Page 55 of Submission

“She doesn’t even remember me,” he says, and I hear the trace of thick grief in his voice. “It’s interesting how not one of those assholes ever mentioned that Lena was alive as I sent them on their way to hell. Someone had to know. How did she end up in foster care?”

“Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise that you don’t have all the answers,” I look up at him. “Now you get to be the big brother and protect her, and she has a chance to get to know you without experiencing the grief of missing you all those years.”

“Maybe,” Hunter meets my gaze.

“There’s no maybe.” I give him a firm nod. “Once she falls into the younger sister role, you’re going to have your hands full. Besides, it’s nice to have somebody in your life who putsyou first. I remember, when I was little, I would often wish that some unknown relative would come swooping in like some sort of superhero and whisk me away from everything.”

Hunter studies me. “Your childhood was that bad?”

“Like you didn’t do your in-depth research into me.” I give him a wry smile.

“I know some of it but I didn’t want to totally pry.” He shrugs. “I would rather you come tell me your secrets yourself.”

“Is that why you told me this one about your sister?” I ask.

“I involved you because I trust you and because I wanted you to know. You belong to me now, Megan, and there shouldn’t be anything we can’t share with each other. I would move heaven and earth to keep you safe and happy, and in time, I’m hoping you’ll feel the same way about me.”

His words make something quiver inside my chest, and I try to breathe past it. “You don’t play fair.”

“That’s because I’m not playing,” he says thickly.

“Of course, I feel the same way about you. I’m just not as eloquent with my words.”

He buries his face in my neck. “When I’m inside you, your body says everything I need it to say.“

“Now you’re just being fresh,” I chuckle, my heart racing at his words even as I try to remain unaffected.

He just smiles against my skin as his hands slide around and caress the cheeks of my butt, but I think he’s using physical intimacy as a defensive tactic to avoid the topic. Maybe he always has, and I never noticed.

I pull back and stare into his eyes. “Does it really bother you that I haven’t shared everything about my past with you?”

Hunter gives me a steady look. “I’ve shared more with you than I have with any other woman, so yeah, maybe it bothers me a little.”

“There’s nothing I can tell you that you can’t find out yourself.”

“Is that the kind of relationship you want the two of us to have? Because it can be that, but I don’t want you to resent me for it a year from now.”

“A year from now?” I echo back.

“Unless you plan on going somewhere,” he says through tight lips.

I sigh and wander over to the couch, pulling my legs up under me. He follows me, sitting beside me and pulling me into his chest.

This was supposed to be a physical relationship, something fun, and then he decided to give a name to it. I honestly never thought that Hunter would ever want to be involved in something serious with me. I’m a college student. I’m a starving artist. I work for him. I’m so much younger than him. I could go on and on about all the differences between us and all the reasons why the two of us don’t make any sense at all, but the respect he shows me, the care, I’ve never experienced anything like it before. It makes me want to share some part of the pain that still lives inside of me, especially after what I’ve seen happen between him and Lacy today.

So, for the first time ever…I decide to trust someone, and I start at the beginning.

“My parents were inhumane monsters.”

Chapter 20

What Did They Do To You?

Megan

Isit up straighter, pulling my knees to my chest and wrapping my arms around them. I haven’t told this story in a very long time, partly because I’d hoped that I’d never have to.

“Ever since I can remember, I knew my father didn’t love me like other dads loved their kids, and I knew the reasons were deeply connected to his feelings for my mother. He wanted to punish me for whatever crimes he believed my mother committed, and my stepmother wanted me to pay the price for being the child of the man she loved.”

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