Page 115 of Second Chance Mates

Kayleigh’s face drops, and her lips part, but I can tell she doesn’t know what to say. “I’m sorry, Ava,” she whispers carefully. “How are you now?”

“I’m getting there.” I swallow the rough lump in my throat. “I have my good days and bad days. I’m taking every day as it comes.”

Danny leans over to take my hand, which catches me by surprise, and I blink at the action. “What happened, Ava?”

“She just said she doesn’t want to talk about it,” Jaxon’s voice booms across the kitchen, which makes Danny flinch. “So don’t push her.”

Then he glances down at the grip he has on my fingers, and my chest tightens. His eyes darken and not in a good way—he looks murderous.

If he doesn’t take his hands off you in the next second, I will happily break both of his wrists. Jaxon’s words are calm but full of deadly determination.

I slowly pull my hands away from Danny’s touch because I don’t want any broken bones here. “Yeah,” I rasp with a forced smile. “I don’t want to talk about it. Please respect that.”

Danny nods. “Of course. I’m sorry.”

“But I’m here now. I’m safe. I had nothing left for me in Russell Vale. This place feels like my home,” I admit to them and myself.

Because it is your home, baby. Jax’s words wrap around my heart.

“I’m glad you’re safe,” Kayleigh says. “I missed you so much. You have no idea.”

My head tilts to my shoulder and I blink back my tears. “I missed you too.”

“So you didn’t write that post?” Danny asks, and Jaxon shoots him a glare.

“No, I didn’t. They probably wanted to cover their tracks. Must have made sure that no one started looking for me.” I shrug simply.

Kayleigh brushes a finger over her lips in deep thought. “When you left, I went to your house and saw your foster parents. They kept deflecting everything and seemed so angry. They said you were eighteen now and could do what you wanted.”

“They didn’t care about me.”

“They moved away shortly after you.”

I’m desperate to change the subject. “Sorry. I'm an awful host. Do you guys want something to drink?”

Kayleigh nods. “Sure, thank you.”

“Yeah, that’d be great,” Danny says.

“It’s okay, I’ll do it.” Jaxon moves towards the counter. “Is coffee okay?”

They both agree, and Danny glances over his shoulder before turning to me, his face inches from mine. “I don’t understand this, Ava. So…you guys meet, and now you’re all happily ever after?”

Kayleigh gasps and scolds him.

“All of this seems strange and very out of character for you.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “I’m not the same person I was when I was eighteen, Danny. Things have changed. I have changed.”

“Have you seen this house? It belongs to a billionaire,” he whispers under his breath. “You cannot tell me you just fell into his arms.”

“Danny–”

He leans impossibly closer. “Is this a cult? Because if it is, we can get you out.”

My brows widen at his accusation. I watch him carefully as he pulls away and focuses on a spot on the floor. “Although I’ve seen some seriously messed-up documentaries, and they did not end well.”

“This isn’t a cult. None of this is strange—not to me anyway. I get it from an outsider's point of view. But I didn’t have anywhere else to go, and I’ve found peace here. Without Jaxon, I probably would have been dead.”

---