Page 134 of Delicate Storm

Paige laughs before falling back against the cushions and resting her head on my shoulder. “I’d rather we—”

“Nope.” I press a finger to her lips to shush her. “It’s time to talk, D’Angelo. And I want to knoweverything.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Paige

“You’re not going to let me off the hook, are you?” I keep my eyes forward and my head on Easton’s shoulder, feeling him move beside me.

“Hell, no.” He laughs. “But you’re cute for asking.” He bops my nose, and I huff out a laugh of my own even though what I’m about to share is anything but funny.

“I don’t know where to start.”

Easton turns, forcing me to sit up and look at him. “How about you start with the reason you’re holding back, since we’ve established it’s not your dad.”

I bite back a smile as I shake my head. He’s right. I’m not worried about my dad, but I still don’t think it’s going to be a fun conversation when we decide to tell him. Taking a deep breath, I grab my knees when they start to bounce, then I nod. “I—”

“You don’t have to be nervous,” Easton cuts in, his gaze moving to my legs as he slowly reaches out to touch me, placing a tentative hand on my knee. “Whatever it is, I’m here.”

Our eyes lock as my breath hitches. He’s here. With me. But what happens when he finds out about my past?

“I hate to talk exes but—” Easton scoffs, his brow raised. “Okay. I realize we just spoke about your ex, but this is different. And you’re not going to like it.”

“Try me.”

“Christian and I had a purely physical relationship. His family business takes him around the world regularly, so he didn’t want to commit to anyone and I didn’t either, though I had no excuse except that I didn’t feel like it. We never had an emotional connection, but the physical side of things was incredible. At the time.” I cringe and Easton laughs, though it’s easy to see it’s aGod, why am I listening to thischuckle.

“Want me to keep going?”

“Please. But no need for great detail.”

This time it’s my turn to laugh, and while I’m sure he’s not actually joking, it puts my mind at ease.

“In short, I’ve already told you that we played a lot of games in our relationship, but what I didn’t tell you was that his family were the ones that leaked the details to the media.”

“What? Why?”

“A month before I moved here, I was at Christian’s parents’ house because he needed to pick something up. He was taking too long in the attic, so I decided to help myself to a drink. Only I didn’t realize his mom was home and when I approached the kitchen, she was talking to his aunt. They were discussing some ah…illegal practices that Christian’s dad was partaking in. I turned to walk away, not wanting them to catch me, but Christian chose that moment to call my name. So of course, his mom rushed into the hallway and found me.”

“Shit. That’s not what I was expecting you to say. What happened?”

“She asked if I’d been listening in on their conversation, and while I told her I just got there, she didn’t believe me. Rightly so, because I heard a lot. Too much. But since she’s not aware how long I was listening, so she has no idea what I know.”

Easton stiffens, his eyes narrowing. “So she leaked information to the media?”

“Yes. And I think she’s kind of blackmailing me.”

“She’s what?” His voice raises as he stands, his fists clenched. “She’s blackmailing you?”

“Yes.”

“Fuck, Paige. Why didn’t you lead with that? Why didn’t you tell me and—”

“Shhh. You’ll wake Isaac. I didn’t tell you because I thought I could handle it and I didn’t want you involved. I still don’t.”

“Well, it’s too late for that.”

“No, it’s not. I told my dad. He’s helping so that you don’t have to.”

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