Page 132 of Unexpected Heroine

After blinking a half dozen times, her eyes go vacant. A cloud of sadness sails behind her irises.

Curiosity gets the better of me, along with a fervent desire to find out what’s made her react this strongly, so I gently urge her to continue. “When what, sweetness?”

Repeatedly, she shakes her head in a scant wobble. The movement is so damn subtle I almost miss it. With her next breath, she dispels a lungful of trepidation, mashes her eyes closed, and flops her head back on her pillow. “I need to tell you about this. But you’re gonna be mad.”

Mad at her? That’s absurd.

I tell her as much. “No. Not a chance, sugar.”

Immediately discarding my assertion, she scoffs, “But I didn’t tell you who...” Words fail her, disappearing off her tongue.

Or maybe they’re getting clogged in her throat. The confidence she had only a second ago while denying my ability to withhold my anger has vanished.

Whatever she’s about to say is gonna be a gut punch. And potentially a junk punch.

Inherently, I know I need to hear this—whatever it is. Quite possibly, it’s more significant than anything else she’s said since I carried her out of that place.

“Lettie, no matter what you say or don’t say, I won’t be upset with you. I promise.”

Opening her eyes, she scoots closer, burrowing against my chest while remaining reclined on her side. “You’re misunderstanding me. I’m not worried about you being mad at me.”

Shit.

A minute ago, she was serene, sleeping peacefully. All it took was a glimpse of my screen to shatter her tranquility. One look of something I should have never let her see. No matter what I do, I keep upsetting her.

I don’t even need my father’s memory to castigate me for this.

“Lettie, this is important, isn’t it?”

Her grip around me tightens. “I think it is. Particularly since you’re helping the cops find the men responsible.” Her shaky breath against my chest signals her trepidation, and my gut sinks like a boulder. “It’s not only that, though. I-I-I need you to know what happened so you can help me figure out what he meant. I won’t be able to get over any of this until we talk this out. And dammit, I want to move on—especially from this. But I’m... babe, I’m utterly terrified of what might happen when I tell you this part. That’s why I haven’t talked about it yet.”

My pulse goes haywire. I could swear it’s starting and stopping every few seconds.

Out of everything she’s revealed thus far about what happened to her, this is somehow heavier. Denser. The sheer idea of telling me makes her look like she’s weighed down, struggling to rid herself of the burden.

I know that look.

From somewhere deep inside me, I channel a calmness I do not feel. “What are you scared of?”

A morose chuckle shakes her chest. “About this? Absolutely everything. Your reaction. How horrific it’ll be to relive it. The consequences I’ll face for lying to the cops. And worst of all, if what he said is true, I’m petrified about what will happen. To me. My family.” In a barely audible whisper, she adds, “And to us.”

I’m terrified now too.

In the service, there was an expression I heard a time or two. When you’re going through hell, keep on going.

Never has it been more apropos.

No matter how much it hurts or how much I bleed. No matter how much we burn, we must keep going.

Gathering my courage and steeling my resolve, I softly lift her chin with my thumb and forefinger, encouraging her to look at me. “Lettie, you don’t need to be scared to tell me anything. Ever. I won’t be mad. It won’t change my feelings for you. No matter what it is, I’ll handle the fallout. I’ll fix it. I swear to you.”

It’s a vow to myself as much as her.

She exhales a jagged breath like the oxygen scrapes her chest on the way out. Before speaking, she sits up. Looking around the bed, she grabs her tank top and tosses it on.

We’re no longer touching. Her shoulders are square to mine. We’re eye to eye.

Despite it being only a few inches, the distance between us is a vast chasm. The morbid side of me wonders if I’m about to fall, tumbling down the crag.

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