Page 82 of Lumi

“What’s that?” Damian asked.

“Conor O’Brien was her teacher and represented all those things. As far as I know, he was a hyper-intelligent smooth talker who turned out to be a psychopath.”

I lifted my fingers to my lips with a sudden realization. “That’s why every date I’ve gone on with intellectual men, I feel uneasy.”

“Probably.” Jolene nodded.

A memory came back and made my eyes glaze over.

“Lumi, care to share your thoughts with us?” Jolene asked.

“The first time I met Damian after my mother died, we all went to the beach.” I could see the waves rolling in and taste the salt on my tongue as the vivid memory played on replay in my mind.

“Yes?”

“I remember liking Damian’s Irish accent and feeling incredibly safe with him.” I blinked my eyes and focused in on Atlas. “Remember how Conor always insisted that we spoke as cleanly and properly as him?”

He nodded. “What about it?”

Turning my head to Damian, I said, “I think Jolene has a point that subconsciously I love that you’re Conor’s opposite.”

Damian and I sat for a moment in silent thought, looking deep into each other’s eyes.

“But what about the duke? Ye dated him for a year. He didn’t make ye feel uneasy, did he?

I ran my hands through my hair, thinking back to the arguments I’d had with Spencer. “He complained that I was closed off and uninvested in him.”

“Were ye?”

“At the time, I didn’t think so, but yes, I probably was.”

“Is that why it ended?”

My face heated up as I thought back to the night when our relationship ended with Spencer storming out of my apartment. “Yes and no. Something happened that was a deal-breaker to him.”

They all looked at me, and I suddenly felt like it was a sauna in Damian’s apartment. “I made a mistake.”

“What kind of mistake?” Atlas asked.

I met their eyes, forcing myself to be honest and brave. “I said another man’s name in an intimate situation.”

“Oh…” Atlas scratched his stubble. “That’s awkward.”

Jolene tilted her head. “Spencer broke up with you because you said another man’s name during sex?”

“Well, no, not the first time I did it, but…” I looked down. “It happened more than once.”

“Whose name did ye say?” Damian asked in a soft voice.

Unable to meet his eyes, I muttered, “It doesn’t matter.”

“It was Damian’s name, wasn’t it?” Jolene asked in a sympathetic tone.

I never confirmed it, but she read my body language and concluded, “It was!”

There was another moment of complete silence in the room before Jolene asked Damian, “How do you feel about that?”

“I’m… ehm… surprised and… ehm… a little speechless.” Turning to me, Damian asked, “Why didn’t ye ever tell me?”