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“You being here,” I tell him. He shoves off the bed and stands to full height before stepping toward me. His jeans areunbuttoned, hanging off his hips, tugging slightly lower as he steps closer.
“You don’t want me here?”
“I didn’t say that,” I reply.
“Then what are you sayin’, Lyra?”
“We shouldn’t be doing this. I can’t do this,” I tell him once more. I’m about to walk away when he reaches up and rests his hand on my shoulder.
“If you’re afraid of him, don’t be.”
“What?”
“He isn’t gonna touch you,” he tells me. I’m confused. Who is he talking about? Does he know? He couldn’t know.
“Who?”
“Your ex.” My mouth falls open as he looks me in the eye. How does he know? How could he know? I shake his hand from my shoulder and step back, shaking my head.
“You need to leave.”
“I’m not goin’ anywhere, Mama. I’m here now.”
“What do you know? How do you know?” I ask him. He doesn’t say anything at first; he just looks away. Finally, he pulls his gaze back to mine and blows out a breath.
“Me and Cam talked. He told me some things.”
“Told you what?” I snap louder this time.
“A little about your ex. That he was abusive, and how you run when he gets too close,” he explains as if he has all the answers. I shake my head and walk past him, ready to rip Cameron a new ass. I can’t believe he’d tell Knight about that. How could he? That was our secret to keep.
“Don’t you say shit to that kid,” he demands. I turn my head and look over my shoulder at him, glaring at him. That’s my child. I will say what I want to him.
“You’re not my boss.”
“Listen, it took a lot for him to talk to me, Lyra. Don’t make him regret that,” he says. I shake my head, still ready to rip his ass, but instead, I take a deep breath and turn back to face Knight.
“You’re prying.”
“No, I’m tryin’ to help.”
“Are you?” I ask. Knight looks lost, confused by my outburst, but I don’t need this in my life. I don’t need another man prying into my past.
“Yeah, Lyra, I am. I’m just tryin’ to help you here.”
“You can’t! You can’t help me, Knight. No one can. I have to do what I have to do, and if he finds out I’m here, then we have to go. This is never going to work between us. I thought it could. I wanted it to.”
“It can, Lyra. You just gotta stop runnin’, darlin’. There’s nowhere left for you to go. This is it. I’m here,” he reminds me as he points at his chest.
“There’s plenty of places to go,” I tell him. I would know.
“No, Mama. I’m here, not there. Don’t you get that?” he asks, looking sincere.
“Tell me why, Knight. Why would you want to get involved in this mess?”
“Maybe because I like bein’ around you. I like you, Lyra. I can see us bein’ together.” I don’t know what to say to him. I’m scared to let him in. I’m afraid of being hurt, and I’m scared of Dave finding out where we are. I can’t afford for him to find us this time. I know the kids are tired of running. I know they need some kind of stability, but I can’t stay in one place too long.
“It’ll never work, Knight.” He closes the distance between us and cups my face in his hands. Then he leans down and presses his lips to mine. His kiss is heated, full of lust and need. But even more than that, I can feel the want in him. The want to be withme, and something inside of me wants to be with him, but I don’t know how.
