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There was a whining at the back door and Aiesha’s et that Can’t have yourit while she’s under your protection, can you?’

It only took Ja in but when he turned around Aiesha had disappeared

Aiesha leant heavily on her bedroo for the sound of Jae Her heart thudded as each long second passed What was he thinking of her after that crazy little show? What was he thinking of her brash attitude now she had let it slip? He had seen her at her worst Out of control Panicked Upset Vulnerable She had lost it in front of hi the contents of the kitchen around like one of her creepy mother’s boyfriends in a drunken tantrum

Would he h at her?

Or, worse, would he try and understand her? Know her?

Aiesha thought of telling hi able to share some of the pain she carried like toxic waste in her bones The sha an outsider, the one no one wanted The crushing weight of guilt she felt about not being able to protect her ht never be able to get her life on track To reach her potential instead of being sty out she was not as tough as she made everyone think? That, underneath the brash facade, she was as sensitive and caring as his mother? Maybe even more so

She heard the stairs creak as he came up them She heard each of his footsteps, unhurried, steady and sure She heard hih baritone of his voice ‘Aiesha?’

She cla out to him She didn’t need his comfort She didn’t need anyone’s comfort She had been on her own for the last ten years—forto stay So what if she’d got a little panicked over losing the dog in the dark? Big deal The dog came back No harm done

The silence stretched and stretched and stretched along with her held breath Aiesha wasn’t sure which would break first—the silence or her lungs

‘Can we talk?’ James said

She clenched her hands into tight balls of self-containment No Go away