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“Great.” The door pinged as a customer entered, and Faith reached into a pocket sewn in her skirt to retrieve a key, which she pressed into Megan’s palm. “I live at 26 Rata Lane. The spare bedroom comes off the lounge. Make yourself at home.”
“Seriously?” she asked. “Just like that?”
“Just like that,” Faith confirmed. “I have to serve this gentleman, but help yourself to anything you like from the pantry, and I’ll be home a little after six. See you then.”
“Bye.”
Dazed, Megan wandered out of The Shack and back to her car. She’d been afraid to hope for too much, and the ease with which the other woman had offered her home filled her with warmth, but also gave her a head rush. This shouldn’t be so easy. In Auckland, no one went out of their way to help a virtual stranger, but everyone she’d met in Haven Bay had welcomed her with open arms, hefty baggage and all. Their kindness blew her mind.
Realizing she hadn’t gotten directions and had no means to find Faith’s house, she stopped and asked an old lady she’d never met for directions. The woman obliged and wished her a good day, but it was her parting remark that stunned Megan.
“Don’t worry, lovey, we’ve got our eyes open for that no-good scoundrel. He won’t get anywhere near you.”
After recovering her voice, Megan thanked her and left, her thoughts spinning wildly. How did that woman know who she was, and why would she care about Megan’s problems?
Did everyone around here have to be so wonderfully good?
She followed the woman’s directions to Faith’s house, but didn’t notice much of anything as she unlocked the door and searched for the spare bedroom. Then she threw herself onto the bed and let the tears of pain, confusion, and gratitude finally fall.
* * *
He was an asshole.
An untrustworthy, mean asshole.
An asshole who deserved all the shittiness the world sent his way.
He shouldn’t have pushed her away like that. He’d felt like a cornered dog, and he’d lashed out like one, cutting her deeply. He should have taken a few deep breaths and talked to her about his past. Taken the time to explain why he’d done the things he’d done rather than throwing it all in her face and expecting her to handle it.
But he wasn’t reasonable. Not where Megan was concerned.
Should he have tried to convince her to stay? As it was, he may as well have handed her a one-way boarding pass to Sweden. He was never going to be allowed to touch her again. To kiss her again.
But he couldn’t forget how she’d looked at him. Her eyes had questioned and condemned simultaneously. She was right to have looked at him that way. He’d revealed his underbelly to her, and it wasn’t pleasant. The truth was, he shouldn’t be responsible for caring for a woman—any woman. He’d fuck it up eventually. If she’d stayed with him, he’d have let her down sooner or later. That was what he did.
The cabin door crashed open, and Kat lurched through, uttering a stream of expletives. When she let up, she crossed her arms over her chest, and glared at him.
“You complete and total ass. I hope you’re happy with yourself.”
He stared at her, baffled.
“Megan left,” she said in a tone that implied he was thick. “I don’t know what you did to her, but she flew out of here like ataniwhawas on her tail.”
His stomach roiled, threatening to throw up the eggs he’d eaten for breakfast, and he covered his mouth with a hand. She’d gone. Just like that. It hadn’t even been ten minutes since she left his cabin.
“Did anyone go with her?”
Kat’s lips formed a thin line. “No.”
God, he felt sick. Goddamn furious, too. How could she be stupid enough to leave the safety of the lodge without any protection?
Had he driven her to put herself in danger?
Bile rose, but he swallowed it down, taking perverse pleasure in the burn of acid in his throat. He deserved whatever pain the universe saw fit to heap upon him.
“Fuck.”
“Exactly.” Her pupils were pinpricks, her spine ramrod straight. He’d rarely seen her this way, but he recognized the symptoms of rage.
