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“I didn’t say it was.”
“He’s upset, Izzy. He’s terrified he hurt you.”
“He didn’t.” She couldn’t tell if Mark believed her or not. “He didn’t,” she insisted. “He was just angry. I get the feeling he’s not used to having angry sex. In fact I get the distinct impression that Caleb doesn’t let himself have any emotions at all, certainly not with women.”
The man’s jaw twitched and his eyes darkened. “I won’t argue with that,” he said quietly.
“Caleb may be afraid of himself, but he doesn’t scare me.”
“Well, you’re right on that score. He’s scared of his own shadow. At least when it comes to women.”
“Why?” Izzy asked. A simple enough question, but it carried a lot of weight. Izzy didn’t know how much exactly, but it was enough to pull a man like Caleb down and keep him down. And Caleb didn’t strike her as overly sensitive. Whatever it was, she hoped she could handle it.
Mark sighed. “I should wait for him to tell you. It’s his story, after all, not mine. But you might wait your whole life for him to be ready to talk about it. And it seems only fair that you know what you’re up against.” He gazed across the room at her. “You deserve to walk away, if that’s what you decide to do.”
Izzy shook her head. “I’m not going anywhere. I’m all in,” she replied.
Mark studied her. “You barely know him.”
Izzy merely shrugged. I’m not explaining it. Plus, I wouldn’t know how.”
Mark smiled. “And it’s none of my business anyway.”
Izzy remained silent. There was no point in insulting the man. Even if she could articulate what drew her to the tortured man in the next room and what kept her with him, he was right, she’d never tell him.
Mark cleared his throat. “Caleb’s father beat his mother every day of Caleb’s life. Until one day he got drunk and beat her to death right in front of him, using his bare hands. Caleb was eight years old at the time.”
Izzy’s shoulders sank. On the one hand, it was good to finally know, but she hated that it was, in fact, as bad as she’d imagined. It made sense that he was afraid to show anger around women, even if she didn’t think he’d really do anything so vile.
“You don’t seem surprised.”
“I thought it was something like that.”
“You didn’t check his background?”
“I did. Just the basics, just to know who I was dealing with. I didn’t dig too deep, though. The man deserves some privacy.”
Mark was quiet a moment, then said, “That was decent of you, Izzy.”
“He’s decent,” she replied. “No matter what he thinks of himself.”
“He wants to turn himself in.”
Izzy shook her head. “There’s nothing to say. He didn’t do anything wrong. You’re not going to let him tank his career because he gets…confused…about relationships?”
Mark sighed. “Might not be a career to go back to after his suspension.”
“If there is, there’s no way a false confession would help. It wouldn’t do any good,” she told Mark. “It won’t make him feel better and I won’t give a statement. As far as I’m concerned, what happened between us is no one’s business but ours.”
“Caleb’s always been alone, for all the years I’ve known him. He thinks he’s not safe to be around.”
“That’s bullshit. I’m proof he can handle himself just fine. I get that it’s new, and anything new is always scary, but like I said, Caleb may be afraid of himself but he doesn’t scare me. He’s too concerned about me, even when he’s pissed as hell.”
Mark regarded her for a long minute. “Another woman would have run for the hills.”
“I’m not like most women.”
“I can see that. You’re good for him,” said Mark, surprising her.
“I’m trying to be. There aren’t a lot of decent men left, at least not that I’ve found.”
“Then again,” said Mark, “you’re in the business of catching lowlifes.”
She smiled. “True. But Caleb’s a good man. He has his own set of rules, but I can relate. What’s important is who he is, and from what I’ve seen, he’s a good man.”
“I’m grateful that you can see that about him.”
“That’s my job. That’s what I’m good at. Take you, for instance. You’re in here, I’m naked, but you’re not interested.”
The man smiled again. “I have a woman,” he assured her. “The perfect woman, perfect for me, anyway. And besides…” He leaned forward and Izzy detected a very slightly predatory look in his eyes. She resisted the urge to shiver under his gaze. “You’re not my type.” He leaned back and put his hands in his pockets. “Plus,” he said, “I’m not stupid enough to mess with Caleb’s woman.”
“Caleb’s woman?”
“Closest thing he’s got and the best chance he’ll ever have.”
Izzy considered his words. “What about Sioux Falls?”
Mark rocked back on his heels and his expression changed. Izzy could see she wasn’t going to get an answer.
