Page 35 of Forever my Love

“Okay,” he said, his voice sounding deeper since he was relaxed and sleepy.

She shifted away from him and suddenly he was chilled at her absence.

When the bedside light came on, he shifted and watched her search around for her clothes.

“Do you have to be dressed to do it?” he asked with a chuckle.

She glanced at him, and he could see the weight of what she wanted to tell him in her eyes.

He nodded and climbed out of bed, understanding that this wasn’t going to be a fast conversation.

“How about you head in and get something comfortable on while I go make us some tea?” he suggested, pulling on a pair of his sweats.

She gathered her clothes in her arms and left his room wearing only her panties and bra.

He slid on a shirt and, leaving Ali snoring, headed downstairs to make them some tea.

When Hailey came downstairs wearing a pair of gray yoga pants and a large T-shirt, he searched her eyes and knew she was nervous.

“Here.” He handed her a mug of chamomile tea. She took it and sat at the bar, and he set some cookies that his mother had made for him on a plate in front of her.

She took one and took a bite. He sat next to her.

“I’ve told you that our mother was an addict,” she started. He nodded, understanding that she would want to tell him everything without interruption. “Heidi’s addictions were varied. Alcohol, heroine, prescription drugs. You name it, she did it.” She took a sip of her tea and set the half-eaten cookie down. “A few months after my fourteenth birthday, Fred showed up at our place.” She shifted in her chair and leaned back, her eyes moving to the dark windows that overlooked his backyard. “We were still in school, so we didn’t see much of him. He would stick around for an hour or two, and he and our mother would get high or…” Her eyes turned to his. “I didn’t know at that time why they would lock themselves in my mother’s room for hours.” He nodded in understanding. “He kept coming around. That summer, things progressed, and Fred moved into the house with us. I didn’t know it at the time, but he was hurting Harper.” She closed her eyes. “Raping her almost every night.”

His tea jerked and he almost spilled it. He set the mug down and took a deep calming breath. She’d already told him that the man abused them both, but it was different hearing that it was a constant thing for such a long time. He wanted to kill Fred.

He was thankful that Hailey kept her eyes closed.

“Then, a week before my fifteenth birthday…” Her eyes opened and she turned towards him. “He came for me.”