Page 79 of June 7

He kept his arm around her, stroking the hair off her forehead. She wanted to close her eyes and forget everything that'd happened.

Her whole body ached. The struggle to stay alive was the hardest thing she'd ever lived through. Many times, she'd talked herself into taking one breath. Just one breath, knowing the water entering her lungs would take her fast, and the pain would stop.

But she kept fighting.

She had too much to lose.

And while she'd shared what happened after work and how she'd fought back, she hadn't told Bane everything.

"He was my swimming coach," she whispered. "He's the one who taught me how to swim, and later, he taught the high school swim team."

Bane stilled.

"He claimed that over the years, he'd had an affair with my mother." A shudder rolled through her. "He hated me because my mom wouldn't divorce my dad until I turned eighteen years old. He thinks she'd still be here if I weren't alive."

She looked up at Bane. Hearing the story was unbelievable. Some things had always stood out to her about the night her dad killed her mom and then drove the car into the ocean, killing himself. Now, it all made sense.

"The night my dad told me to sit out on the dune because he had a surprise for my mom. He told me he was going to give her something so she would never leave him.'" She swallowed. "For all these years, I thought he was giving her a present. I thought that's what he meant..."

"Shh." Bane kissed her head. "Nothing that happened was your fault. They were adults, making their own decisions."

"Mr. Owens claimed to love my mom." She grimaced. "He's sick. He blamed me for what my dad did—as if what he was doing to me was okay." She shook her head in disbelief. "He was going to kill me. If you hadn't arrived—"

"I will always, always come running when you need me." He pressed his lips against her forehead. "I love you, babe.

"I love you, too." She snuggled against his chest, pulling her legs up. "I want to go home."

"I'll take you there as soon as I get the all-clear." He inhaled deeply.

She rode the wave as his chest expanded and then settled down again. What happened tonight would forever live in her head.

They were all dead.

Her dad. Her mom. Her mom's lover.

Everything she'd grown up believing had been a lie. Her mom had not put her family first. Her husband first. Her child first.

Her dad hadn't loved her enough to keep the family together. Instead, he'd abandoned her in the worst way.

Love became something different than what she'd viewed as a child.

As an adult, she understood love wasn't a choice. She had no choice but to love Bane. Her heart had picked him.

It was different for her mom, her dad, and Mr. Owens. They chose to love.

And when you choose something, you can also let it go, give it away, or destroy it. You can choose if love lasts or if it ends.

"We'll get through this," whispered Bane roughly.

Love was unconditional and enduring.

He held her tighter. "The danger is behind you now."

Love withstood tests and hardships beyond a physical need.

"I won't let anything happen to you." His chest thrummed against her.

Love was selflessly taking care of the other person. It was making someone else's happiness a priority.

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