Page 121 of Legacy of Lies
“What do you mean?”
“I couldn’t ask her if she loved me. Didn’t need to, anyway. I knew the answer.”
He stared into the space in front of him.
The silence hurt as much as her bruises. He had been through so much with a woman who had betrayed him. The ability he hated but had been forced to use took something away from the proud man before her.
Could she trust him?
Could Sara be with a guy who would know if she ever lied?
No problem, since she had no intention of lying to him, ever.
Maybe they had a future after all.
Sara couldn’t ask him the hard question, either, so she settled for something easier to handle. “Were there other times you wished you hadn’t used your gift?”
“Yeah. The parent-teacher conference with you. And I apologize. It was an invasion of your privacy. It was wrong.”
She touched her temple. “Is that why my head hurt?”
“I’m so sorry. You have no idea.” He stood up and faced her. “After I used it on my ex, I vowed never to use it again. But obviously I broke that promise. Several times.”
“So you didn’t trust me?” Damn it if tears didn’t prick at her eyes. Here she thought she was all cried out.
His eyes raked her face, then looked away. “No, I didn’t.”
“What about now?” she whispered, crossing her arms.
“Sara ...” He reached toward her, then dropped his hand.
“Well, it makes sense in a twisted way. You did what you had to for your family. For Zach.”
“The ends didn’t justify the means, and we both know it. I can’t promise I won’t use my power again.”
“Wow.” She let disappointment drip off the word.
He turned his palm up. “But I can promise I won’t use it on you ever again.”
“Well, um, that’s honest, I guess.” Her heart thumped. “So what now?”
“Sara, why are you still here?”
She dropped her hands to her sides. “In Copper River? Or in my house?”
“Standing here in front of me. Not running away. Not kicking me out.”
Blood pooled at her feet until she swayed in place. “I don’t have a good answer.”
“I do.” He swallowed. “Maybe you’re still here to give me a tiny bit of hope.”
“Hope?”
“That maybe we have a future.” He pointed to the boxes littering the living room. “But then I see all of this and wonder.”
Holy mother, he was going to make her actually say it? “It’s for when, you know, I’m gone at the end of the semester. Because. Zach. You. What Hank did. And everything here.” Since when had stringing words together become so difficult?
She clenched her teeth together.
