Page 190 of Strange Seduction
He turned his back to me again, and I could hear his breathing—deep and heavy and pained. For a second, I thought he might come toward me, say something that fixed it all.
But he didn’t.
He just stood there, stone still. Nothing. He said nothing. There was nothing he could say. We were past the point of no return.
I wiped my face and walked away.
I was halfway down the hall when his footsteps came fast behind me.
“You’re not going anywhere.”
I didn’t stop.
“Carmen.”
His voice had that edge now.
He grabbed my wrist, pulling me to a halt, then he spun me to face him. “Did you hear me? I said you’re not going anywhere.”
I yanked my arm back, eyes blazing. “You gonna make that decision for me too?”
His jaw clenched. “What do you want me to say? That I handled this wrong? Fine. I did. I fucked it all the way up. But don’t stand here and act like you didn’t know exactly what this was or where it leads.”
“Where does it lead?”
“Right back in this house. With you in my bed because you can’t leave me. I won’t let you.”
“Theodore. This?” I gestured around the space of the house. “This is your doing. I wasn’t even in the room when you made the decision to trap me in it.”
“I didn’ttrapyou.” He stepped closer, crowding the air between us. “I gave you everything I had, Carmen. Everything.”
“You gave me everything but a choice.”
Theo’s nostrils flared. “You had a choice. You still do. But don’t think for a second I’m going to stand here and let you pretend I’m the villain for trying to build something for us.”
I laughed bitterly. “You built it to keep me here. Just admit it.”
He tilted his head, his voice low and dangerous. “I built it so you’d want to stay. So you’re staying.”
“That’s controlling, Theo,” I said.
“No,” he snapped. “Controlling would’ve been putting your name on the deed without telling you. Control would’ve been packing your shit up from New York and shipping it here. I didn’t. I could’ve. God knows I thought about it. But I didn’t.”
I stared at him, fury in my throat and heartbreak in my chest. “But you did talk to my boss about me staying before you talked to me. You knew exactly what would happen if I didn’t have a job in New York.”
He didn’t deny it. His silence was its own confession.
I shoved past him, but he followed.
“I’m not letting you leave, Carmen.”
I ignored him, stalking toward the stairs.
He was behind me in a flash, his voice dropping to a warning growl. “You’re not leaving me because of one stupid fight.”
That stopped me cold. I turned. “You think this is just about tonight? You think this fight is new? Every time we’re together, it’s like this. Is this who we are? Is this what we’re becoming?”
“It’s whoIam,” he said unapologetically. “And it’s who you keep choosing, over and over again.”
