strong enough to walk away from you. Not without crawling back.” He held me tighter, and I did the same. “So I took a page from my father’s book and used her to get what I needed.” He peered down at me, sorrow and regret making his green gaze brighter. “I needed to take away any chance in hell of you ever forgiving me.” I could see the fear in his eyes and hear the question on his lips before he spoke again. “Did I succeed?”
My lips parted, but no words came. I couldn’t figure out which direction my heart was tugging me in. Everything was so damned jumbled. Finally, I answered him, telling him the truth.
“I’m not sure yet.”
His arms slackened in defeat, and I pulled away from him—pulled away before he could feel that lurch in my chest. The one that choked the air from my lungs and demanded I take back the words or perish. My own soul had turned on me.
Still, I walked away.
The beach house was quiet when I snuck inside. Of course, at three a.m., it would be. Tonight had been my first day on the job, and it was amazing that I didn’t screw up. There had been no distraction big enough to keep me from replaying Vaughn’s confession. And right before we left the Manor, Lou stirred the pot when she handed over a framed portrait almost as big as I was. In it, Vaughn was gazing down at me though I hadn’t noticed. The picture had been taken last summer just before everything went to shit. Lou’s explanation had only partly eased the tension.
“By my calculations, River was cooking in your stomach, and you didn’t know it, so technically, it’s a family portrait.”
“Gee, thanks, Lou.”
My dry response had been the only thing holding back my tears at the time. Apparently, Ever had gone over to Wren’s house the night Vaughn’s father died to retrieve it at Lou’s request. Needless to say, we hung it over River’s crib as soon as we got home. It required a place of honor since Ever had almost lost his life over it. He’d also met his biological father for the first time, but no one was sure yet whether Ever considered that a bright side.
I was almost to the stairs when light flooded the living room, making me jump out of my skin.
“Where have you been?”
Vaughn was sitting in an armchair—all of the furniture had been returned to the room after the party—with River resting in his arms. He must have woken up, making his father aware of my absence. Shit, shit, shit! How quickly I’d forgotten. Newborns don’t sleep the entire night through. I swear it seemed as if River woke up more often than he did at the hospital and wondered if that would change once he got used to the change of scenery.
“I would have told you if you hadn’t been in the middle of a jealous rage. I got the job.” Despite my irritation, I hesitated, and it took all of my concentration not to stumble over the rest. “I was working.”
He didn’t seem impressed. “Where?”
Even though I anticipated the question, I still had trouble answering. “At a club.”
“Don’t play games with me, Tyra. What’s this club called?”
“Recognize that I’m just declining to tell you because it’s none of your business. We are not in a relationship.” When he simply stared at me, I set down my duffel bag, and when his eyes shot to it, I quickly diverted his attention. “Look, I’ve had some time to think—”
“You mean since this morning?”
Ignoring his sarcasm, I continued. “Yes.” Surprisingly, the truth tumbled out easier than I had expected it to. “I forgive you, Vaughn, I really do. How could I not after what you did for River?”
Vaughn blinked in surprise, and then relief replaced his anger. “And you,” he reminded.
I paused before relenting with a nod. “And me.”
His gaze narrowed as he sensed the but coming. “So then, what’s the problem? Why won’t you tell me where you were?” We both knew it wasn’t the question he really wanted to ask.
“The problem is I-I can’t trust you.” He started to argue, but I held up my hand, cutting him off. My head knew that he’d only been using Selena, but my heart was a different story. I just didn’t think that I was strong enough to trust Vaughn with it again. Not now that I knew how far he was willing to