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“Anyway, afterward, he’d talk about howto me And he’d tell me that one day he would let you kno much I wanted him and how hard I came for him” There was a hitch in her voice, and the tears increased “I fought it in my mind, but there were two tiet me off And…and it happened”

Her knees buckled, and he tightened his hold as her tearssobs Never in his life had a feeling of helplessness quite like he experienced at that uilt and disdain for his own brother, and his head was fucked

“Baby,” he said, the words sounding like they ca animal

“I’ sobs he’d ever heard

“Jesus Christ, baby, you don’t have a fucking thing to be sorry for Not one fucking thing” He loved her with every fiber of his being and had no clue how to take this pain frorip so tight she probably couldn’t breathe But he couldn’t let her go All he wanted was for some of his warmth and love to bleed into her and heal her battered soul

Slowly the sobs abated and turned to hitching breaths “That’s why I saw a therapist I couldn’t live with the shauilt of it all I couldn’t wrapan act I hated She gave me studies to read, told me it was not uncommon for a wo raped Learning that helped so time, Copper The day Rusty was arrested for assault was the sanant As soon as he was convicted, I packed s about the pregnancy that make me want to throhen I think about them today Eventually, my roo about what had happened, but she could see I was in a dark, dangerous place”

Every word drove the dagger deeper into his heart “Did it help, baby?”

“Yes After a while I saw the therapist for alle session she would tell me it wasn’t my fault Wasn’tin a way it was programmed to respond Then she’d make me say it Over and over Until I started to believe it

“The first tiot pissed and left the session early I hadn’t thought of it as rape because I allowed it to happen and never fought him The next time, she told me if I didn’t want to view myself as a rape survivor I didn’t have to, but when it came down to it, I was coerced into sexual acts I didn’t want So it technically was a sexual assault Anyway, Beth was born, and I fell in love with her But as time went on, I missed hoht it was safe to co her wasn’t so all-consu”

Rubbing a hand over her slender back, he said, “So you never planned to stay here?”

“Not long terood behavior”

“I should have seen who he was and what he was Fuck! I should have protected you” The guilt was almost unbearable How could she stand to look at hi with her body and heart? She should hate him for what she endured on his behalf

“No, Copper Please don’t say that Don’tyou You said you needed to know, so I told you, but I’ll never forgive uilt in your eyes fro voice and the desperate way she clutched fistfuls of his shirt nearly did hi at another’s hands He’dlife

“I’ll try,” he said It was as far as he could promise at that moment How the fuck was he supposed to keep hi way toward solving that probleuilt would always lie with hi back the deep debt he owed her was necessary But he’d keep that tidbit to himself because his sweet and wonderful Shell would never see it that way