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He’d worked hard to isolate her from her friends and family, and once he’d accomplished that, Tyson turned violent. Well, he hadn’t turned violent. He’d merely stopped hiding his true nature. Alone, she saw no way out. She hid away the bruises. Then five years and some change ago, a social worker had run a professional development at the school about how to spot signs of domestic abuse and the available resources.
The next time Ty went out of town on business, she left.
He’d taken her trust and sent it through the garbage disposal. And as soon as she trusted someone outside her family and old friends again, it turned out he was a liar, too.
But Anders hadn’t tried to control her. Not her body, not her mind, not her heart. Anders had only asked she keep his secret. No threats, no change to his voice or his body language. And he seemed more than willing to accept she might never forgive him.
The door to the bedroom rattled, and Anders emerged, fully dressed, with his boots on. Damn, he was a fine-looking ma—alien.
“Thank you for understanding.” Emotion thickened his voice.
“Thank you for respecting my need for space.”
Anders nodded and slipped out the front door.
“Oh, hello young man.” Auntie Nay’s voice wafted through the door.
Mere dropped her head to the table and muttered, “Crap.”
“Hello, ma’am.”
“Nice morning.”
“It is. Have a nice day.”
His footsteps faded and Nadine burst into the house.
“Don’t start, Auntie.” Mere left her head where it was.
“Please tell me you got yourself some of that.”
She groaned into the crook of her arm, not wanting to talk about her sex life with her great-aunt. But once she got hold of an idea, Nadine hung on like a Gila monster.
Aunt Nadine snagged Mere’s coffee cup and refilled it, as well as her own. The liquid sloshed out, leaving a wet ring.
“It was that bad?” Though there was a hint of laughter in her aunt’s voice, concern was the major note.
Mere lifted her head. Nadine peered over the edge of her mug as she sipped.
“No.” Mere picked up her mug and savored a mouthful. “But I shouldn’t have done it.”
“No more beating yourself up over old what’s-his-name. Someone as easy on the eyes as Anders should wash away the taste of any other jerk from your past.”
It had. He had. And yet…
“He’s only in town for a bit, and we’re not a good fit.”
“Honey, you know things stretch, right?” She made a gesture to her nether region.
The heat flowed through her face and Mere moaned. She put her head back down on the table.
“Thanks for the visual. And that’s not what I meant.”
Her aunt’s chuckle filled the room, chasing away the pity party. “Oh, Mere. You’re only young once. Enjoy this. I wish I had when I was your age.”
Mere raised her gaze, glancing over her arms. “But you didn’t make a mistake like mine.”
“Nope. I made my own. Regretted many of them, but I learned from all of them. Maybe you learned the wrong thing from your last relationship.”
