Page 50

“Yeah.” I let go of his arm, stepping closer to him. “I’m ready to talk about Max, but you need to tell me too.”

“Tell you what?” He frowned, putting his arms around my waist and interlocking his hands.

“About that woman in the picture,” I said, tilting my head to the picture.

“It’s not my story to tell, sweetheart.” Searching his eyes, I could see that he was telling the truth. I knew just from seeing the picture that it was Charlie’s story, but that didn’t mean that he couldn’t tell me parts of it.

“I don’t want to know the full story, just who she is.”

“Okay.” He leaned down, bringing his lips to mine and kissing them softly. “Tonight?” he asked when he pulled back.

“Yeah,” I whispered. “Tonight.”

Nodding, he pulled me in for a hug. I breathed him in and rested my head on his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart. Pulling back, he let his arm drop over my shoulders and steered me into the kitchen.

“Now that we’ve sorted that…” He tilted his head down. “Time for ma’s food. Man, I love eating here.”

“Hey!” I elbowed him in the ribs, giving him a mock stare. “I cook for you all the time.”

“Ahh, sweetheart, I didn’t mean it like that.” He chuckled.

Pulling away, I huffed and smirked when my back was to him.

“Don’t be like that,” he groaned.

Huffing, I swayed my hips that little bit more, aware that he was watching. Purely by coincidence, of course.

Walking out of Eli’s room, I stood at the top of the stairs preparing myself for what I was about to do. I was afraid that bringing all of this up wouldn’t destroy all of the progress I’d made. I was hoping that it would make me stronger but I wasn’t holding my breath.

Things had to get worse before they got better though, right?

Taking a deep breath, I pulled my shoulders back and walked down the stairs.

Ty was sat on the edge of the coffee table waiting for me, his arms resting on his thighs. I took him all in, the way his back was tense and his hands clenched into fists. He was always so composed, I could see that he was dreading this as much as me.

The step I was on creaked and he lifted his head, I gasped at the intensity in his eyes. I stopped on the step that I was on, not wanting to go an

y further.

“Ty?” I whispered.

He closed his eyes, his chest moving up and down as he took a deep breath. I could see that he was trying to get himself under control but I was freaking out over here.

A lump formed in my throat and it was all too intense, just too much. “I…I…” I gripped my hands as hard as I could, my knuckles turning white.

My eyes widened when he stood up all of a sudden, walking straight to me. I didn’t have time to ask what he was doing before he wrapped his arms around my waist and picked me up, my legs going around him automatically.

Burrowing my face into his neck, I clutched my arms around his shoulders as he took us upstairs and straight into his room. Feeling him sit down, I lifted my face out of his neck and pulled back slightly.

He cupped my face, keeping his eyes planted on mine. “I’m here,” he said, his voice rough but soft at the same time. “He can’t get to you anymore, sweetheart.”

“I know,” I whispered, closing my eyes. I had to do this. I’d built it up into this big moment and I didn’t even know where to start. “I don’t know where to start,” I confessed.

He nodded and looked away. “When did it first start?” I knew that he knew the answer to this question but I answered him anyway. It was a starting point and that’s what I needed.

“When I was pregnant.”

“Okay,” he gritted out. “What would he do?”