Page 72 of Secrets

"She's a hell of a lot wiser than I am. But that's not the point. Everyone has their own preferences. Like, for example, many guys out there like fake tits. Me? I'm a sucker for the real ones, regardless of size. But yours are perfect. Large and can actually move when I play with them. If I wanted to play with chicken cutlets, I would've become a cook. And as for your ass, fucking amazing."

To his surprise, Jolie laughs. "It’s just... I feel so stupid."

"You're not stupid. You didn't miss signs because he was really good at keeping everything separate. His life with you and his life with them never coincided. Which, considering how small the town is, is kind of impressive. I don't admire what he did,but I admire his conviction and dedication. It had to be so much work."

"I know we haven't had the discussion or anything, so if you've been with-"

"You're the only one. I can't let you go through my work phone, but you can go through my personal phone anytime you want, baby."

Smiling as her lip quivers, she stands and walks over to him. "Only me?"

"The last time I was with someone else was when I saw you with those two sketchy dudes."

"Who?"

"My ex, Evie."

Her arms wrap around his waist, and she looks up at his face. "Tell me about Evie."

Bodie sighs. This could be a trap, but he knows everything there is to know about Justin. Including his package size, which was super fun. "You're not going to like part of it."

"She's blonde, isn't she?"

"She is. Blonde with gray eyes. She's about three inches or so taller than you, and she's got a very lean build."

Sniffling, she stares into his eyes. "What does a lean build mean?"

"Not many curves. She's pretty. She's really pretty, actually, but she lied to me. Broke my fucking heart."

"Really pretty?"

Guiding her into the living room, they sit on the couch and face each other. "I was certain I was going to marry her one day. Assuming I lived. I know I was a miserable bastard towards the end, and I pushed everyone away. Including her. If I was going to die, I didn't want anyone there to watch me. It was really bad, and it was really painful."

Her hand takes his. "Weren't you lonely?"

"I was too stubborn to be lonely," Bodie says and chuckles. "I disappeared to go off and die alone. I got the call about the heart, and when I knew my body wasn't going to reject it, I went to find her once I was strong enough. We're both from Black Valley, and when she opened the door, I knew. She wore another man's shirt just like she used to wear mine."

"You can't really blame her for moving on, can you? It was a while, right?"

Nodding, he looks at their joined hands. "It was. And I wasn't mad that she moved on, but it was fucking painful to see. The man came to the door, and I just... I couldn't do it. I took off, and that's how I ended up here. That night we met, I was running away from her, but what bothers me most is how the entire way, I expected to see headlights from her car behind me trying to stop me. But they never came."

"You wanted her to try and stop you to tell you she loves you. That she was sorry, and this other guy meant nothing to her?"

"Yeah, pretty much. That we could work through it, and we could try and pick up right where we left off, but that didn't happen."

"Then you found a crazy woman standing on a bridge, ready to jump."

"Gotta say, you were the first person to distract me from my feelings. Plus, you're sexy as all get out. It's weird, too, because that's not the route I usually take when driving from Black Valley to Summerville. For some reason, that was the route I took, and it was like fate because I met you. Thought you were off your rocker, but I met you."

Her thumb rubs his hand, and he wants to kiss her. He wants to kiss her and hold her, but he's not sure if she's ready for it just yet. "The universe kept putting us together for some reason. It made you my cowboy."

"This is true," he says and smiles. "The night before we saw each other again, Evie showed up here. She said she'd basically been blackmailed into a sexual relationship with her boss, and it was my fault. She said she'd stolen money to pay for my medication and got caught. We went to the motel and spent the night together."

Pulling back, Jolie stares at him. "Her boss made her..."

"Yep. In the morning, I talked to our lawyer who told me everything from the legal side of things. I still wanted to kill the asshole, but Evie begged me not to the night before. When I told Evie what Lily told me, she lost it. Fucking lost it, and she admitted she lied about being forced into anything. Turns out, the money for meds came from the club, and she never stole anything. Tried to twist the knife and make me feel even guiltier than I already did for pushing her away."

"She lied?"

---