I love you, Anna—only you—and I meant it when I said I want to keep you forever. I wouldn’t do anything that might fuck this up between us.”
The pleading I see in his eyes tells me that he’s being sincere, that he didn’t mean to hurt me. As angry as I was with him earlier today, I can no longer bring myself to be mad.
How can I ask Xavier to trust me if I don’t give him the same courtesy?
He leans in and presses his forehead to mine, and then he closes his eyes. “Please, Anna. Don’t frown. I can’t stand to see you so upset.”
“I’m not mad at you, but we need to be completely honest with each other if things are going to work out between us.”
He sighs, and warm breath wafts against my lips. “I’ve never lied to you about anything, and I’ll be up-front about everything with you—except for this. This, you don’t need to know.”
“By saying that, I’ll only worry more.”
“Don’t.” His finger slides under my chin, and he tilts my head up. “Things will be all right. I’ll make sure of it.”
“If you would just tell me what’s going on, whatever problem you’re trying to hide from me, maybe I can help.”
He shakes his head, causing a lock of his dark hair to fall across his forehead. “Sorry, beautiful. No one can handle this but me.”
I stare into his eyes, and I know Xavier well enough to know that when he decides something, there’s no changing his mind. I have a sneaking suspicion that something from Xavier’s past has come back to haunt us both.
I sigh. “Then, I’m afraid, until you trust me enough to let me in, I’m going to need some time to think about things, to think about us.”
The worry in his eyes is clear as he processes what I said. “Anna...”
I swallow hard, and it takes every bit of my willpower to muster up the courage to take a step back, leaving the comforting warmth of his embrace. “I need time. You can take me to the airport tomorrow, but I’ll be staying at Aunt Dee’s tonight.”
The sad expression on his face nearly causes me to crumble and give in to him, allowing him to keep me out of the loop, as long as I get to be with him. But if I continue to live in the darkness of his secrets, I will never forgive myself for not standing up to him and demanding the truth.
Tears begin to burn my eyes, so I turn and run back into the restaurant because the last thing I want is for Xavier to see me cry.
Chapter 16
Xavier
One of the hardest things I’ve ever done is allow Anna to walk away from me without too much of a fight. She wants the truth. I completely understand that, but it doesn’t mean I can give it to her.
I lace my fingers together and stare up at the star-filled sky, wishing there were some way to make everything better. It kills me to be at the center of what’s causing her pain, and I seem to have been doing that a lot lately. If I were a better man, I would encourage her to leave me for a guy who wouldn’t hurt her all the fucking time.
I just can’t get this relationship thing right.
The door of the restaurant slamming shut catches my attention.
The shit-stain who was sitting next to Anna at the bar comes strolling out with a cocky grin on his face. “Bishop sends his regards.”
Adrenaline is still flowing through my veins, and I dare this shit stain to step to me.
I know exactly why he was sniffing around her. The symbols on his shirt are ones Bishop brands on his crew. It’s one of the marks on my forearm that I’ve tried damn hard to cover up with other tattoos.
Now that Anna’s out of earshot, there’s no need for all these fucking games.
“What the fuck did you just say to me?”
He rolls his shoulders back, like my threat doesn’t affect him, but I know better. If he’s a part of the Block crew, then he’s heard of me, so he must be well aware of the damage I could inflict on him in a matter of seconds. Being so damn brutal is what made me Bishop’s right hand. He knows, when I unleash on someone, it won’t be pretty.
“Bishop’s giving you one month to get shit together and make things happen, like he’s