She met my gaze and didn’t blink. “Hunter.”
The man who'd hurt Sam. I swallowed. If she wanted to press charges, I could help her. “I hope you know you can trust me with the truth.”
She glanced up at the chandelier over my bed and let out a small laugh. “I can’t trust anyone. I learned as a girl that I’m a burden, and I used to fear that you or anyone might see how unworthy I truly am.”
I had no idea how to change her mind on that one. She had never been a burden. She was the only person I'd ever wanted to spend every second with. I swallowed and hoped I found the right words. “That’s not—“
“I wanted to ensure Sam never once felt like he was unworthy, and I've tried to be a great mom to him.”
“You are,” I said quickly. She hadn’t had much money, but that wasn't important. In my own childhood, it had been the simple things like a hug when I scraped my knee that made me love Roxanne Norouzi. My adoptive mother had been there for me at every event of my life—that counted.
She wiped a tear from her eye. “I wanted to be like your mom, who protected you from the horrors of the world.”
I offered my hand and let our linked hands rest between us. “Maman is great, and she wishes she was there for you too.”
She uncurled her legs but shook her head. “There is a good reason I can’t be like Roxanne, and it’s not just money.”
I whispered, “Your parents are gone now from our lives.”
“Doesn’t matter where they are.” She snorted. ”They taught me the truth about myself. I was clearly targeted because I’m weak, and I brought Sam and me hell.”
I met her gaze. “What happened?”
She lowered her head. “I… I wasn’t looking to date anyone. We met a few months ago, and I didn’t have my guard up. I let Hunter into our lives as a friend… but then he raped me.”
My entire body tensed. I wanted to find him and murder him with my bare hands. The level of violence inside me hit me like a punch. I took a breath, calmed down, and asked in an even tone I would use with a patient, “He what?”
Tears streamed down her face, and she sobbed. I ached to hold her, but I was afraid that would push her away. She swallowed and wiped her eyes. “I said no, but he didn’t care. The next day he came back and beat Sam. When I tried to kick him out, he…. raped me again and again. I failed Sam.”
The horror she'd endured played out in my mind over and over again, and a shiver ran through me that I hadn't been there to help her when she needed me. She was clearly still processing what had happened to her. I scooted closer to her. “You found a way to escape and ran. That says a lot.”
She rested her head on my shoulder. “It doesn’t matter. I realized I’m the opposite of the character I played.”
“What?”
She wiped her face and laughed. “No one would ever believe I was a princess.”
Our foreheads met. I’d never understood her obsession with princesses. “So what?”
She cupped my face. “Whoever you end up with will live a charmed, happy life, and that’s never going to be me.”
I came alive from her simple touch. I opened my eyes and stared into hers. “I have more faith in you than you have in yourself.”
“Why? What do you possibly see in me?”
“The only woman who has ever made me happy.”
“I’m scared, Elon.”
I squeezed her hand and hoped she understood I’d be there for her. “You can get therapy and work out your fears.”
She raised her eyebrows then blinked. “That doesn’t help.”
Now that I understood more of what she'd been through, I wished I’d have searched for her sooner. But I couldn’t change the past. And it didn’t matter. She was here now, and we would go slow. “I get you’re not ready for a relationship, but I can’t walk away from you.”
She closed her eyes. “It’s better if you do. In time, you’re going to see that I’m no good for your life.”
I tugged on the covers and waited for her to settle in. She needed time and sleep. “Impossible, because you’re the only woman I ever loved. You returning here to be with me… every second we’re together… I realize that I am absolutely falling in love with you again, and this time I want to get it right.”
