Page 41 of Imperfect Saint
He didn’t want just a night or a weekend. He didn’t want a fling. He didn’t even want to date her. He wanted forever with her.
A soft knock on the door a while later made Hunter jump. He frowned when Millie flinched and curled further in on herself but when she didn’t wake, he slowly slid away from her. The knock came again as he was grabbing a t-shirt and a pair of pants from his bag. He shot a quick glance at the bed but Millie didn’t stir so he finished dressing quickly and pulled the door open a fraction of an inch to see who was disturbing them.
Colin Turner stood on the other side. He looked nearly as wrecked as his sister had after Hunter had gotten her out of the shower. The resemblance between the siblings at that moment was uncanny. It wasn’t just the dark hair or the eyes. It wasn’t just the thin, lithe build of them. It was the utter defeat in their eyes and the way it made them both look as if they were carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders.
Hunter slid out the door and shut it quietly behind him, “Hey.”
“I need to talk to her.” Colin responded.
“I told you, when she’s ready…”
“You can’t keep her from talking to me.”
“I’m not keeping her from you. She’s sleeping. She cried herself out. She’s exhausted and she needs to rest. When she wakes up, I’ll see if she wants to talk to you.”
Colin swiped a hand over his face. He looked like he wanted to argue some more so Hunter blocked the door to the bedroom. He crossed his arms over his chest but Colin surprised him by only dropping his head into his hands and cursing.
When he raised his gaze, he looked like he was in physical pain, “Did you know?”
Hunter relaxed a little when he was certain Millie’s brother wasn’t going to rush him, “I had my suspicions.”
“But she hadn’t told you?”
“No.” Hunter shook his head.
Colin collapsed back against the wall on the other side of the hallway, “Yeah, well, me neither.”
Since Millie was sleeping and Colin was here, Hunter braced himself for a conversation. Colin wanted to talk to Millie but he’d have to settle for talking to Hunter. He looked like he wanted to say something and Hunter was keen to listen. So he stared at the man that might have some of the answers he wanted and asked the question that had been on his mind since Colin had denied Millie’s confession.
“You really never noticed there was something wrong about their relationship? Something off? You never had questions without easy answers?”
Colin raised his head and glared, “Don’t.”
“Don’t what? I’m just asking questions Colin; questions I’d have thought you would have asked yourself long before today.”
“You’re not just asking, you’re accusing me of seeing it and turning a blind eye, but for the record, no. I never would have suspected that he could hurt her. Never. I didn’t know. I didn’t see it and I don’t need you to make me feel guilty for missing all the warning signs. I already blame myself without you passing judgment on me.”
Hunter only narrowed his eyes, “Maybe you didn’t know, or maybe you didn’t want to know. Seemed like Reed knew what was going on as soon as he walked into that library though, didn’t it?”
His words made Colin scowl again and Hunter knew he’d leveled a low blow. It had been clear to him that Colin wasn’t aware of what Joshua was capable of when he’d walked into that situation. His fiancé had known though, and it had been just as clear that Reed hadn’t shared any of his suspicions with Colin. Secrets weren’t exactly the foundation that marriage was built upon and they were set to tie the knot. Hunter could only assume that while he was up here in the attic caring for Millie that Colin and Reed had been having a very awkward discussion downstairs about just what Reed knew when and why he hadn’t informed the man he loved.
“I was as shocked by that as anyone.”
“How long has he known?”
“Not long.” Colin shook his head. “He told me he only figured it out a couple of months ago. He saw Joshua pull her aside at a meal I’d invited him to. I’d been hoping they could figure out their problems if I just put them in the same room. I didn’t know what he was capable of or I never would have…”
“Reed saw him hurt Millie and didn’t say anything?” Hunter growled.
“No. God, no! He saw Joshua pull her aside to talk and he said something about it was off. Reed’s father was… well, let’s just say he wasn’t a nice man. He left when Reed was little, but Reed saw stuff. He knew the signs. He said he took one look at the way Joshua got in her face and he knew. He didn’t tell me because-“
“Because he’d already threatened to gut the bastard if he ever touched her again.” Hunter cut in again, knowing there was a reason he’d liked Colin’s fiancé as soon as they’d met.
“They were already broken up. Millie had made it clear that she was done with Joshua for good. I kept pushing. Dad pushed. She didn’t budge even an inch. Reed didn’t think there was anything new to worry about and what happened in the past wasn’t his place to tell me. It was hers.” Colin scrubbed his face again, “I understand his rationale, really I do, but… he still should’ve told me. I never would’ve let Joshua near her. I’d have protected her. She’s my little sister and I didn’t protect her.”
Hunter saw the anguish on the other man’s face. He understood how much Colin was hurting. He’d been confused but once he’d put all the pieces together, he was sad and angry and frustrated with the people he loved most in the world. Millie hadn’t told him. Reed hadn’t told him. Colin had only found out that his best friend was an abusive asshole after seeing his sister bleeding and bruised on what was supposed to be the happiest day of his life. That had to have hit him like a blow to the head and he was still reeling.
Hunter knew now why it was that Colin felt like he needed to talk to his sister immediately. He needed to hear the confirmation from her mouth. He needed to hear her explain to him why she'd kept him in the dark all this time. Colin needed answers, otherwise he’d blame himself for all of it, just like Millie do doubt did.
