She sat up, clutching the sheet to her chest with one hand, waving the other to my room. “It’s like she never even lived here.” She shook her head as she ran her fingers through her disheveled locks.
Another blow, straight to the chest. That one hurt even worse, knocking the air out of my lungs. I sat up, the room starting to spin. Suddenly I was that kid again, in the lunchroom backed into the corner, being kicked while I was already down.
“It’s obvious this house was built for her…” she reached out and put a hand on my arm and I instinctively jerked away. “…for a family.”
And we have a knockout. I was down for the count. Why, oh, why out of all the words did she have to say those? Not after the moment that we just shared.
I stood, barreled into the bathroom, and splashed some cold water on my face, hoping to get my racing heart to steady. G followed me. I knew she wasn’t trying to be cruel. She was only trying to make sense of it all. But she had no clue the vault she was trying to pry open, and she had no right, not yet. Not with whatever secrets she was harboring as well.
I pushed past her and dug through my dresser, throwing on a fresh pair of boxers and sweatpants. Out of the corner of my eye I could see her mouth moving, still talking, but I couldn’t even look at her face to try and listen.
Slowly, I walked over to the bed and slumped down onto it. Resting my elbows on my knees, I dropped my head, threaded my fingers together on the back of my skull, trying to catch my breath. Deep breath in. Deep breath out.
The last thing that I wanted to do was lose my shit in front of her. It would be absolutely humiliating. I closed my eyes, trying to block the tears from falling, but I could feel the hot sting of them still breaking through.
Fuck it. Throwing out my man card, I looked up at her and let them fall.
Her face fell when she looked at me. “Tanner, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have…” She moved toward me.
I held my trembling hand out, shaking my head, telling her not to come a step closer.
She moved closer, regardless, tears now streaming down her face as well.
“Please…go…” I said to her between trying to catch my breath. I just needed a minute. I tried to tell her that, but the words wouldn’t form. I didn’t want her to see me like this. Weak. Broken. Beaten down.
Her eyes widened, but she nodded and backed away from me like a wounded animal. She then quickly grabbed her clothes from the floor and skittered out the door still in her underwear.
I waited for several minutes, arms clenched around my belly. I just needed to pull myself together. Then, I could talk to her, try to explain.
But then the floors shook under my feet and I knew she’d slammed the door hard on her way out.
She was gone.
“Please go!” Tanner’s shout rang through my ears, his tears making my own chest heave. Then he was pointing toward the door.
My blood ran cold. What the fuck have I done?
As I tried to collect my belongings, I couldn’t help the tears falling down my face. I just had the best damn sexual experience of my life. My first orgasm in I don’t know how many years with the kindest, most attentive man that I’d ever met. And I went and opened my big fucking mouth.
I could not believe my level of stupidity.
I’d tried to tell him that I was sorry, to explain, but he wasn’t having any of it. Neither was Archie. That poor dog was running back and forth, barking like mad. As I stood by his front door putting my clothes on as quickly as possible, I couldn’t shake the image of him out of my head. Tanner sitting there, crying, hands threaded behind his head, like a child who’d just been beaten.
I knew that feeling all too well.
And this time, I was the one doling out the punches.
Finally, my shaky hands were able to lace up my boots and I snatched my coat and scarf off the hook by the door. Archie came running over to me, tail wagging, looking at the door, barking. “I’m sorry, boy. I messed up bad.” I wiped my nose and sniffled, then reached down, scratching his fur. “Go take care of your daddy.” I patted him on the backside, yet he still kept looking to the door, scratching. “Go!” I repeated, adding the sign I now knew all too well.
Finally, Archie reluctantly obeyed and ran down the hall.
I opened the door and slammed it hard behind me.
As I looked up and pulled my hood over my head, I stopped dead in my tracks. A large 4x4, red Jeep Wrangler pulled up next to Tanner’s truck. Everything inside me said I needed to bolt, but all I could do was stand there, frozen as a statue.
My jaw hung open as a woman around my age climbed out of the vehicle. She was wearing a white beanie and poking out from underneath were strands of golden-brown waves that touched the top of her shoulders.
She also stopped dead in her tracks and her jaw dropped. Slowly, she pulled off her Ray Bans and her eyes raked me over.
Gradually, I found my feet and began walking.
“Who in the friggin’ hell are you?” She finally asked, barreling toward me as I reached the bottom step.
Oh god. She was from Jersey. I could tell it immediately from her accent. I knew plenty of girls from Jersey and they were notoriously known for their tempers. Suddenly, I feared I was about to get my ass handed to me.
I blinked, trying to find my words as I looked into her incensed, very green eyes.
Oh, dear god. Did I just sleep with a married man? Was Tanner lying to me the whole time?
Of course, I too was technically still married.
My brain couldn’t catch up to my jumbled thoughts.
Except… even though this woman looked furious, there was something familiar about her. It was the eyes. I knew those eyes.
She lifted her hands and signed. “I asked, who are you?”
Blinking like a deer in the headlights I took in the rest of her pretty features. I’d seen this woman before. In dozens of photos scattered through Tanner’s home. His sister.
“You’re his sister,” I whispered. “Tyler.” Tanner had mentioned her name on our walk that morning.
“So, you can hear.” She frowned, placing her hands on her hips. “So, I’ll ask it a third time. Who the hell are you?” Her brow went up as she crossed her arms over her chest. I knew right then and there that this was a girl that I’d never want to mess with.
“I…I…” I stammered, trying to find words. “I’m just a friend of Tanner’s.”
She snorted. “Bullshit. My brother doesn’t have friends.”
“I’m renting the cabin nearby.” I pointed in said direction.
Her lips grew taut as she continued to scrutinize me, eyes raking me up and down.
Just then a loud bang came from inside the house, followed by a crash. Both she and I turned our heads in that direction. Her head snapped back toward me and she pushed me out of the way, bolting up the steps.
And that’s when I ran.
I stormed through the back door of my cabin, slumped down on the sofa, curled up in a ball, and sobbed for what felt like forever.
Why, oh, why did I have to press him about his wife? Tanner had every right to be furious with me. But what he didn’t know was that I was only guarding my heart. He didn’t know where I’d come from, what I’d been through, and why it was so hard for me to trust that there were honest people in the world.