Page 190 of His Virgin Romance Series

I shrugged, trying to brush off the tender moment. “I just felt bad lying to you after I’d promised you an honest answer.”

She seemed to understand what I was trying to do because her expression didn’t change. She grew very quiet for a moment, and I saw her eyes cloud over. Then she looked at me and took a deep breath. “I’m a virgin,” she revealed.

I had not expected that, and I could only stare at her for a moment. “I… what?”

“I’m a virgin,” Abby said again.

“Is that why you freaked out on me that day in the ring?” I asked as all the dots connected.

“Yes,” Abby nodded.

“Fuck,” I breathed.

“The night that Walter attacked me, he wanted to have sex, and I kept putting it off because the idea of having sex with him terrified me. When I finally said no, he completely lost it and went for my throat. He was also half drunk… but he was usually half drunk.”

I felt my fists clench in anger, and there was nothing more I wanted at this moment than to wrap my hands around Walter Black’s throat and choke the life out of him. I kept my expression calm however and tried to stay in the moment with Abby.

“Can I ask you a question?” I asked, not wanting to push her.

“You want to know why I’m still a virgin at twenty-three?”

“Well… yeah.”

Abby looked down for a second, and I saw from the way she wrung her hands together that she didn’t love explaining this part.

“You don’t have to tell me—”

“No, I want to,” she said. “My mother… had a lot of boyfriends. When I was fourteen there was one in particular. His name was Mike.”

“Did he touch you?” I demanded, feeling new rage rush through me.

“He tried to,” she nodded. “I woke up one night, and he was in bed with me. He had one hand on my breast and the other hand down my pajama pants.”

“Fuck,” I said, realizing how triggering that must have been for her.

“I screamed and pushed him away from me… my mother ran in, and they had a huge fight, and she ultimately kicked him out. He didn’t get the chance to rape me or anything… but it was my first experience with sex, and I suppose it… it turned me off. I promised myself that when I had sex it would be with someone I felt safe with.”

I nodded. “I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

Abby shrugged. “I’ve lived so much of my life being scared… mostly of men. Maybe that’s why I gravitated towards strong men who I assumed would protect me. But the fact is I need to stop relying on men and start relying on myself. I need to be my own savior. With your training, I might just be on my way.”

“You’ve come a long way.”

“Thanks to you,” Abby pointed out.

I shook my head. “I couldn’t have taught you anything if you weren’t willing to learn. It’s all you, Abby… it’s all you.”

I saw her smile as she looked out into the great wide vastness of the field. “This has been a wonderful night,” she said softly, as though she were talking to herself.

I looked up at the stars and nodded in agreement.

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