Page 111 of Win Big

“He ignored you?” My jaw slackens.

“Not deliberately. My dad loves me. But he had three sons who all played hockey. He had a big business to run. A hockey team. He was traveling all over the place going to games. Those things got his attention. Not me.”

My chest feels like a boa constrictor has wrapped around it. It’s hard to breathe.

“Gage told me he was getting a divorce.”

“He was fuckingmarried?” I stare at her.

“Yes. And he wasn’t getting a divorce.” She rolls her eyes. “Then. They did end up divorced.”

“Christ.”

“It was stupid,” she continues in a low voice. “I know it was, but at the time I was a dumb teenager. I thought it was so exciting. We couldn’t be seen together in public, he couldn’t tell his friends about me, he couldn’t meet my friends, I couldn’t tell my parents.”

“They found out, I gather.”

“Yes. I didn’t do it on purpose, but I took a risk of having Gage come over when they were out. I knew they could come home anytime. Probably deep down inside Iwantedto get caught. I wanted them to know what was going on. Actually, I’ve realized there was part of me that was scared about what was happening with Gage... because I knew it was bad. And they did come home and find us together.”

My teeth are clenched so tightly, my molars are in danger of cracking.

“We were on the couch, making out,” she adds, reading where my mind has gone. “You can imagine the scene. I thought my dad was going to have a stroke. I was even worried about my mom. She was crying, I was crying... Dad broke Gage’s nose. There was blood everywhere, Dad was yelling and saying he was going to call the police, Mom was trying to calm him down. Theywere so horrified. I think when my dad talked about contacting the police and called Gage a pedophile, it suddenly slammed into me what a disaster I’d created.”

“You?” My blood pressure rises even more, heat building inside me. “Youcreated?”

“That was how I felt,” she says. “And I still do, to a certain extent.”

“He should have been thrown in jail!”

She grimaces. “Well, he wasn’t, and we’ll never know if Dad did the right thing or not. After Mom and Dad kicked Gage out and I was sent to my room and grounded for the next two years...” She smiles wryly. “Mom and Dad talked about it. They didn’t want it all public. It was... sleazy, I think was the word they used.” She bows her head. “It made mefeelsleazy. And I was so angry. I thought this was the man I loved and we were going to be together, and they’d ruined everything. I ran away from home.”

“Oh Jesus.” My hands curl into fists, resisting the urge to pull her into my arms. “Jesus Christ.”

Staring at me, she says, “Don’tyouthink that?”

“Think what?”

“That I was sleazy.”

My jaw drops in horror. “Fuck no.”

She draws in a long, shaky breath, her eyes going shiny. “Wyatt...”

My eyes sting too, my throat thick. I don’t cry very often. I fight the urge back. “You’re not sleazy. That was not your fault.”

She sucks on her trembling bottom lip, a tear leaking from one corner of her eye. “Thank you.”

“Go on. Gage got traded then, didn’t he?”

“Yes. Dad did that. He made sure if Gage said anything about it, one word, or ever tried to contact me again, the world would know he was a creep who preyed on underage girls. He got himout of town. I don’t actually know what happened between Gage and his wife. I assume he probably did the same thing with another girl... s-somewhere else...” She chokes to a halt. “I feel horrible about that, if it’s what happened. He shouldn’t have been able to do that to anyone else.”

“Again, not your fault. He was an abuser.”

“I know now how ridiculous it was to think that a guy his age would be genuinely interested in a teenager as a girlfriend. I wanted to believe he was really interested in me.”

“Yeah.” My chest burns. Adrenaline pumps through my veins, making me want to stand up and throw and smash things. I’m so fucking angry on her behalf I can barely think straight.

“I felt so horrible about what I did. How I hurt my parents, and put them into that situation.” She swipes fingertips over her cheek. “I’ve never totally gotten over it.”

---