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Chapter Eight

Ethan

My body felt hot all over as Cain’s gaze swept over , especially considering at what point of estion of a break

How could you let him do that to you?

It was a question I’d asked ht and in the et free of Eric As a doctor, I’d encouraged victims of domestic abuse and sexual assault to coes I’d taken pictures of broken, battered bodies and performed exams on people at the most vulnerable tiht as I’d li downin my underwear, that I’d truly understood whatand why sothe cops was one of the first things the hospital staff would do when they got a look at e desk that I’d leave if the police were called I’d spent the rest of the evening enduring being put back together and listening to the saiven toup until they’d asked me that one question that had hurt more than any injury Eric could have inflicted upon me

Is there someone we can call for you, Ethan?

There’d been no one

Because I’d pushed them away

For Eric

“Ethan,” I heard Cain say softly and I looked up to see hion his knuckles that hadn’t been there before and his hair looked damp His shirt was different too

“Sorry,” I otten lost in the past “After that night, I had to take so the h proof to convince Eric to stay away from me, but I still needed ot better at not pissing Eric off asa toll onBut I was able to put the tired About three months before Lucy and I took off, Eric’s former partner on the force came into the ER to be treated for a burn to his hand He was one of the only people who knew about me and Eric…I’d seen him a couple of times when Eric would do one of his random check-ins to make sure I was at holas”