Page 56 of Destiny Reclaimed
His caring gaze stayed on her. “Did he do this because of me?”
She pointed her gaze to the countertop in answer to his question.
“I’m so sorry, Gwennie.” He swallowed audibly. “With as much as I hate to say this, you’ll need to stop coming in here.”
She refocused on him. “I can’t. This is all I have—” The lump in her throat choked off her words.
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Jack’s heart crackedin half at the sound of this lovely woman’s words. It was absolutely horrible a precious lady like Gwennie had onlythis. Yet, he’d be lying if he wasn’t thrilled by her confession. Though neither of them would ever act on their true feelings for one another because of her married status, he selfishly took pleasure in knowing she reciprocated the feelings he held for her. Yet, on the flip side, he was concerned for her. And the bigger thing to do right now was to set her free. With as much as he wanted her, he needed to let her go for her own safety.
The devil on his shoulder weighed in—would letting her go stop her husband from...
He couldn’t even think the words without wanting to cry, pull her into his arms, then run out and beat his cousin to a pulp.
A customer walked up to the payment counter. Jack rose from his stool, walked over to the register, and rang up the sale.
Before the first customer exited, the other customer was ready to check out. Great, now that the store was rid of customers again, and he could resume his conversation with Gwennie. Part of him was surprised she hadn’t grabbed her son and left already.
Jack took a seat on his stool and leaned across the counter, closer to her. His heart leaped into his throat when he noticed the tinge of a yellow bruise on her cheek. An array of unpleasant words lingered on the tip of his tongue. It took a great deal of willpower to hold them back and not fly off the stool. His cousin was lucky not to be in proximity right now.
Though he held his words at bay, he was unable to control his impulse to touch her.
With shaky fingertips, he reached up and touched her cheek. “I’m so sorry. I wish there was something I could do.”
She tilted her head against the palm of his hand. The emerald flecks in her caramel eyes brightened. “You’re already doing it.”
His mouth went dry.
A loud car passed by the front of the store, reminding him of their exposure. He shouldn’t be touching her, especially in a place everyone could see. Still, he lingered with his palm pressed to her warm cheek. The sensation of their touch was familiar to him as if it had happened before, yet, they’d never actually touched each other outside the time she’d nearly fainted. From that moment, he’d felt an undeniable connection to her.
Reluctantly, he pulled his hand from her velvety skin and rose from the stool. Turning his head, he focused on Blake. “Hey Buddy, you want to go in the back and play with a hamster?” the boy’s eyes lit up and the coloring book was history.
Without hesitation, Gwennie and her son followed him toward the storeroom. Along the way, Jack snatched a hamster from the cage.
Luckily, he found a box large enough for the boy to sit in as he played with the hamster, just in case he’d lost his grip on the animal he wouldn’t lose it completely.
“Looks like he likes you,” Jack commented.
Blake glanced up at him with his big brown eyes and nodded.
Jack slid his gaze to Gwennie. A rush of adrenaline heated his veins. He wondered if she realized she touched her bruised cheek as she stared down at her son with teary eyes. Instinctively, he reached over, and lightly gripped her hand. He led her around the shelving unit, out of the boy’s sight, and pulled her into his arms. She didn’t resist him and fit perfectly. His heart broke over and over with each muffled sob of hers. His shirt dampened from her tears.
How had it come to this? He’d thought he’d done a good job hiding his feelings for her, but now he knew he hadn’t. Perhaps if he had, she wouldn’t have grown to feel the same for him, hence, causing Arthur to react the way he did. Still, a man had no right to strike a woman.
Gwennie’s sobs subsided, and she inched back, leaving a hollowness to fill his chest.
She wrapped her arms around herself. “I’m so sorry.”
“You have nothing to be sorry for.”
She glanced down, then back up. “I know I shouldn’t come here, but I can’t help myself, and Arthur always finds out.”
Nothing was secret in this small town. He knew that which is why he needed to cut this off. He feared if he didn’t, his cousin would continue to abuse his wife.
God, his heart almost exploded at the thought. Even if he and Gwennie never saw each other again, would Arthur stop abusing her? Perhaps he could convince her to divorce her husband. Moving in on another man’s wife was not his style—something he could be proud of, but in this case, the man was no man. He was an abuser and didn’t deserve his wife or son.
“Gwennie, have you considered leaving Arthur?”
