Chapter 72 - Who is to blame ?

EMBER's POV

"Ember?" my brother called out to me, fear and desperation in his voice, but I only closed my eyes and leaned against the chair I sat on,

"Ember, answer me!"

"I rejected him, Axel. Just as Ashley said. I rejected him. "

"Why? Would you do that? Aside from the fact that you've possibly just rejected the most perfect man, look. Look what that is doing to you now. How is this in any way worth it?"

"Because-"

"Axel, you shouldn't be causing her so much strain right now."

I reached out and placed a hand on Ashley's, "It's fine." I said, and looked up at Axel,

"He is, by far, the best man. And perhaps, in another life, I would have loved him, the way a man deserves to be loved by a woman. But I can't, Axel. I simply can’t be the woman he needs, and the guilt was killing me. The guilt was after my very existence. I simply could not do it to him. I simply could not."