Page 78 of The Ones We Fight For

Talia pulled her eyebrows together at the abrupt change in conversation, and Walker winced. Even with the intimacy they had just gained by sharing so much of what made them vulnerable, it was still a heavy question to ask.

“I don’t remember.” She gave him a sad smile.

He cupped her face with his hand, desperate to touch any stretch of her skin, to heal it. To think that someone could hurt the same beautiful person he had just seen standing in Talia’s mirror made Walker sick.

“You can tell me,” he whispered, dropping his hand to run it over her shoulder. Talia deserved to be touched with only reverence and appreciation. She chewed on her lower lip, her eyes going distant as she shook her head.

“Sometimes our brains just block out the painful memories. so I actually don’t remember. I remember a little bit after and a little before, but I don’t remember him hitting me other than knowing it happened. I couldn’t even tell you where he left bruises,” Talia explained. “I barely remember living here before. I know stories. I remember what he looked like when he was angry. That’s about it.”

Walker smiled. “I always knew you were smart.”

Talia barked out a laugh. “Because my brain hid my trauma?”

“If you think about it, that’s kind of amazing.” Walker swallowed heavily, tracing over the soft contours of Talia’s face with his eyes. “You’re amazing.”

If that was a touch too far, it came across in the silence that fell between them. Walker wanted to be taking Talia on a date that night. If nothing else, just to show her exactly what she deserved. So she would know when she did find the person she was supposed to be with—even if that person wasn’t going to be him—how she should be loved. And he could show her that easily enough. Sometimes he felt like he was wearing his love for her right on his sleeve.

“Walker, I’m confused,” Talia murmured. “We said this wasn’t a date.”

“Sorry.” Walker shook his head. “You’re right. I’m making this weird. Can I just run something by you before we go inside? Please?”

“Anything.”

“What if we do make it a date?” Walker held up his hand when Talia opened her mouth to protest. “Let me explain. I want to, just for tonight, go on a date with you to show you how you deserve to be treated.”

“You mean, like… pretend we’re on a date?” Talia asked.

“Sort of, yeah. I’m not going to kiss you good night or anything, but I think, as your friend, I could help show you your worth. You deserve a good date, Tal. Someone should tell you how stunning you look in that dress. Someone should open doors for you and hold your hand,” Walker explained. “I can be that for you tonight. Then you’ll know how beautiful you should feel when you’re with the right person. And when you search for them, you won’t settle for anything less than what you deserve.”

Talia rolled her bottom lip between her teeth, her long eyelashes fanned out above her flushed cheeks with one slow blink before she nodded and looked down at her hands, like she was imagining what it would feel like to have his fingers entwined with hers. She didn’t look at him when she responded with a nervous, “okay.”

Walker’s hand wavered as he lifted it to her face, tucking his index finger under her chin and tipping her head up to meet his eyes straight on. “Are you sure? If you don’t want to, we don’t have to.”

“I want to.” Talia nodded, her full lips spreading into a smile. She reached for her door handle, and Walker set a hand on her shoulder to stop her.

“Wait!”

Talia’s head reeled back, and she looked at him with her coffee-colored eyes, her irises clouded with uncertainty.

“I got your door,” Walker laughed, and he hopped out and rounded the car to Talia’s side. The heart on his sleeve was ready for one night in the driver’s seat.

Chapter 29

Talia

“So, what’s the verdict?”

They were sitting on the same side of the booth. Talia was wedged so closely to Walkers that their legs were touching from thigh to heel.

Walker looked down at his plate and chewed slowly, one hand interlocked with Talia’s like they were on a full-fledged date. It made her head spin. It felt so easy to lean into him that if she didn’t know any better, she would have thought by the end of the night they would be going home together, not back to being just friends.

“Tastes like weird green chicken,” Walker set his fork down and shrugged.

Talia giggled. “That’s escargot to a T. It’s maybe more rubbery than chicken, too?”

“Not that I know how to cook chicken, either, but I would never make this when I could make actual chicken that doesn’t cost a billion dollars.”

“Fifteen hundred dollars, to be exact,” Talia recalled.

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