Page 53 of Resisting Temptation

“Sit tight, they will get the problem fixed ASAP,” she mumbles into her hands, not bothering to look up at me.

I lean into the wall. “Well, that’s good then.”

Her brows knit together as she glares up at me. “It took them six hours to get it sorted last week,” she snaps, unimpressed. “Hope you don’t need to use the bathroom, because we’re going to be here a while.”

I run a hand through my hair as I watch her growing increasingly more agitated by the second. This could all be so easy if she would just hear me out. Paisley hugs her legs closer to her chest, rocking a little back and forth. She looks like a crazy person in a straitjacket just trying to keep her shit together. “Are you alright?” I ask, wondering if she’s one of those people who hate confined spaces and this is her worst nightmare.

“Just dandy,” she replies, the tone of her voice anything but.

“You’re not about to have a panic attack on me, are you?” I ask, a little more concerned.

That forces her to glare up at me angrily. “No. I’m not claustrophobic. Just trying to block you out so I don’t have to deal with this messed-up situation.”

“Real mature,” I mutter under my breath, seeing we’re not going to get anywhere.

She gets to her feet in a rush. “Oh, you’re one to talk. Who dumped who in a fucking text message? You didn’t even have the guts to say it to my face. Then you left me and went back to your cushy life. All your adoring fans swooning over the big football star, while I was left here to pick up the pieces. I’m trying to block you out so I don’t have to deal with the way you destroyed me. Have a little self-preservation. But youcan’t even let me have that. You have to follow me around and rub in my face the fact you’re back. Why did you even come back? This town meant nothing to you anymore anyway.”

“I came back for you.”

“No, you didn’t.” She stomps her foot.

I take her hand, sliding my fingers all the way up her arm then down her side till my hand lands on her lower back, then I pull her into me. “You have no idea the things I have done for you, baby. The sacrifices I’ve made. What I would still do. I know I hurt you when I left, but I came back to make things right.”

She huffs out a breath. “You came back for you, not me. You knew this town would accept you with open arms, you’re their hero.”

I shake my head. “Deep down, you know that’s not true.”

She blinks up at me, her hand pressing on my shirt to allow her some distance. Her fingers curl into the fabric.

“Earlier you asked me if I would have come home if I didn’t get injured, and I couldn’t answer you. Until three years ago, my entire life was about football. That all changed the summer I fell for you. I didn’t leave town and go back to my old life because I wanted to. I was forced out of town by your father.” I feel her flinch at the mention of him. He was a pathetic excuse for a father, but she has no idea who he really is. “Our last night together, he followed us. He was waiting for me and had some thugs kick the shit out of me, then he told me if I didn’t leave town, he would make sure I never played football again. But that wasn’t the worst part. He said he would make sure your life was made justas difficult. And after the threat you told me about, I didn’t want to risk it. I had no idea what your father was capable of. All I knew was his friend wasn’t messing around. So I left, hoping it would save you from any further hurt.”

Her eyes go wide as they settle on me. “He threatened you?”

“Your father is a very powerful man, Paisley. Not because he’s the town doctor but because of who he chose to associate himself with. You paid dearly for one of his fuck-ups. That’s why you were threatened by Lucca that night. He was sending a warning to your father.”

“How do you know that?”

“When my father went to jail, he had a friend compile every bit of evidence he had been collecting of his time in office. I’m still going through it all, there was so much to read and listen to, but from what I can make out, your father is heavily involved with the Rebel Raiders motorcycle gang. He was falsifying scripts for them, performing operations, doing whatever jobs they required his services for. The night you were attacked was the day after their leader died on his operating table.”

She sucks in a shaky breath, and I hold her tighter.

“I’m so sorry, baby.”

“That’s why you went to see him.”

“Someone had to make him pay for what he let happen to you. I’m just sorry it wasn’t fifteen years ago.”

“The police are holding him without bail because there’s more to this than just the assault charges on you?”

I nod.

“You’re scaring me, Noah. I knew there was something not right with him, but this, this is a lot.”

“I don’t want to scare you. But you need to know what we’re up against. Why I left in the first place.” My hand comes to her chin, forcing her to look back at me. “I would never have just walked away from you by choice, I cared about you way too much. Please, Paisley, give me another chance.”

She stares up at me, tears in her eyes. “We both know that’s a bad idea for so many reasons.”

“Why?” I demand. I’ve told her the truth, she has to know we belong together.

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