Chapter 209

Ciara's POV The last few months had been nothing short of perfect. Wade was a changed man, so different from the one I once knew that it felt like being with someone entirely new. He told me he loved me every single day. I wasn’t sure exactly what had caused the shift, but he said the time he spent watching over me in the hospital gave him clarity. Maybe it was seeing me injured, or maybe watching the attack unfold on the monitor, it hit all of them hard, but it changed him most of all. Before the attack, Wade always defended his actions with Vera. He’d plead ignorance, acting like he didn’t understand why I was hurt. Since he hadn’t felt anything sexual for her, he truly believed he’d done nothing wrong. That defense only deepened the pain. But after we returned from the hospital, we talked, really talked. Alone in our room, he apologized. Not just words, but full honesty. He took responsibility and walked me through what had happened, promising it would never happen again. I believed