HIS REGRET (Ex-Husband wants Me Back) novel Chapter 18

Chapter 18

“Are you afraid?” Daven’s voice was low, almost a whisper.

“No,” she replied, swallowing hard, her gaze steady and unflinching. “What hurts more is when you act like I’m invisible. Like I don’t matter at all.”

His voice dropped to a murmur. “Stubborn woman.”

“You should’ve realized that the day we said ‘I do,’” Althea shot back, a hint of bitterness threading through her words.

He closed the distance between them, stepping closer until his fingers brushed lightly against her cheek. Despite the coolness of her skin, a warmth radiated beneath his touch—whether it was from the chill in the room or the fluttering nervousness inside him, he couldn’t tell. His eyes remained locked on hers, his thumb tracing slow, aimless circles, as if an internal battle was raging within. He exhaled with a slow, deliberate breath—was it frustration? Or something deeper unraveling in his heart?

“Stop looking at me like that,” he murmured.

“Like what?” Althea’s voice was barely audible.

She sensed it—he was the one on the edge, ready to pull away. That knowledge pushed her forward, daring her to act on impulse. Her hands trembled as they reached out, fingers gently tracing the contours of his chest.

“This is your last warning, Althea,” Daven said, his voice taut with tension, like a man barely holding himself back.

“I’m not stepping back, Dav,” she said, her voice steady despite the ache in her chest. “I’ve already sacrificed every ounce of pride just to stand here and ask for this…” A bitter laugh escaped her lips. “Tell me something—am I really that unappealing to you? Is that why you keep pushing me away?”

“Damn it,” he growled.

In one swift motion, he grabbed both her wrists, pinning them above her head with one hand. His other hand returned to her face, gripping firmly but without cruelty, anchoring her as his lips crashed onto hers—rough, urgent, desperate.

His tongue pressed past her lips before she could catch her breath.

“I don’t know if I’ll hurt you or not,” he growled between kisses, “but this is your choice. You didn’t walk away.”

“D-Do whatever you want, Dav,” she whispered, every word a struggle to release.

Keeping pace with Daven felt like being swept into a relentless current, one she had no hope of escaping—but she didn’t want to escape.

“This is your final warning, Althea,” he said, pressing his forehead to hers. “Once I start, I don’t think I’ll be able to stop.”

Her hands slid up to his shoulders, fingers digging in just a little as she whispered, “Then don’t stop. Let this night be mine, Daven. Just this once.”

A flicker passed through his eyes—a battle between restraint and surrender—before he leaned in again, this time with a gentler touch. His kiss deepened, slower and more tender, carrying an unspoken emotion neither of them could name.

As their bodies intertwined beneath the soft glow of the room, Daven moved with a blend of intensity and care, as if memorizing every inch of her. Althea surrendered to the moment—not recklessly, but because she wanted to hold onto this night, not with regret, but with quiet gratitude.

She wasn’t asking for his love.

She wasn’t hoping he’d change.

All she wanted was to carry a memory that mattered. Something real. Something hers.

Please, God, she prayed silently, let this be the one night I never forget.