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I shake my head no but don’t say anything.
Not until I move right into her space and take the glass and pizza out of her hands and put them down on a wooden tray on top of a tufted ottoman.
Ashlyn’s eyes grow wide. “Listen, Brandon—”
“No,” I growl, holding her face in my hands. Anchoring my hands in her hair, I tug her head back, gently. Her soft skin warms under my touch, and I want to fucking touch it all. But this is more important. “It’s my turn to talk.”
She squeaks as I run my lips over hers, then protests with a tug of my sweatshirt when I pull back.Yeah. That’s what I needed to know. It’s not just me.
“The last time you left, I thought there was something between us, and the next time I saw you, you were married.”
“Brandon...” Her quiet voice shakes with my name.
“I’m not done yet, baby.”
My words take some of the fight-or-fight instinct out of her but not all of it. Not yet.
“It only took one night, and I knew you were special. I knew it then without a single fucking doubt, but I had no way to fight for you. No power. No money. Not yet. Not then. But I’m not that man anymore, Ashlyn. I’m not letting you walk out of another goddamn room without knowing where your head’s at.”
She leans her cheek into my palm and closes her eyes. The muted TV behind us gives off enough light to catch the transformation. Her face goes from hesitant to confident in a matter of seconds. “I’m sorry I hurt you.”
“Not gonna lie,” I rasp out and lay it on the line. “Watching you walk away tonight didn’t feel great either. But like I said, I’m not that man anymore. I’m not gonna stand by and let you walk away. Not again. But I get it. I know your family. And they’re...” I’m careful about my next words. “They’re a lot. And they’re fucking everywhere.”
Long, black lashes flutter before her green eyes open. “They are. But I still shouldn’t have just walked away. It all happened so fast, and everyone was there, rushing us. We didn’t get to talk or think. We didn’t...” She blows out a long breath, obviously flustered. “Ididn’t think. I just let myself be ushered out of there. I should have stopped.”
Her hands move to the waist of my sweats and slide underneath my shirt and hoodie, flattening against my abs. “I’m sorry.”
“Me too. I should have said something before you left the hotel instead of waiting to come here and guilting you like a little bitch.Fuck, Ashlyn. You’ve got no clue what you do to me. What you’ve always fucking done to me.”
“I might have an idea how it feels,” she whispers, then tugs me down onto the chaise part of the couch and tucks herself into my side. “I felt it back then too.”
“Then why did you marry another man?” I know enough about this woman to be pretty damn sure it wasn’t money. “You gotta give me something.”
Ashlyn sighs. “John was in the right place at the right time. He saved me from something by marrying me.”
We sit in silence after that bombshell for a long time, until eventually she picks up the TV remote. “Have you ever seen this show? The new season just came out, and I was about to start it when you knocked.”
Guess that’s all I’m getting tonight. I debate for a minute whether to push but decide not to tonight. Instead, I stretch my arm around her and inhale her citrusy scent. “Didn’t feel like going to bed?”
“Nope. I’m not the best sleeper. Never have been. Kinda goes hand in hand with the small spaces thing. I’ve never been the biggest fan of them or of the dark.” She pulls a soft cream blanket down around us, then wraps her arm back around my waist and lays her head on my chest. She fits against me like a missing piece.
“You wanna talk about it?” I tuck a lock of her hair behind her ear and watch her eyes shutter before she locks down like I expected her to.
“Not tonight. I feel like we’ve already danced with too many demons already.”
“We’re going to have to talk at some point,” I push.
“I know,” is all she gives me before she hits play on the remote.
I’ve got a bad feeling that this woman’s demons rival my own, and I fucking hate that I haven’t already slayed them for her.
* * *
“Shh... you don’t want to wake them up.”
A girl’s voice penetrates my sleep.
A teenage girl.
