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So had she.
“I lived in Denver for a while,” she said. “I’d moved there not long after my father died. It’s kind of a long story.”
“I’m not going anywhere.” His gaze was intent and penetrating, like he was trying to look inside her. Aria had the strange thought that he probably could.
“After my father died, we were all kind of a mess.” She ran her fingers over the cat’s back. “Well, except for Callie who launched into general-mode the second we got the phone call that Dad had been in an accident. Then she just took over everything—Mom’s life, the bakery, the house, the arrangements, everything.
“We all let her because she’s so good at that kind of stuff, but then we found out that Dad had left each of us equal amounts of money. Callie and Rory immediately put their shares into mutual funds or whatever, and I wanted to use some of mine to take a trip to Athens, which was Dad’s favorite city. I’d never been there, and…I don’t know. I guess I just wanted to see it.
“Well, Callie thought that was a total waste, especially since I didn’t even have a job, and we got into a huge fight about it. She won, and I didn’t go. But I was so mad that I refused to talk to her for about a week. I was also upset because I knew she was right.
“Then Rory got a contract job with a tech company, so in addition to helping at Sugar Joy she was working all the time, and of course, Callie was busy with teaching and all of Dad’s paperwork. And Mom was focused on trying to get back to living her life again….
“I guess I felt alone and kind of adrift, except this time without them there to help me. With my safety net gone, I ended up in a bad place, though I did a good job of hiding it. I’d been dating Steve for a couple of weeks. He had it all…or I thought he did. Handsome, smart, successful. Somewhat ironically, he was an investment banker.”
Though Hunter didn’t move, the lines of his body tensed. “What happened?”
“I moved to Denver to live with him.” She pulled Jumbo closer as he butted his head against her arm. “We were together for about eight months. It took me that long to figure out how to leave him.”
“What did he do?”
“He was controlling. Very controlling. And I was perfect for him because he’d found me at my lowest, most vulnerable point. I didn’t know how to stand up for myself. So I didn’t.”
“Was he—” Hunter’s voice broke off. His hand curled into a fist.
“Physically abusive? He came close a few times. He liked to threaten me a lot and scare me by acting like he was about to hit me. He didn’t cross that line, but I’m sure he would have if I’d stayed. As it was, he dictated almost everything I did—what I wore, what we ate, where I went. I went along with it because I didn’t think I had a choice. I couldn’t come back to Bliss Cove. I didn’t even know how to access my inheritance because I’d let Rory invest it. Steve didn’t like the idea of me having any friends, so I mostly stayed home by myself. Took care of the house, ran errands. Spent all my time with Jumbo.”
She scratched the cat’s ears. He rolled his eyes and blinked before jumping lightly off her lap and padding over to explore a hideaway.
“When did you leave him?” An undercurrent of anger roughened Hunter’s voice.
“When he threatened Jumbo.” She rubbed her hands over the goosebumps prickling her arms. “I should have seen it coming. He didn’t like cats. Or animals in general. He tolerated Jumbo, but he had a short fuse about all things cat-related. He hated the smell of cat food, complained about cat fur, didn’t want Jumbo on the furniture. I tried to keep Jumbo out of his sight for the most part, but of course that wasn’t always possible.”
She took a breath, her heartrate accelerating as her recollection of that night crowded into her mind. Hunter settled his hand on her knee, the weight of his grip a steadying force.
“One night Steve came home upset over a work deal that hadn’t gone through, so he was in a bad mood to begin with. And I hadn’t done something right…I can’t even remember what. I probably bought the wrong bread or left a crumpled towel on the floor. Jumbo was upstairs and out of his way, but somehow he escaped and came into the kitchen. As he started toward his food dish, Steve kicked him.”
She took a breath. “Of course, that made me angry, and for the first time, I shouted at him. Then he yelled back…which was scary because he didn’t often raise his voice…and we started fighting. It was the first time I’d fought back, and he didn’t like it. He started toward me…Iknewhe was going to hit me…and then Jumbo jumped onto the kitchen counter. That set Steve off even more. He grabbed Jumbo by the neck and shook…strangledhim while threatening to kill him…and I was so scared he’d break Jumbo’s neck. I knew he’d do it, that he was capable of it.”
A cold shudder ran through her. Hunter tightened his grip on her knee.
“Then Steve’s phone rang.” A hollow laugh broke from her throat. “So Jumbo was saved by the bell. The instant Steve dropped him, I grabbed him and ran back upstairs to hide in the bedroom. Steve tried to get me to come out, banging on the door and shouting, and he only stopped when I threatened to call 911. The next day, after he left for work, Jumbo and I packed up and walked out. We caught the next bus back to California.”
Hunter was silent for a long minute. “Did he come after you?”
“No. He called to hurl a bunch of insults at me and told me he was glad I was gone. I never heard from him again.”
“Come here.” His voice gruff, Hunter hauled her against his warm chest and wrapped his arms around her. “That’s one of the bravest things I’ve ever heard. I’m only sorry that asshole didn’t get what was coming to him.”
“He will, at some point.” Aria rubbed her cheek against his chest. “Karma is real, whether you believe in it or not.”
He pressed his lips to the top of her head. “What I believe is that you deserve everything good. You are everything good.”
“Thank you, but I’ve made plenty of mistakes and bad decisions.” She shifted to kiss his chin. “The good news is that I’ve been making much better ones lately. Like hooking up with the guy who’s supposed to be my arch-enemy…oh, wait a second…”
His eyes crinkled with a smile as he cupped her face and brought her mouth to his. After a warm, lovely kiss, he lifted his head.
“I don’t think I’m falling for you.” He brushed his thumb over her cheek. “I’ve already fallen.”
