Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 59199 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 296(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 197(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59199 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 296(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 197(@300wpm)
Her eyes blaze as they fix on Dane, who stands behind me. He’s allowing me to deal with this confrontation while still supporting me with his menacing presence.
“You’ve done this.” She hurls the accusation at him. “You turned my daughter against me.”
“You alienated me all on your own,” I say coldly. “I cut you off two years before Dane came into my life, remember? You might’ve pretended that we weren’t estranged for the sake of appearances, but I chose to live without your toxicity. I chose to be completely alone rather than suffering through a relationship with you.”
I lace my fingers through Dane’s. I’m not alone anymore. And I never will be again.
“You’re making a scene,” I inform my mother. She’s been too incensed and inebriated to notice that several phones are pointed in her direction, recording her narcissistic outburst.
Her gaze darts around the room, noting dozens of eyes fixed squarely on her with clear disapproval.
Her shoulders dip, and her eyes shine.
For a moment, my heart gives a painful beat, and some of my righteous rage ebbs.
Despite everything she’s done to me, she was a victim too. That doesn’t change the fact that she failed me in the worst way. It doesn’t change the lifetime of abuse.
But I have to acknowledge that her cruelty and narcissism comes from a place of pain.
“You should leave now, Mama,” I say, tone gentler.
“Go where?” she asks raggedly. “No one will take my calls. I’ve lost all my friends. I have no one left. They’ve turned their backs on me, Abby. You’re my daughter, my flesh and blood. You can’t abandon me too.”
“I’m sorry for what you’ve been through,” I say truthfully. “But I can’t have you in my life. I choose me. You have properties all over the country. You can leave South Carolina and start fresh somewhere else.”
“This is my home!” she almost wails. “I can’t leave Elysium.”
“That’s your choice,” I reply evenly. “What you do now is not my responsibility.”
“Leave,” Dane commands. “This conversation is over. Never contact my wife again.”
Mama casts a panicked gaze around the room, as though searching for an ally.
No one steps forward to defend her.
Her reputation is in tatters, and she will not find welcome in Charleston society ever again. Especially not after this public outburst.
I search my heart and find that I don’t feel a shred of vindictive pleasure at her utter devastation. All I feel for her is compassion and more than a little pity.
Dane’s arm loops around my waist, and I lean into him as my mother turns and flees.
I’m with my family now, and the woman disappearing into the humid night will never bother me again.
20
ABIGAIL
When we arrive back at our house, I expect Dane to carry me up to our bedroom. But, to my surprise, we’re heading down to the home gym in our finished basement.
“What are we doing down here?” I ask.
He releases a low, sexy hum. “You’re going to fly for me tonight, little dove.”
We reach the bottom of the stairs, and I glance around the gym in confusion. The first thing I note is that Dane’s punching bag is missing. In its place, a large metal ring hangs from the ceiling, and a thick wrestling mat has been placed directly below it. Several thick coils of rope have been laid out on the mat.
“I don’t want to fight you tonight,” I admit. “I don’t think I’m ready.”
We haven’t had sex at all since my memories of abuse surfaced. Every night, my husband has held me in our bed, but he hasn’t claimed my body in the way we both desire.
I’ve been too scared that I’ll freak out and spoil our connection.
He sets me down on my feet directly below the ring and presses a kiss to my forehead. “That’s not what I have planned. Only pleasure for you tonight, my queen. And the perfect amount of pain. Say the word, and everything will stop.”
My heart tugs with longing. “I want you,” I promise. “More than anything. But I’m afraid of how I might react. I don’t want any of those awful memories to ruin things between us.”
His jaw firms, but his hand is achingly gentle in my hair. “Nothing could ever ruin what we share. All I want is to worship your body and show you how proud I am to call you mine. I won’t push you if you’re not ready.”
I stare up into his verdant eyes for several long seconds. With each heartbeat, my need for him pulses through my body. My core flutters with the beginnings of desire, and I resolutely keep my full focus on him so that dark thoughts won’t assail me.
“I trust you,” I vow.
He peers straight into my soul. “I will never betray that trust.”
“I know.” I take a deep breath. “I’m ready.”