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He cocked his head. “You tell me your secrets, and I’ll tell you mine.”
Her heart sank. A mixture of conflicting feelings fought for dominance—anxiety, sadness, hope, and desperation to have someone on her side all vied for the winning emotion. How amazing would it be to have someone to confide in, someone in her corner who had her back and could carry some of her burdens? If that person were a strong, capable man like Tyler, she might be able to breathe with ease for once.
It’d been so long since she took a breath that wasn’t tinged with the nauseating taste of fear and dread. She longed to purge her soul and vomit out her secrets. No one knew. She had not told one single person in the entire world. For years, she’d been alone, living a silent nightmare.
Lonely as it was, she’d made her choices and stood by them.
Until that night a couple months ago when the craving for human connection won.
One slip, one mistake, changed everything. She caved, giving in to loneliness and accepting a date that would forever alter the course of her life.
“Why?”
Tyler frowned. “Why what?”
“Why do you care? Why do you want me to tell you? What does it matter to you if you never see me again? I’m nothing to you, Ty. Just some girl your club helped. You don’t know me at all. Why are you here, wasting your time?” She felt the fingers of hysteria curling around her, trying to tear her apart. “Why does it matter to you if I…” She stared down at her bandages. “Live?” she finished with a whisper.
A loud screech rang out as Ty scooted the chair closer to her bed. He grasped her chin and forced her to connect with his dark gaze. The urge to shut her eyes rode her hard, but she fought it.
“I don’t know,” he said, his face in a stern pinch. The severe expression didn’t detract from his attractiveness at all. Instead, it made him hotter.
For the past two months, she’d been terrified of being near men—any men, all men. But there was Tyler, touching her, and she didn’t feel an ounce of fear. They were alone, and he was bigger, stronger, and capable of hurting her without much effort, and instead of panicking, she wanted more. She wanted to ask him to climb in beside her and wrap those tattooed arms around her. She remembered how strong they were and how comforting they felt when he’d held her the last time.
The only time.
Progress? Or was Ty special?
She knew the answer but refused to admit it.
Electricity crackled between them like a live wire, popping and sparking. It gave her life.
It gave her hope for something beyond constant misery.
Ty felt it, too, but he didn’t lean into it as she did.
He released her chin as though she’d burned him. “Does it matter? Don’t look too deep into it. You’re important to Brenna and Lock, which means you’re important to my club. I’m the club’s VP.”
Kelsie, you’re a fool.
“Right. Of course. That makes sense.” And it did. She was an obligation to him. She lowered her gaze as a flush of shame heated her cheeks. Did she owe him an explanation? No, but he was there, and she trusted him more than most, even knowing he viewed visiting her as a task on his to-do list. “Um, things have been… hard lately. I had a lot going on before the kidnapping, and those problems didn’t magically go away when I was rescued.”
They got incrementally worse.
He scoffed. “Bad enough to…” He shifted back in the chair, scrubbing a hand down his face with a near growl.
She looked up again. “Bad enough to cause me to panic. In that panic, I didn’t see another way out. It was—”
“Stupid.”
“Excuse me.” She sat straight up in the bed. “How dare y—”
“It. Was. Stupid. You could have… should have reached out. Harper fucking offered you help. She offered you a safe place to stay. And you fucking ran away, choosing a shitty situation over people who could fucking help you.” He slammed a hand down on the arm of the chair. “Stupid.”
She was stupid, all right, but not for the reasons he accused. Her stupidity stemmed from seeing a connection where none existed.
Schooling her features, she said, “I’m tired. The medicines are kicking my ass. I’m going to take a nap.” Then she turned her head and shut her eyes. Who knew if he’d be there when she woke? If she were smart, she’d order him to leave and not come back, but as he’d pointed out, she didn’t always make wise choices.
He didn’t get up or leave. He sat in that chair, watching her back while she stared at the blank wall.
