Page 61 of My Secret to Protect

‘I’m not going to get hurt, Bree.’

‘Arlo, he’s dangerous.’

‘Sugar, his dangerous ain’t got nothing on mine.’

We stay locked in a moment that lasts too long before Bree pulls her hand away, stands, and starts to clear the table. I feel like a moth, and she’s a fucking candle. I’m drawn closer and closer to her light every day, the way I always was, and I don’t know how I’m ever going to walk away from her. Losing her once was torture, but I shaped my heartbreak into hatred. It was easy without her right in front of me to turn her into the villain in my story, but now, she’s here, in touching distance, and she’s real and sweet, beautiful and sexy. I hate myself for my attraction to her when she’s going through so much, but it’s impossible to deny.

It’s not lost on me that there haven’t been many brunettes underneath me in the last twelve years. I avoided them for a reason. I have a type, and it’s Bree fucking Campbell.

‘Weshouldn’tbedrinking,’I say, smiling slightly. The warmth from the bottle of whiskey we found in the cabin is loosening my muscles and my lips.

Since our conversation over lunch this afternoon, the mood has been lighter. I swam, she read. I played with Beans, and then Bree and I played cards. Then we found the bottle, and her eyes danced with mischief, so I couldn’t say no.

‘Fuck it,’ Bree says before giggling, and I laugh with her. We’re on the deck of the cabin. Beans is asleep inside, and it’s raining hard. Bree likes to sit outside when it’s raining so she can listen to the sounds of it hitting the roof, the ground, and the surface of the lake. Turning my head, I see her pull up the blanket covering her and take another sip.

‘You cold?’

She shakes her head, no, and I notice the peaceful look on her face. She’s relaxed, more relaxed than I’ve seen her since she’s been back in my orbit.

Our conversation today has been light and fun. We talked about her family, my guys at work, and she talked openly about how she met the prick hiding in the shadows, and it got me thinking. I hate that he was in her life, and I hate even more that he was in her bed.

‘Was he a shit lay?’ I ask, still watching her, and she turns her head, eyeing me curiously. I grin. ‘The piece of shit. He was a bad fuck, right?’

She releases a shocked laugh but holds my gaze.

‘Why are you asking me that?’

Shrugging, I take another sip from the tumbler in my hand.

‘I don’t want him to have any redeeming qualities, so knowing he was a bad kisser, bad in the sack, that helps.’

She shakes her head, but she’s smiling. ‘He wasn’t a bad kisser.’ She turns her attention back to where the rain is hitting the surface of the lake. ‘He wasn’tmake me moan in the middle of a packed dance floorgood, but he was okay.’ I smirk and take another sip.

‘Bad fuck though, right?’

She laughs and turns to meet my eye. ‘Arlo, stop.’ I can’t help but smile at the soft expression on her face. ‘He wasn’t bad, just not mind-blowing either.’

‘I knew it,’ I grumble, hearing the amusement lace my words. It shouldn’t matter at all, but it’s been a while since I’ve felt the buzz of hard liquor in my blood, and it’s showing.

‘Tell me, Arlo Harper.’ I glance over as Bree turns her body in my direction. ‘How is it a man like you is single? Wait, are you single?’ Her eyes widen, and I smile, nodding.

‘You think I have a wife in the city who’s happy for me to disappear for a couple of months to take care of my ex andmake her moan in the middle of a packed dance floor?’ I see her swallow hard and love that the thought affects her that way. ‘I’m single, Bree.’

‘You just keep things casual then?’

Nodding, I answer. ‘Yeah, just casual.’

She takes a breath and turns to look out at the lake once more.

‘You’ve been with a lot of women?’

I put down my glass on the table between us and inhale slowly, then nod, yes. She’s not looking at me, but I know she already knows my answer.

‘You want to know something stupid?’ she asks, turning to me, and I hold her gaze, answering without words. ‘I hate the thought of you with other women.’ She looks away and shakes her head. ‘I know that’s ridiculous. I have no right to that jealousy. I have no right to ask you for every name so that I can look up their addresses and go claw their eyes out, but I want to. I hate it.’

Wow. Her honesty stuns me, and I watch as she covers her face, regretting letting the truth come out.

‘I haven’t been a monk these past twelve years, pix. I can’t pretend I sat alone in my apartment with my dick in my hand.’

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