. What did it mean? Did he come to apologize? Explain why he'd avoided her all these months? Or make her understand why he didn't want her anymore? Whatever the reason, she'd let him stew for a while. Some small, petty part of her wanted him to see how he'd liked being ignored.

Logan leaned into her. "Did you know he was coming?"

"No. I'm not sure why he's here."

He pantomimed punching the air. "Want me to kick his ass? I can take him if Jeb helps."

Silbie laughed and posed while the cameras kept flashing.

Maia appeared at her side. "Did I really see Dante and Owen come in?"

Silbie nodded. "I have Owen waiting in my dressing room. Don't know where Dante went."

"I want to find him," Maia said. "Maybe flaunt Zach in his face. Make sure he knows I don't give a flying fuck about him after what he did."

"Ouch," Logan said. "Bitter much?"

"We learned the hard way," Silbie said. "The men in that family are jerks."

Logan pretended to dust off his shoulder. "You both had your chance with me, so I have no sympathy for either of you."

Silbie rolled her eyes. "If I call correctly, you're the one who canceled our hot tub threesome."

"Look at you, See-bee, making jokes. That's a good sign."

"I'm laughing to keep from panicking."

He slid his arm around her. "Maybe he's come to his senses and realizes he can't live with how he left things."

As much as she wanted to deny it, for a moment, she clung to that thread of hope, then shoved it down to the deepest part of her heart. The place she'd kept all the disappointment of the last few months. If it stayed there long enough, maybe it wouldn't hurt anymore.

Owen waited for what seemed like hours. He began to wonder if Silbie really planned to join him, or if this was payback. Once again, he reminded himself he deserved it, but it hurt all the same. If she was teaching him a lesson, it was working. As if he didn't already feel bad enough, now he knew how it felt to have expectations only to be met with disappointment. God, he'd been an asshole. She shouldn't forgive him—and probably wouldn't. Even so, he needed to apologize.

Dr. Sequig made it clear Owen had to take responsibility for his actions. He slumped into the chair and hung his head. On the other side of the door, a steady rumble of chatter and laughter. People calling Silbie's name. Damn. He wished for a shot of whiskey. Something to calm his nerves. Maybe he should poke his head out the door and grab a drink from one of those fancy trays he'd seen. Or better yet, text Dante to bring him one. Owen palmed his phone, and just as he punched in the first number, the door swung open, and Silbie stepped inside.

He jumped to his feet and opened his mouth, but she spoke before he could utter a word.

"If you've come to say you're sorry for standing me up, I accept your apology. If you've come to ask forgiveness for shutting me out of your life, I'm not ready to grant that." She drew a shaky breath. "It's ironic isn't it? I have thousands of fans, some standing outside this building hoping to get a moment of my time. You'd think that would be enough—and it'll have to be, because you can rest assured, I'm done begging and using trickery to get your attention. Maybe I was slow on the uptake, but I finally got it loud and clear. So whatever you have to say, make it fast."

There it was. His worst fear. No matter what he said, she wasn't going to forgive him. He drew a deep breath. "I have night terrors where I wake up punching my pillow. I couldn't trust myself—not to hurt you." His lungs worked for air. His pulse hammered, but he had to make her understand. "Crowds, lights, noise, fill me with anxiety. A lot of the time, I can't sleep. Sometimes, the least thing sets me off, and I can't control my anger. I'm getting better. But I still have a long way to go."

He rubbed his hand across his face, and wished he'd had time to find that drink, because he needed it. Bad. She stood ruler straight and said nothing, so he continued.

"While I was held hostage, knowing you were waiting is the only thing that kept me alive. I was stupid enough to think if I ever got out of that place and back home, everything would —I would go back to how I was. But that didn't happen. Things only got worse. You deserve better.

"But my therapist says I need to stop deciding what's best for everyone else, and concentrate on what's best for me. That's why I'm here." He swallowed and spoke around the knot in his throat. "You've achieved so much, which proves you don't need me. I love you more than anything, but I'm terrified once you see I'm not the man you fell in love with, you won't love me anymore."

His chest heaved and once again, he waited for her to speak, but she stood frozen in place—staring at him until he couldn't take it anymore. "If you need to scream at me, or slap me, go ahead, but say something. Anything."

Silbie folded her arms beneath her breasts. "You've been a real jackass."

"I know, and I'm sorry."

"I've spent the last few weeks trying not to love you."

"Has it worked?"

"No. You?"

"Not even a little."

In two short strides he had her in his arms. "I love you, Silbie, and I'm sorry I haven't done a great job of proving that to you." He covered her lips with his, and then drew back to stare into her eyes. "You said you're not good without me... but the truth is, I'm just no good without you."

Reeeeeunited and it feels so goooood.

Bout time, amiright?

No teaser, just an epilogue left and we are done. I'll try and post that tomorrow 1/24/2020.

It's always so bittersweet.