Page 13 of Broken Secrets

“Someone did something to you, and we’re going to find out who did it. We don’t give a fuck who gave you the damn drink. Frankly, we don’t trust Olivia, her dumb fuck of a brother, or her douchebag boyfriend at this point. We’ll figure that out. Don’t worry about it. What we want to know about right now is the scars on your thighs, Dahlia.”

I guess Crew isn’t playing. He is going straight for the jugular. Vale still has a pissed-off expression on his face, but I think it’s directed towards the whole drugging situation. Guess we’ll find out eventually.

“Guys I had a rough life after you left me. It was fucking hard. You have no idea.” Tears are already falling down my cheeks. Having to explain all of this to them will be one of the hardest things I've ever done.

“My grandma died and that broke me. B- Bu- But I was hurt by someone too. After that happened, I just lost it. I lost my way. It was like I was drowning, and I couldn’t pull myself out, no matter how hard I tried. Cutting helps me feel alive. I know that I shouldn’t do it, and I don’t do it nearly as much as I used to. I have this blackness deep down in my soul, and usually, the only time I get the release that’s so desperately needed is when I cut myself. Everything builds up, and I feel like I’m about to burst, but once I cut, all the tension and numbness go away.” At this point, I’m full-on sobbing.

“My life fell apart, and you weren’t there when I needed you most, both of you.”

Both of them surround me, wrapping their arms around me.

“You were always the light to our darkness, Dahlia. Even in our darkest of times, you’ve always turned the light on for us. It’s time that you let us be the ones that turn your light back on.” Vale says as he kisses my forehead.

“But now you’ve left us with even more questions. Who the hell hurt you, Dahlia, and what did they do?”

But there’s no way I can answer Crew’s question right now. That’s something that I’m going to need a little time before talking to them about it. I need to know that the trust is there. Most of all, I need to know why they left. I’m irrevocably broken because of this secret, and if I tell them, they just might end up broken too. Once they find out who raped me, things will never be the same again. That’s a fact that I know deep down in my bones.

“That’s a question for another time, guys. I cannot go there right now. It hurts too much to go back to that time. I let you in about my cutting, and that should be enough for now. After the wringer you put me through in the woods, I think I deserve a break.” Hesitantly, they both nod in agreement.

“Now that we’ve got some of the heavy stuff out of the way, let's eat and maybe sleep. I need a nap.” And that’s just what we do. It’s one of the best naps that I’ve ever had.

Chapter 15

Vale

Waking up next to Dahlia is something that I think both Crew and I have dreamed about for most of our lives. We have both been lost for a very long time. But looking at her now as the rays from the morning sunshine peek through the clouds, cascading shadows across her face, has my chest tightening. I’ve never seen someone so beautiful in my entire life. There is this pain that I’ve never felt before, but I don’t want to think about what that means. What it could mean for the three of us. All I know is that I do not want our situation to change. Her, me, and us—this whole thing is as real as it gets.

Even though I hate it, there is still this nagging feeling that has me questioning why our families didn’t want us together all those years ago. I guess our parents knew that they were fucking each other, literally. And they didn’t want us to end up together. Well, fuck all of them. She was young then, so it’s not like Crew or myself would have made a move anyway, but for our families, I got the sense that they thought we would be doing something wrong.

Dahlia’s voice pulls me away from my thoughts. “Mornin’, I can’t believe we slept through the whole night.” She whispers.

“Why don’t we go into the kitchen? We can get some coffee, and I’ll make you breakfast while we talk.” Our past is the hardest on Crew, so the least I can do is talk to her about it while he’s sleeping.

“Sure, just let me use the restroom, and I’ll meet you there," she says, kissing me on the cheek.

Making my way into the kitchen, I get a pot of coffee brewing. We all need our caffeine in the mornings. Next, I pull out all the things needed for bacon, eggs, and toast. Whipping some eggs up real quick, I put those in the pan to get cooking, then I put the bacon on a pan and put it in the oven to broil. It makes less of a mess to do it that way. Having a single dad has made Crew and I have to learn different secrets to cooking over the years.

Dahlia comes up behind me and wraps her arms around my waist. Her scent engulfs me, and my cock begins to harden, but it’s not about that needy bastard at the moment. Right now, it’s all about making sure our girl fills her belly. Again, I feel that tightness in my chest. Her affection means more to me than she will ever know.

Reaching up to grab her a cup of coffee, she says, “What are you making?” She asks with a small smile.

“You’ll just have to wait and see, my pretty Little Lemon. Grab some coffee and then sit at the counter. Once I’m finished, I’ll bring our plates over.” Nodding, she heads over to the counter and grabs a stool.

“So, I know you guys wanted to talk with me. Is that what all of this is about?” My inquisitive Little Lemon is full of questions.

“Yes, we’re going to eat and talk about some of the stuff that happened in our past. Some of it is more difficult for Crew so that’s why we’re letting him sleep in. He doesn’t know that I planned this, or he’d be fucking pissed. He wants to be here for this conversation. I’m sure he’ll want to kick my ass for doing it behind his back, but it’s for the best.”

Letting her sit with that little admission, I grab the bread and pop it in the toaster while the eggs cook a little more. Turning off the stove and grabbing the butter out of the fridge, I get to work plating everything. Mentally preparing myself to tell part of our story has me scared shitless. This could fuck Dahlia up. She loves her family, and the thought that our dirty little secret could ruin her hurts. There is even a possibility that she will reject us or regret having sex with us. Thoughts of her rejecting us are probably what fucks me up the most.

Chapter 16

Dahlia

Vale sets our plates down on the counter in front of both of our seats, then comes to sit by me. He’s kind of pale, and he looks nervous. His knee is bouncing up and down, sweat beading on his brow. “It’s okay, Vale. You can talk to me.”

“Dahlia, there are a lot of things that you don’t know about us. Our life hasn’t been easy. It’s been hard as fuck. Do you know why we moved away?” I shake my head, no. “I’m guessing you don't know anything then.” No one has ever told me anything, and that pisses me off. The guys were my best friends, and so were our parents.

For some reason, I don’t think I’m ready to hear what he’s about to say. Fuck! "Our dad was cheating with your mom. Undoubtedly, they’d been having an affair for years. When our mom found out about it, she flipped the fuck out. Mom wanted to keep me, but Dad refused. He told Mom that he’d break her fucking neck if she tried to take one of his boys away from him. He’s a badass who’s been in the military since before we were born, but you already knew that. There’s no doubt that he would have killed her if she tried to take one of us away from him.”

---