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She gave a slight nod of acceptance to my apology. “Your brother was losing his mind. I was too,” she finished after a pause.
I felt bad I’d concerned her, but secretly liked that she cared.
“I went to his office and he wasn’t there.” Anger surfaced at the thought of the games my father played. “He did it on purpose. I hadn’t been to the house I grew up in since college.”
She rounded her eyes. “That must have been difficult.”
“It made me realize how much I have, but how much he’s cost us. Not just time, but relationships too.” I’d sacrificed all these years with Winston. And yeah, I’d avoided that house because it was hard, but maybe I could’ve found some comfort there too.
Mom loved it. She’d grown up there, and her parents had given it to her and my father as a wedding gift. There were so many good memories in that place. They could overshadow the bad if I let them.
But my father’s dark cloud superseded everything.
I’d caved into him because I saw no other way out. By doing so, I’d given him power he hadn’t had before. And I had zero doubt he’d be drunk on it before long.
“He wanted me to have nothing to do with you.”
She froze. “Why?”
“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “But I told him it was a deal breaker.”
She clutched the leashes so tightly I was certain the soft rope material would cut through her skin. “You shouldn’t push him.”
“I shouldn’t let him continue pushing me around.” I cupped her cheek. “He’s taken away enough. I’m not giving this up.”
I didn’t know whatthiswas. Only that little by little it was growing inside me, and I didn’t want it to stop.
She leaned into my touch, silently communicating she didn’t want me to give it up either. Ifeltshe wanted to keep exploring what was happening between us. That she might even miss me if I weren’t around.
I grinned.
“How can you be smiling at a time like this?” Yet the corner of her mouth twitched too.
I cocked my head to the side. “You like having me around.”
She scowled, but it was less effective when her lips were turned up. “I fed you once and now you won’t go away.”
“As I recall, I fed you.”
She wrinkled her nose. My face hurt from smiling so hard.
She stretched onto her tiptoes and kissed my cheek. “Then maybe it’s me who won’t go away.”
Chapter Seventeen
Pepper
I can’t believeI just said that.
For most people, it was probably a small admission. One that took no courage. But after all but admitting I like having Teague around, and I couldn’t stay away either, my hands trembled slightly.
Whenever he got off work, he always came straight to the rescue . . . like it was an automatic reaction. He seemed to need us. Not in some clingy, weird way. I couldn’t really explain it.
I wanted him to have a safe place. And I was happy that we seemed to fill that need.
“I know we haven’t gone about this the normal way.” He rubbed the side of his neck. “Hell, I still haven’t taken you out on a date.”
“This is a date.”
