Page 129 of The Redemption of Remy St. Claire

And then he’d attacked Remy.

Tears blurred his vision. His beautiful, amazing wife. The innocent in this whole disaster area. She’d married him so he could keep Mira safe, and then he’d threatened her sister’s security. Well, her daughter’s security. Not that he’d ever tell Calleigh. Or anyone else, for that matter. In that moment, though, the whole situation had reeked of hypocrisy.

So he lashed out at the one person who tried to help him.

If anyone deserved compassion and caring, it was Remy St. Claire.

Remy Stevens. She’d even changed her name plate at work. Hopefully, she hadn’t thrown out the old one. After today, she’d probably be hightailing it down to the courthouse for a divorce. Actually, they’d been married for such a short period of time, she might be able to get an annulment. They’d only consummated the marriage a week ago.

Was it just a week ago? He’d had an entire week to bask in the memories. The sexually timid woman who’d believed she was frigid had finally let him in. She’d let him try to help her. He pictured her climaxing for the first time. The look of absolute wonder on her face. She believed he’d given her a treasure, but it was the other way around. In that moment, he’d seen the truth. He might still love Sissy, but he was in love with Remy. And there was a difference. One was passive—in the past. The other was active. His present. His future, if she’d take him back.

There had to be a way to fix this.

His phone buzzed with an incoming text.

Mira says good night.

He couldn’t help but smile. Remy was doing this for Mira because, aside from their honeymoon night, he’d never missed a story time.

Feeling a longing and a pull so strong it threatened to bring him to his knees, he threw a twenty down on the table and left the diner. The too-young waitress waved at him through the window.

He offered a hope Sissy would find safety, but she’d made her choice. He had to live with that. He’d made his choices.

Hopefully he wasn’t too late.

As he pulled into the driveway, the porch light shone through the dark night. All the other lights in the front half of the house were out. The master bedroom faced the back of the house, so he couldn’t be sure if Remy was waiting up for him or not. Probably not. He hadn’t given her any hope he’d be home tonight.

The rain was coming down in torrents as he sprinted to the house. His key slid in, and the door gave without hesitation. Shucking his coat, he headed to the girls’ room. The door was slightly ajar, as it always was. The nightlight sent out a low glow. Calleigh’d crawled into Mira’s bed. It looked like, in sleep as in daytime, they comforted each other.

How had he ever contemplated tearing this apart?

He hadn’t. Not really. He’d misdirected his rage.

He had to fix this. He strode to the master bedroom.

“Rusty?”

He stopped. Oh, Remy was in the living room, lying on the couch.

He turned on a lamp, watching as she righted herself. “What are you doing out here?”

“Waiting for you.” She shielded her eyes from the light. “I guess I fell asleep.” She lowered her hand as her eyes adjusted to the light. “What time is it?”

“A little after ten.”

“Oh.”

“You should be in bed.”

She glanced at him. “Did you find her?”

“Her?”

“Sissy. She’s the reason you left, right?”

“You may think less of me, Remy, but I didn’t go find her. She’s not the reason I left.”

“I’m the reason.”

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