Page 47 of Reckless Sinner

“I told him I wasn’t comfortable with it. I felt like I was… selling myself.” Delaney sipped at her water. “Dad convinced me—he pointed out that I already liked you and wanted you, so what would be the harm?”

Delaney shook her head. “I was so—so stupid, I should have said no, I felt sick just—just thinking about lying and doing all of that and going behind your back. I was so sure you would find me out. And I thought you were a good man. I still do. Knowing that I was going to be used to set you up—it felt so wrong but I never said anything against it.”

“Delaney.” She wouldn’t look me in the eye, so I took her hand and squeezed it. “Hey. You were manipulated and gaslit your whole life. It’s hard to know when it’s going on when you’re so used to it—he’s your father, you never knew anything else. Of course you listened to him.”

“I just wanted to stop being a disappointment. I wanted to make him proud.” Delaney’s tone was bitter. She squeezed my hand hard, like she’d fall off the earth if she didn’t hold on. “Now I realize he was setting me up to fail so I would always live with him, rely on him. I’d have such low self-esteem… and I’d want nothing more than to please him. And he was good, he was—I dated you. So that I could make him proud. He made my life all about him.”

She finally looked up at me. “But I really did—Ido—I wanted to date you before but I didn’t think you’d ever—and Dad said no so of course I didn’t do anything about it—but how I felt—feel—about you, that’s true. It always has been.”

“So what happened today?” I asked.

“The case with your brother fell through. Whatever they were trying to do, it didn’t work. I said that meant we could call off my part of the scheme but my father said no, it was even more important now that I spy on you. He was going to set you up directly for something. I don’t know what. I…” Delaney took a deep breath. “I refused. So he…”

She reached up and gently touched the hair at the back of her head, wincing. I remembered the pictures, her father dragging her up the stairs by her hair, and I saw fucking red for a second.

“He dragged me up to my room and locked me in. I—I managed to climb out the window.” She gestured with shaking fingers at the purse I’d left hanging on a hook by the front door. “I grabbed all my jewelry and shoved it in there, so I could sell it. It’s all I have. He has my paperwork, money, I couldn’t take anything else with me…”

I couldn’t stand it anymore. I pulled her in and wrapped an arm around her. Delaney went stiff, like she was surprised that I would still want to touch her like this—but I didn’t blame her. She’d been controlled her whole life and in such a way that she hadn’t even realized it. How was she supposed to know better?

And she’d gotten out. She’d broken out of her own home, and with no money… yeah, she’d literally walked all the way to my apartment. Starving and exhausted.

“You’re so strong,” I told her, and I meant it.

Delaney laughed bitterly. “I’m not strong at all.”

“Strength isn’t about being the strongest or bravest person in the room. It’s about doing what’s difficult for you, it’s about overcoming challenges and doing the right thing. You were starving and trapped and you got out. You made it here. You recognized the manipulation you were being put through and not everyone can do that. I think that’s incredibly strong, and smart.”

I kissed the top of her head and Delaney sank into me, clinging to me. Fuck, I never wanted to let her go.

“I thought you would hate me,” she whispered. “I lied to you. But I didn’t have anywhere else to go. I have no one else. Not that I could trust.”

“I’m glad you came to me.” I held her tighter. “And I don’t hate you. Trust me, I get it. Your family has a way of making you say yes.” I paused. “And now I have something to tell you, too.”

Delaney pulled away so that she could look up at me. “Yes?”

“I made a deal with my father.”

Delaney sucked in a breath, her eyes going a little wide. I appreciated the immediate concern on my behalf and only hoped that concern wouldn’t slip into anger once she knew the full truth.

“I knew that something was going on with your father and you. Something between you two. I asked my father to look into it. I didn’t know that it would end up having anything to do with me. But I knew that—the instincts I grew up with, the things I was taught, they don’t just go away. I knew that something was wrong and I had to find out what it was, because you didn’t even seem to be fully aware of it.

“I knew—I knew there would be a price to pay. But I was willing to pay it for you, to make sure you were safe. So today, my father came by and gave me these.”

I stood up and went to my jacket, pulling the photos out of the pocket and holding them out to Delaney.

She took them with trembling fingers.

“My father has someone on your weekly cleaning crew,” I explained. “He pays them to take whatever photos they can, and keep an eye on your father. I’m not sure if this is brand new or how long it’s been going on but…”

Delaney’s eyes went wide when she saw the photos of herself. Her fingers shook and I quickly took the photos away, putting them back. She took a steadying sip of water. “I remember the crew being there but… you really don’t—you learn to view the help as—invisible, after a while. God, what a spoiled thing to say.”

“Spoiled, maybe, but it’s all you knew. That’s what… people like my father rely on. Patterns. We’re pattern-recognizing creatures so if we see the same thing enough times our brain starts to ignore it. Almost like we can’t even see it anymore.”

Delaney nodded absently.

“I was trying to figure out what to do to help you when…” I gestured at her. “You helped yourself.”

Delaney gave a small laugh. “And what do you now owe your father?”

---