Page 75 of One Life to Loathe

She didn’t say that, though.

“You don’t have to burn everything down because that’s what they taught you,” she said. “You’re better than them. You always were. Don’t let what they tried to do to you drag you down.”

“I come from them.”

“It doesn’t matter. It’s what’s inside you that matters, and what’s inside you is beautiful.”

It was the corniest thing she could’ve said and somehow it was also exactly what I needed to hear. “You’re more beautiful.”

“I am quite beautiful inside and out,” she agreed with a cheeky grin. “So are you, though. Stop trying to hide the fact that you’re a good guy. I know you do it to protect yourself—you’re going to make sure that you hurt someone else before they can hurt you—but if you keep doing that you’re going to miss out on all the good stuff in life.”

Like her. If I hadn’t allowed myself to be vulnerable with her, I would’ve missed this. And what a travesty that would’ve been.

“I’ll work on it,” I said finally.

“You should try talking to a therapist.”

I frowned. “I’m not crazy.”

“I didn’t say you were crazy. Everybody needs to talk things out, though. That includes you.”

I thought about Alexander and his traveling psychology services. “It’s a thought,” I said. I had no intention of following through, but she wouldn’t let it go. “Maybe one day.”

“Okay.” She patted my arm. “The tour goes for another thirty minutes. Then we can get something to eat.”

“That sounds good to me.” I was happy to talk about something other than my troubled past. “What are you in the mood for?”

“Seafood.”

“You really love your shellfish, don’t you?”

“If I could get you naked with a stuffed lobster, that would be my perfect evening.”

“Really?” Amusement ran through me. “I’ll see what I can arrange. Not for tonight of course, but maybe later in the week.”

“Now I’m excited to see what you come up with.”

“You and me both.”

20

TWENTY

Leo opening up to me broke my heart. My upbringing had been idyllic. Yes, I was boring and never got in trouble—something that seemed to amuse him to no end—but the most traumatic thing that had ever happened to me was when I went to camp for a week and started my period. Technically, I knew what menstruation was, but I’d panicked in the moment and told anyone who would listen that I was hemorrhaging. They’d laughed. I’d been mortified. It was nothing compared to what Leo had been through, though.

The fact that he was still standing seemed like a miracle to me.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Leo complained as he led me into Turner’s Seafood. He had a firm grip on my hand—actually, he’d barely let go of it all day—but there was a devilish look on his face.

“And just how am I looking at you?”

“As if you want to skip dinner and get naked.”

I rolled my eyes. “That is not how I was looking at you.”

“Then how were you looking at me?”

“I think you might be a superhero.”

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