My Dad's Bestfriend

Chapter 169 Will It Last?

Evelyn

As the words left his mouth, I froze on the spot. My eyes widened, my throat dried up, and I stared at him, unblinking.

How did he know? The question echoed in my mind, rattling me to my core. Had he just figured it out now, or had he known all along and chosen not to say anything? A flood of questions bombarded my thoughts, leaving me speechless, unable to react, caught in a web of silence and confusion. I had no words. No reaction. No way ahead of me to get myself out of this state where silence had gripped me like a vice. Strong and painfully.

Cameron stepped inside, his expression unreadable as he stood in front of me.

"How... how did you know?" I finally managed to ask, the words bitter on my tongue. Guilt gnawed at me. I'd hidden this from Cameron all along, and there was no excuse for it-what I'd done was wrong, and there was no way to justify it. Neither did I want to justify it. Cameron remained silent for a moment, then let out a small sigh. He gently grabbed my hands, his unreadable expression softening into something that eased the ache in my chest. "I've known from the start, Evelyn."

His words took me aback.

Of course, Jacob had been protective of me he'd shown signs, intentionally dropped hints, made things obvious-but Cameron wasn't supposed to know anything about our past because it was actually fucking unusual. I'd assumed he might guess that Jacob was just a close family friend, someone overly concerned with my well-being. But never, not for a moment, had I thought Cameron would suspect the truth about the relationship Jacob and I had shared.

I mean, for God's sake, who would guess that I'd dated my dad's best friend? It wasn't normal-it was far from normal.

So then... how did he figure it out?

Cameron's words hit me like a ton of bricks. The guilt that had been gnawing at me now felt unbearable, and it was even harder to meet his eyes.

"How...?" My voice was barely a whisper as I looked at him, my guilt weighing heavily on me. I knew I'd done wrong, hiding something so crucial from him when he was doing everything possible to make things work between us. He deserved better-he deserved the truth from the very beginning. God, I felt like a terrible human being.

eyes spoke volumes, but it wasn't his actions that made me realize it. It was your reactions. You always looked at him the way I wanted you... to

he interrupted, flashing me the softest smile as he tucked a piece of hair behind my

never be able

Cameron," I sighed, feeling the weight of my actions. "It's about me hiding things from you when you were doing everything possible to make it work. I lied to you, Cameron... I used you." The words tasted bitter on my tongue, and

didn't," Cameron

his voice gentle and

were up to, and I played along because wanted to be with you. Whether you were trying to make Jacob jealous or distract yourself, I found a way to be with you. Your hesitancy and the secrecy you held about your past made it evident to me. So don't think that by doing all of this, you've hurt me in any way. You didn't. I want to be with you, Evelyn, and I plan to stick around until the day you might finally change your mind.

be used. It's on

The words slipped past my lips before I could stop them. "This

me, Evelyn. Everything

what I've said-just trust me," he said, his grip on my arms gentle. knew what you were doing was an attempt to forget him, to make him jealous, maybe even get back at him. And there's

one gets

is my past, Cameron. I don't want to go back to him, but I can't imagine a future without him. That's the problem-it's in me, in my heart. I'm sorry, Cameron.

Cameron interrupted,

hurt me. Let me make this clear, Evelyn. It's on me. I knew what was getting into.

met

you. Not yet. I've liked you for a long time, and though it's too soon to say I love you, what I feel is more

over."

at a loss for how to

heart felt like it was being split in two. The emotions, the decisions ahead, the situation-it was

I didn't feel