Battles and Secrets (Queen of Piracy Duology #2)

Chapter 14: Same old idiot

My legs trembled as Dirk and I left the tavern. I wasn't sure if I wanted to yell, punch him in the face, or cry... Only great options, right? Yes, I wasn't the queen of happiness at that moment. Although I wanted to listen to what the bastard had to say, I'd never fall for him again. I was determined to keep love away from my life forever... Don't judge me! You don't drink poison, do you? I didn't want to fill my heart with that toxic feeling a second time. My only wish was to hear Dirk out and say goodbye... Yes, you read that right! I still needed a goodbye despite everything the idiot had done. I wanted closure. Once we arrived at an alley behind the tavern, I remembered when Dirk and I were enemies... We should've stayed that way. Tess was one of the few joys he gave me. Not listening to my intuition and insisting on that relationship was the most stupid decision I'd ever made. I took a deep breath as Bosch stopped walking. I'd finally discover if Dirk had improved a little in two months or if he was still the same old idiot.

I crossed my arms, "What did you have to tell me?"

"I can't believe I'm about to say this!" Bosch rolled his eyes. "I came to apologize."

My eyes widened. No, that couldn't be true. A guy with Dirk's pride would never say those words. Something was wrong... It had to be. He'd never apologized, not even when we still loved each other. I rubbed my forehead, wondering if I was hallucinating.

"There's really a first time for everything!" I chuckled. "This will be fun..."

"How can you be so annoying?" Dirk let out a pronounced sigh. "Anyway, I'm sorry for pushing you against the wall. That was... probably too aggressive."

I raised my brows, "If you'd like my forgiveness, you'll have to do better than that."

Bosch's eyes bulged, "I already apologized! What else do you want? A word in Spanish to make you giggle?"

Would my ex-husband ever stop being ridiculous? Dirk never got over my fling with Miguel... Yes, I got pregnant from it, but that jealousy was insane! Besides, Gálvez and I had our little adventure way before I started dating Bosch. Dirk shouldn't care about that anymore. After all, the idiot said he didn't love me.

I took a step forward, "That wouldn't be such a bad idea. You never made me laugh."

"I regret apologizing already," Dirk huffed. "If I didn't need a stupid job, I wouldn't have stayed in that ship for so long!"

I gawked and controlled myself not to cry... Guess what? Besides breaking my heart, Bosch had to spit on it too! My back wouldn't stop sweating as I absorbed that information.

I forced a laugh, "Are you serious?"

"I liked you, but you had to ruin everything with your irritating personality!" Dirk narrowed his eyes. "I'm taking back my apology. I should've squeezed your neck harder."

Don't cry. Dirk is like a shark. If he smells blood, he'll come for it.

"You're a monster!" I panted. "I thought you'd recognized you were wrong once in your miserable life, but I was wrong again!"

I looked in every direction. Something didn't seem right... Why did I have that feeling? I gulped, regretting having come to that alley. Every word he said made it clearer I'd fallen for the wrong guy. If I'd admitted my mistake earlier, perhaps I wouldn't have spent so many years with a horrible man.

"I wasn't like this before marrying you, Eva. You bring the worst in me," Dirk ground his teeth. "It's your fault that our relationship ended!"

"Blame-shifting? This strategy is older than my great-grandmother!" I shot him a defiant gaze. "Can't you at least be more original?"