Eden sighed even as guilt moved through her. Her parents had had Marv over to their house all the time while they were growing up, and she did look up to him. But neither Sam nor El trusted him.
“I only trust Sam and El,” she repeated. “Both of them have said not to trust him.”
He nodded but said nothing, continuing to stare at her. It was the longest they had spent together since she had arrived in Hawai’i months earlier. At least alone, that is. There would probably never be a time when she didn’t want Kap. It was her burden.
Needing some space, she turned away from him. She only got a couple of steps away when he reached out for her. The moment his fingers wrapped around her arm, her entire body lit up like a Christmas tree. The man didn’t have to do much. From the moment she’d met him, she had been overwhelmed by him. Men had always been something she could do without. Most of them bored her.
He pulled her back against him, her back to his front. He leaned down.
“I’m sorry.”
Those two words almost broke her, but she kept her spine as straight as possible. At this point, she couldn’t show weakness.
“It was a long time ago.”
“It feels like it was just yesterday.”
It did for her, too, but the last time she’d opened her heart for him, he had stabbed her and left her bleeding.
“Was this what you wanted to tell me about?”
She turned to face him. “About the case?”
“No. When we talked on the phone, you said you wanted to talk to me about something.”
“You remember that?”
He chuckled, the rich sound tumbling through her entire system. The man would always be sexy. Was that why she hadn’t been able to move on? She had yet to take another lover. She couldn’t trust anyone, or that’s what she told herself.
Was that the reason, or was the reason standing in front of her right now?
“I remember everything about you. Sometimes against my own wishes.”
“I know the feeling.” She sighed and finished off her whiskey. “Do you mind if I take a shower before you ask me any more questions?”
“Go ahead.”
She made her way up the stairs to her bedroom. She was still shaking inside, hoping she had hidden her fear from Kap. It was her pride speaking. Still, it was all she had. Slowly, she undressed, being careful of her bruised body. Bruises always seemed to pop up hours after a wreck. Starting the water, she stepped into the shower and let the hot water relax her muscles. Still, now that she was alone, all she could hear was the crack of the shot, the flash that she had caught in the rearview mirror, and the terror that had filled her as she’d tried to save herself.
Her entire body started to shake. Even though she knew it was a delayed reaction to what happened to her, she couldn’t seem to get her body to stop shaking. Leaning against the wall, she tried to get her emotions back under control. Nothing seemed to be working, so she slid down to the floor and sat there, wrapping her arms around her knees. The tears flowed, the fear leaving her a quivering mess.
“Eden?”
She registered Kap’s voice, but she couldn’t seem to respond. It was as if her body had shut down. Her brain was no longer working.
“Eden, if you don’t answer me, I’m coming in.”
She opened her mouth, but she couldn’t form words. The tears kept falling. Why couldn’t she speak? She needed to say something — anything at all. She couldn’t let him see her like this. She was Eden freaking Carlyle, and she did not fall apart. Ever.
The door opened.
“Oh, babe,” he said, grabbing a big white towel. He turned off the water, then stepped into the shower, wrapped the towel around her, and scooped her up off the floor. Instead of standing her up, he carried her to the vanity. She was thankful for that, because she wasn’t sure her legs would hold her up.
“I should have known something was wrong when you didn’t seem to have a reaction to the attack.”
“I was trying to hide it.”
He grabbed another towel and started to dry her hair. “Yeah, well, you don’t have to do that with me.”
