Page 149 of Strange Seduction
He followed my movement with tired eyes. “I understand,Amore mio. And it’s tearing me apart to know I did this. That I ruined what we had. But baby, please—believe me when I saynothinghappened. I never touched her. I swear it.”
“You had her in your bed,” I said sharply.
“I know. And I’m sorry.”
“You didn’t tell me.”
“I’m so sorry, baby.”
I could hear the desperation in his voice, but it didn’t soothe anything.
“Our trust is broken,” I said quietly.
“I know.” He exhaled hard, rubbing a hand through his hair. “But, Carmen… we’ve been dealing with trust issues long before this. This wasn’t the root. It was just the pebble that finally set off the volcano.”
I turned toward him slowly. “So why are we even doing this? I don’t trust you. And you don’t trust me. Why the hell are we holding onto this?”
He paused for a second, then shrugged with a half-smile, like the answer was obvious.
“Because I don’t want to lose you.”
He said it so simply, like it was the natural truth of the world. My chest tightened.
“The way I feel about you, Carmen… it makes the work I’ll have to do to earn back your trust feel like child’s play,” he said. “Actually—fuck just earning your trust, I’m going to earnyou.Earn this relationship. Prove to both of us that what we have is real and nothing is worth us ending it.”
I stared at him, mouth slightly parted. I hated how easily his words cracked through my defenses. I hated how much I still wanted to believe him.
“R—right,” I muttered. “Well… I guess I can stick around until then.”
His smile curled at the corners, lazy and smug in that charming, irritating way of his.
“Smart-ass.”
Silence settled over us. I stared at the ceiling, nerves crawling under my skin. I wanted to stay in this moment, to let it be simple. But it wasn’t.
So I asked the question that had been gnawing at me since he woke up.
“Did you cum in me?”
Theo didn’t flinch.
“Yeah,” he said simply. “I did.”
I turned to face him, irritation bubbling behind my ribs. “Theo, you know I don’t like taking Plan Bs. Or birth control. Can youpleasestop doing that?”
He shrugged, unapologetic. “Then don’t take the pills.”
I let out a dry laugh, completely unimpressed. “And what, justhavea baby? I don’t think so.”
But he looked at me then, and I knew he wasn’t joking.
“There are worse things,” he said.
My eyes went wide. “God. Please don’t tell me you’re one ofthosepeople who think having a baby will magically fix our relationship.”
“No.” His tone stayed level. “I’m not. I’m just saying… I wouldn’t mind us having a child. Eventually. Once we figure our shit out.”
Not this again.
