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“You won’t even defend yourself? You lied to me.”
I will myself to respond, because if this is what he thinks of me —
“Aleks. I don’t know — how could you — I didn’t know they were leaving. But why do you need them? Good riddance, I say. I don’t care if I never see them again.”
A muscle clenches in his jaw and he turns away from me. This is how he is, isn’t it? His go-to. When things don’t go the way he plans, he reverts to being his cold, hard self. Pushing anyone and everyone away. Walling up his heart so he’s safe and no one can reach him.
“My family suffered an attack two hours ago at one of our establishments. What do you know about that?”
“What are you talking about? Jesus, Aleks. What is going on with you?”
“I trusted you.”
“How interesting, I trusted you, too.”
He searches my eyes. It breaks my heart to see a world of hurt reflected in his gaze.
I lift my chin and try to make him understand. “My family and I aren’t the same. They barely told me any of their plans. I hardly know?—”
“You knew that wasn’t their home, didn’t you?”
“Yes, I already said that.”
He stands, towering over me. I’m reminded of how much bigger he is than me. How easily he could hurt me. We’re alone on the roof, and if I screamed for help,no onewould come and rescue me.
Would he harm me?
I was hurt by the very people who were meant to protect me and if there is anything I’ve learned, it’s thatanyonecan inflict pain and suffering…including the people that should love you. Sometimes they’re the ones that hurt you the most.
I learned to wall myself up, not to listen to what others said about me. But it was only when I was here, with him, that I silenced those voices in my head that called me worthless.
“What do you want, Aleksandr?” My voice wants to wobble, but I won’t allow it. I stare him straight in the eye. When he reaches for me, I deflect him. If he touches me, I’ll lose all sense of reason and my ability to think clearly. “No. Don’t touch me right now. You look me in the eye and tell me what you really want to know.”
“I want to know how far your lies go,” he says, his voice hoarse and the blueness of his eyes piercing straight through me. “You knew you had a baby. You knew no one would marry you. So youand your family hid everything from me so you could trick me into marrying you.”
Something in me…snaps.
The fragile thread of hope I held breaks like a string snapping under too much weight and a flood of vitriol storms into my thoughts.
Whore.
Slut.
Worthless.
“I told you the truth,” I whisper. “I told you everything.”
He reaches for the box of memories as I fight against the torrent of hatred rushing into my mind.
Slut.
Worthless.
Lying whore.
His thick fingers move through the memorabilia and pluck out a small piece of paper.
“Explain this.”
