Page 98 of Undeniably Enemies

I’m not sure how else to respond.

“Not everyone is cut out for those kinds of traumas. It can be tough to see that for the first time.”

A caustic laugh flees my lungs. “Thanks for that pep talk, teach. Truly, it was inspirational and motivating.”

He ignores my shitty attitude and blatant sarcasm. “Do you want to talk about it with me?”

“Nope.”

“What happened in there?”

I hate how calm his voice is. How he’s trying to soothe me when I’m this out of control.

I go over to my locker and pull out my clothes. I don’t care. Right now, I just need a break. A break from the ER. A break from the attacker. A break from my attending physician, who never seems to be able to give me one even when he’s just my friend because we both know that’s how it has to be for us.

With my back to him, I rip off my scrub top followed by my long-sleeved shirt. This is the second time he’s followed me into the women’s locker room, and if he has zero fucks to give with that, then so do I.

I hear him suck in a breath, but I don’t turn over my shoulder to gauge his reaction. Instead, I throw on my clean shirt and flatly utter, “I take it Owen never told you.”

“Told me what?”

“That I was attacked at knifepoint by my ex-boyfriend while I was jogging.”

He’s quiet for a very long, very tense beat. “Wh—” His voice catches, and he clears his throat. “When?”

“About a year and a half after I moved back here.”

“I didn’t.” He clears his throat again. “I didn’t know. Jesus, Wren. What happened?”

I can hear the anguish and anger in his voice, but I can’t turn to see it.

“He loved me. Or made it seem that way. He made me feel special, like I was the only girl in the world, and after yourejected me and broke my heart and all the boys who only seemed to want me because I was a Fritz, I clung fast and hard. So I didn’t notice the signs. And I forgave things I never should have. I discovered a very troubling past with his family, and when I confronted him about it, he got physical. I left, and he didn’t take that well. Finally, he backed off, and a few months later, I was out running, and there he was. He jumped me from behind and grabbed my wrists, holding them above my head as he pinned me down.”

He gasps, and I know it’s because he remembers my reaction to him doing that.

“Did he…” He can’t even finish that.

“No. He tried. He tried like hell. I told him no and to stop, and it set him off. I fought him with everything I had, and I managed to hit the alarm I have on my keychain. Someone heard, and the next thing I knew, I was in an ambulance. Callan, Layla, and Margot saved me.”

“Callan, Layla, and Margot,” he repeats, his voice eerily soft. “Where is he now?”

“Dead. I wasn’t his only plan for the knife that day.”

He’s silent for a long, tense moment, but he hasn’t left, and because I don’t care and I’m angry and I want to punish him a bit for the situation we find ourselves in, I undo the string of my scrub pants and let them drop to the floor.

He chokes. “What are you doing?”

“Changing. This is thewomen’slocker room.”

I’m wearing a thong, so he’s getting a hot glance at my ass right now. I’m hoping he’ll get the fucking hint and leave me the hell alone. I didn’t want to tell him. I never wanted to tell him. People look at you and treat you differently after they know. They just do. And I liked how Jack never treated me with kid gloves. He gave it back to me just as good as I gave it to him, and though nothing will ever happen between us again, I don’t want that look of pity from him.

I couldn’t take that.

“Just leave, Jack.” Why won’t he go? Does he enjoy my humiliation that much?

“No.”

“I don’t want you here.” I button and zip up my jeans. “I’m fine. It caught me off guard. That’s all. I apologize for running out of there. It was unprof?—”

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