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I don't know why I say it. It's a dick move, but I'm blinded by the mental image of Thea kissing that Hollywood prick the way she kissed me last night, all needy and hot. And I'd be lying if I said it wasn't jealousy fueling my words. Jealousy and six years of built-up pain.
She turns away from me but not fast enough to hide the flash of hurt on her face. “God, you're such an asshole.”
“Can you blame me?” I demand, rising to my feet. “You don't get to throw a tantrum 'cause I ain't falling at your feet like you're used to in LA, not when you dropped me like hot shit six years ago for not being good enough for you.”
“Not good enough? What?” She rounds on me with a glare that is both angry and confused. “When have I ever said that?”
“You didn't. Your daddy did when he told me to never call you again.”
“What?” She staggers backward, her eyes widened to an impossible size. “Why would he tell you that? What did he say?”
I'm too far gone in the memory of that day, the anger I felt, the shattering of my fucking heart, to register the shock on Thea's face.
“One day in LA had you thinking you could do better than this town and everyone in it, me included.” I shake my head, then add, “Especiallyme. Told me you weren't coming back and not to bother calling 'cause you wouldn't pick up anyway. Said I should move on 'cause you already had.”
I'm staring at the floor, my hands clenched at my sides as I remember that day. How I'd driven back to the farm in a daze, then cried like a child on my bedroom floor.
It takes me too long to notice the sound of gentle whimpers spilling out into the strained silence. Longer still to turn and see where it's coming from. When I finally do, I'm not at all prepared for what I find.
Thea leans against the wall, her head hung low enough that her hair falls in a curtain around her face. I can't see her tears, but I can hear them.
She sucks in a shaky breath, then whispers, “That's not what happened.”
“What?”
“What he told you…it's not true.”
I scoff in half-hearted disbelief. Her crying is really throwing me off. “Oh, yeah? What exactly happened, then, princess? 'Cause there’s no other explanation I can think of that would make you leaving and never fucking coming home make sense.”
“He told me not to come home.”
I blink. “Sorry?”
She nods, her hair still a long veil of fire around her face. She lifts a hand to swipe at the tears under her eyes and it disturbs the placement of her hair just enough for me to catch sight of her devastated expression. It pierces me like a bullet to the heart.
“He said you wouldn't want me anymore after what happened, after...” She sucks in a long breath and whispers, “After what I did.”
“What happened?” I ask, my voice low and trembling. “What did you do?”
There's a moment that follows when the beating of my heart slows almost to the point of cardiac arrest. My palms begin to sweat and the pulse in my temples thunders furiously. I can't explain it. But it's as if something in my body knows that whatever Thea is about to tell me is going to fracture everything I thought I knew about the world. Like my soul is trying to prepare me for life to change forever.
“I was unfaithful.”
My knees buckle. I feel the weight of her words like a rock sinking through my body and dragging me down to the couch. I can't speak. Can't even breathe. But she carries on.
“I didn't mean to, please know that. It wasn't...it wasn't like I wanted to do it. I really didn't want to do it. But he threatened me. He said—“
My head shoots up. “Whoa, Thea, back up.” I stand, the speed giving me head rush, but I don't give a shit because I need to know, right the fuck now, if she just said what I think she did. “What did you just say?”
She winces, covering her face with her hands. I swallow the space between us in three long strides, take her gently by the wrists and pull her arms back down to her sides.
“Please don't make me say it again.”
“You have to,” I growl, gripping her chin and forcing her to look into my eyes. “From the beginning. Don't leave anything out, you understand?”
She nods, tears spilling down her cheeks and onto my hand, but I don't move it. Even though the saltwater makes my skin itch, I keep my fingers on her chin.
“Remember why I went out to LA that weekend? To meet with that talent agency?” At my nod, she continues, “When they first reached out, they wanted me to send them some pictures so they could see if I was a good fit for them, ya know? But some of the photos they asked for weren't…“ She pauses, her eyes scrunching shut. “They weren't what I was expecting. Me in my underwear, me not wearing anything, me in provocative poses. I didn't know any better, so I sent them.”
