Impulsive by Helenkay Dimon Page B

dull ache of abandonment as she pushed him away both physically and emotionally when her begging failed.
    Eric tried to analyze the change in her, but decided it was a waste of time. “It was the right thing to do.”
    â€œA lot of people won’t see it that way. Your opponent, for one.”
    â€œI made a decision and I’ll stand by it.” Eric blamed Deana for a lot of things. His career trajectory and its future weren’t on the list. No one had forced him to take the route he chose.
    Josh had come to Eric months ago and asked for a favor. A final gift for Deana even though they were long over and she was well on her way to marriage with Josh. Many people, including Deana, insisted Ryan was innocent despite his conviction. When handed the power to bring closure to Deana, her mother, and those in the community who believed a killer still lurked while an innocent kid sat in jail, Eric took it.
    No matter what anyone said, the call was his sole responsibility and if it cost him the job he’d always believed he wanted, so be it.
    â€œYou haven’t changed,” Deana said, the smile obvious in her voice.
    Neither had she. Not in this one way. Deana’s happiness still had the power to light up a room. If anything, it glowed even brighter now that she was married.
    Eric had never guessed she would find that type of all-encompassing satisfaction. Not after everything that had happened and the incredible pain she’d experienced. But something inside her was different. A slight movement away from her usual centered coolness. Her mood struck him as more settled. Calm. She no longer hid behind a harsh mask while inside drowning in sadness.
    Instead of getting hit with his usual smack of desperation for Deana, he felt a slight tug of loss over what might have been. She got lucky and found the right love. He envied her that but was happy for her, too.
    â€œIs it good or bad that I’m the same old Eric?” he asked.
    â€œYou’re still rock solid. I didn’t appreciate that enough when we were together. Took it for granted, really.” Deana nibbled on her lower lip as if she were trying to solve the world’s greatest problem. “I’m sorry.”
    Relief rushed through him. Those words meant more to him than he’d thought they would, but no way was he going down that path with her. He’d lock that sentiment away and examine it later.
    â€œJosh is a good man,” Eric said because he wanted her to know he didn’t hold a grudge there.
    Her smile turned almost dreamy. “The best.”
    â€œSince we’re talking about us, our relationship, can I ask you something?”
    â€œOf course.”
    â€œIf I had buried the evidence against Ryan or pushed my office in another direction, would we still be together as a couple, out in public and without Josh in the picture?” He wasn’t trying to relive the moment or any decision he’d made. He just needed to understand how doing the right thing had derailed his life so dramatically.
    â€œProbably.”
    He wasn’t sure if the answer made him feel better or worse. “I figured.”
    She stood up then. With a hand on his arm and her eyes filled with warmth, she continued. “And eventually you would have hated me for making you compromise. You would have stood by me, because that’s who you are, but lying like that would have killed a part of you. Probably would have destroyed us.”
    A lump of regret crawled up his throat. “Then I guess it’s good we didn’t go that route.”
    She gave him a final squeeze, then let go of his shirt. “I need you to know something.”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œDespite everything that happened and even how it ended, I never regretted our time together. I’m sure in those dark hours after the murders and Ryan’s arrest I said otherwise, and I apologize for that, too.”
    â€œIt’s okay.” For