Page 130 of Broken

“He doesn’t deserve to live,” I growl.

She returns to my side, tugs on my elbow, and leads me over to the washing station where she cleans me up in silence.

Then, when my hands are no longer covered in Eric’s blood, she cups my chin. “He didn’t hurt our girls.”

“Hecouldhave. Don’t you get it, Andrea? He could have dragged them in here and?—”

“But he didn’t. They’d have told us.”

“Someone’s Thiya suffered?—”

“And he’ll pay for his sins.”

Breathing heavily, I close my eyes. My rage refuses to abate so I slam my hand into my abdomen. My old scar, the one she gave me, gives me the release I need when agony spears me quite literally in the gut.

But not for long—she snags my wrist, nails digging into my forearm to stop me. Before I know what’s happening, her mouth is on my knuckles, and when she pulls back, her lips are anointed with my blood like some fucked-up lipstick.

“Don’t ever do that in front of me,” she snarls, the words in stark contrast to her actions. “I know you hurt yourself. I’d do anything in my power to stop it. You won’t and I understand. But do not do it in front of me,” she repeats, the words softer now when she can see she has my full attention.

“I want to kill him,” I grind out.

“‘Only God can help me now.’ You promised.”

I rub the back of my neck with my free hand. “I did.”

She’d made me vow that I wouldn’t act without hearing those words.

“You do not break your vows to me,” she commands, her statement all the more powerful for the red staining her lips…

Eyes locked on them, I tip up my chin. “I know.”

“Good.” She leans on tiptoe and presses our mouths together. I can tasteme. It shudders through my system. The brutal side of my soul is appeased as she rubs our tongues together, pushing me backward until I’m pinned to the barn wall.

“What— EW!”

Arabella’s shriek has us jerking apart like we’ve been stung with a cattle prod.

Hand patting her hair, Andrea clears her throat. “What’s wrong?”

“You two were kissing,” Arabella whines, while Lola cackles—Diana and her kids live with us now.

She turns to shoot me a look that promises ‘later’ and then guides our daughter and her best friend to the house, bickering with her all while Lola stirs the pot with comments about K. I. S. S. I. N. G. and cooties.

As I watch two-fifths of my entire universe walk into our home, I rub my chin.

She doesn’t know how close I came to breaking my vow to her.

And she never will.

CHAPTER 45

Andrea

Though I walk away from the barn with his promise to leave Eric alone fresh in my ears, the kids’ chatter doing nothing to clear my mind, I’m fully aware of how close we just came…

I release a heavy breath when the girls run ahead to the kitchen.

Staring at the sky, relief making me nauseated, I mutter, “That was a close call, God. Too close. If I hadn’t gotten there in time—” I bite my lip. “I always have faith in him and know he works so hard to be the husband and father he believes we deserve, but if it weren’t for…

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