Clarissa's POV

Dante was now married. Married. And to Anya’s sister, Willow. Nothing we said stopped him. He was determined to fulfill Anya’s dying wish, and he’d done it right after her death.

Even Willow didn’t try to go against him. But I knew she was also doing it for her sister. Despite everything Anya had done, they both still loved her like crazy. It was the one thing they had in common.

It was a horrible day for our family. So many things had happened, one after the next. I couldn’t even imagine the kind of articles we would have to read tomorrow about this entire thing. They would report on Anya’s death and that Dante had married his mate’s sister.

Whatever they wrote, it was bound to anger us all.

I didn’t want to think of the picture that would be posted alongside those articles. There were no wedding kisses at the end of the ceremony; there was no hugging, nothing except crying.

Willow hadn’t stopped crying since Anya had died. I didn’t expect her to stop crying anytime soon. But Autumn and I would try our best to comfort her. I knew what it meant to lose someone close to you.

We tried our best to save Anya. We tried our best to give her another chance, but ultimately, she chose death. Maybe she felt like that would be the best decision to make for her sister. Perhaps she knew that Dante would marry Willow if she died.

I wasn’t sure of her reasons, but in the end, she didn’t get everything she wanted. I knew she at least wanted to kill me, but even that didn’t happen as she had planned. Damon had come to my rescue yet again.

“There is something you need to know,” Autumn tells me as we finally get a chance to be alone.

The guests had all just left, even though they still had many questions for us. My grandfather was good at getting them all to go. He was always good at that.

“What is it?” I ask her. It felt like she’d been trying to tell me something since I returned with the news about Anya.

“Damon was planning on ending—”

She doesn’t get to finish when Damon enters the living room. His eyes fall on Autumn before they land on me.

“I would like to speak with Clarissa privately, please,” he asks Autumn.

I didn’t want to talk to him. I was still angry with him.

If I hadn’t found the proof against Anya, he would be married to her by now. Then everything between us would have been over for good.

Autumn looks hesitant to leave, but when she realizes his desperation, she finally decides to leave us alone.

Damon sits opposite me, and it looks like he’s trying to find the right words to say to me.

“Don’t say anything,” I stop him before he can say a single word. “It’s clear that this thing between us was never going to work out.”

He swallows but doesn’t show any emotion.

“I tried my best to get you to fight for me. To fight for us. But you did the opposite each time,” I remind him. “You broke my heart over and over again.”

His two hands are clasped tightly together as he quietly listens to everything I have to say.

“You were right to want things between us to stay the same. Our relationship before I made things complicated was much better than it is now.”

He still says nothing. He still lets me ramble on.

I’m unsure where to go with this, but I don’t stop.

“I thought I was doing the right thing by fighting for you. I thought I was doing the right thing by constantly offering myself to you,” I confess. “I was so blinded by my feelings that I let my heart lead. I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable with my actions.”

I close my eyes to find the strength I need to continue. “When I saw you kissing Anya earlier, my heart shattered. It was the reminder I needed to know that you and I were never going to work out. I was stupid for thinking that love would prevail. I was stupid for thinking that everyone around us would happily accept our relationship. While you were able to have your relationship with her publicly, it will never be possible with me.”

Damon tries to say something, but I raise my hand to stop him.

“You don’t need to apologize for your actions, Damon. I’ve heard your apology a hundred times already; nothing you say can be different from what you’ve said in the past. I understand now that there can never be anything between us,” I confess. “And the tattoo—it was a stupid decision on my part. I will find a way to get it removed.”

His jaw clenches, and I know I’ve struck a nerve.

It was a lie. Despite my frustration with him, I was never removing that tattoo.

“You always wanted things to go back to normal between us. I’ll try my best to get things back to where they were before. I’ll try to ensure it’s no longer complicated, just how you like it,” I assure him.

“Clarissa—”

“You were planning on marrying Anya today, Damon,” I remind him. “You were going to put a ring on her finger and give her your last name. The reality didn’t sink in until I saw you kissing her in her wedding dress. I’m tired of fighting for us. I’m tired of fighting for you.”

I don’t want to cry in front of him; I don’t want to show him my weakness anymore.

“I think you were right all along,” I confess. “I need to have my own life. It shouldn’t revolve around you anymore. I need to get out there and start dating. I need to do things that make me truly happy. I thought my happiness was only being with you, but you’ve brought me only pain these past few days. It just proves that we aren’t meant to be like I initially thought.”

Damon finally gets up from his chair after not moving an inch since he’d sat down.

His face is emotionless as he asks, “Is that truly what you want, Clarissa?”