Page 153 of Give In

“I took off the day I graduated and didn’t see my parents again until they showed up in your class.” Shrugging, I admitted, “They likely knew where I was the whole time, they just didn’t care. I was cool with that.”

“What happened when you were fifteen?”

Shit.

“Nothing really.”

“You lived in that hell all your life, then spur of the moment, you took off?” He shook his head. “What happened?”

“Tell me what you were thinking first,” I negotiated.

“You don’t like being ignored.”

“Who does?”

“Okay, but youreallydon’t like it. You got upset enough to ask to be punished. I noticed and haven’t ignored you since, but I wasn’t sure why your reaction was so strong. Now I know.”

“Being in trouble is awful,” I said, tears suddenly burning my eyes. “But feeling as though you don’t matter enough to get a reaction is worse.” A sob tore through me. “I don’t want to be invisible to you.”

“Fuck, angel.” That time when Damien tried to gather me into his arms, I didn’t just let him.

I clung to him.

“Since the first day you stepped into my class, no matter how I tried to fight it, I’ve always seen you.” Cupping my cheeks, he leaned me back so he could meet my eyes. “I’m so fucking sorry I ever made you feel otherwise because you’llneverbe invisible to me.”

Overwhelmed, I buried my face in his chest, taking long, shuddery breaths as I fought to get control of my tears.

Damien didn’t speak for a while, just rubbed my back soothingly. Once I was settled, he ordered, “Tell me what happened, Eden.”

He’s not gonna drop it, and I just wanna go home and sink into an ice cream-vodka-Netflix spiral.

Keeping hold of his arms, I sat up. “I overheard my parents talking about how I was going to marry a senator’s grandson. It’d already been decided. There was no question. No regard for my feelings. Marrying the grandson meant my dad would have an in with the senator and his group. Then when the senator retired, my dad would be the obvious choice. It was a big step up the political path, and he was fine with basically prostituting me out to give him a boost. I know they couldn’t have forced me. It’s not like arranged marriages are legal. But…” I shook my head. “My dad had beensonice. I thought it was because he’d changed, but it was an act. He was on his best behavior because the senator and his family were coming to our Labor Day picnic.”

The betrayal stabbed through me, hurting almost as bad as it had back then.

Forcing myself to release him, I put as much distance between us as I could. It wasn’t much because Damien’s grip stayed strong, so I pulled away emotionally. Shutdown like I used to.

“So we’re over,” I summed up.

He looked livid, but he kept his voice soft. “Because your parents were assholes, you think we’re over?”

“No, because you take care of me.” My mask slipped as I grimaced hard, and for a second, I thought I was actually going to be sick. “Not that you’re a replacement for them.” I shuddered and joked, “I’m fucked-up, but not Freudian-Oedipus levels.”

He didn’t smile. “Run me through your thought process on why me taking care of you is bad, because you’ve lost me and your mind.”

“Hey.” I crossed my arms and glared up at him. “That’s the kind of thing that’s supposed to go unsaid.”

“It needs to be said if you’re crazy enough to think I’m letting you go.”

My stomach swooped and flipped, but I tried to ignore it as I pulled my mask back on. “I knew my parents couldn’t make me marry that guy, but I ran away because I also knew I would’ve eventually done it. They would’ve kept pushing until I married him, moved into the house next door to them, and popped out enough babies to make our own Kennedy-esque dynasty.”

Damien’s hold tightened as he yanked me to him, closing the minimal distance I’d achieved. His face lowered to mine until his angry midnight eyes were all I could see. “The only person putting babies in you is me.”

There was no amount of disassociating that could’ve prevented that sentence from hitting me in the heart and regions farther south. My pulse raced, my imagination running amuck.

Damien was knocking my walls down faster than I could rebuild them.

“No, you don’t get it.” Tears of frustration, bitterness, and remorse welled again. “You were right earlier. I wouldn’t have taken the internship. I’d have assumed it was only offered because we’re sleeping together. Or that you only wanted me to have it because you were working some angle. If it weren’t for you setting it up like you had, I’d have missed out on such an amazing opportunity. I’mhappyyou did it.”