Without a second thought, Aaron rapped his knuckles against the doorframe of the garage, a well-practiced smile spreading across his face as he stepped into the dimly lit space. His eyes immediately caught the subtle movement as you fumbled to shove the rat poison behind your back, an almost pitiful attempt to hide the fact that you had been snooping. But he said nothing about it, choosing to ignore the panic that briefly crossed your face.

“Come to the kitchen, darling. I have a surprise,” Aaron said sweetly, his voice dripping with warmth. Before you could even respond, he was already pulling you close, a firm hand on the small of your back guiding you out of the garage.

Once in the kitchen, he gently coaxed you into sitting at the table. His sons were already tucked in bed, leaving the house eerily quiet. Aaron moved with care, setting a glass in front of you and gingerly pouring wine from a bottle he’d retrieved from the cabinet.

“I have a confession to make,” He murmured, setting the bottle down and nudging the glass closer to you. His heart thundered in his chest, the intensity of his gaze unwavering as he stared at you, drinking in the features that had ensnared him so completely. You were everything to him now—the very reason he had crossed so many lines.

“You forced me to stand by while you grew closer to another, while my wife was dying,” he confessed, his voice laced with an eerie calmness as if what he was saying was as natural as breathing. His lips twitched into a small smile as he gently bit his bottom lip. “You forced me to act.”

His voice dropped lower, becoming almost a whisper as he continued, “Everything I hold dear, everything I’ve risked... I’ve risked it all for you. I would kill for you, darling, I have killed for you,” The way he said it, with such conviction and sincerity, made the words feel heavier than any threat. He hoped his confession would finally make you understand.