Page 8 of Forbidden Secrets
“You don’t need to worry about me.”
“Telling me not to worry doesn’t make me not worry.I know I’ve said this before, but I need to say it again.”Esme paused and Melanie thought she was gathering a full head of steam.“You want to find the fucking bastard who raped you.I get that.I do.He shouldn’t be free to live his life and not be held accountable.If he still lives in Sisters and hasn’t died a violent and painful death like he deserves, preferably with his dick chopped off and fed to wild dogs, he’ll be supremely anxious when he learns you’re back.You could uncover who he is and out him and jeopardize whatever life he’s built for himself.He’s used violence before, so what’s to stop him from using it again if he thinks you’re a threat?What all that means is I want you to promise me you’ll be careful.”
“I will, Es.Promise.I’ve got Addy to think about too.I’ll be careful.”
“You better.There are only a few people I love, but you’re one of them and I want you safe.”
“I love you too.Best of luck on your date.You should wear that blue sweater that makes your boobs look fantastic.I’ll expect a full recap.”
“I was debating between the blue sweater and the red one, and now you’ve decided for me, so thanks for that.Bye, friend.”
Melanie disconnected the call.Steering toward the post office, she considered what Esme had said.Was it dangerous to try to identify the man who’d assaulted her?She didn’t think so, and the injustice of what had happened ate at her.She had to do something.
She hated that like so many women, she’d felt shame after being assaulted.Then there were those who’d insinuated the blame was somehow hers.Sheriff Grafton had commented on the low-cut top she wore that night, as if a hint of cleavage excused a man’s violence.She’d thought the outfit was cute, maybe a little sexy.But if you followed his logic, men weren’t responsible for their actions and it was up to women to stop them.
That twisted thinking had nearly drowned her.Back then, the shame, anger, and self-doubt had come in relentless waves.She’d felt like she was drowning, constantly struggling to keep her head above water.Therapy, at her mother’s insistence, had helped Melanie find her footing again.Running off to Portland had been a survival move.Now, she was done running.
The blame belonged solely to the man who’d assaulted her.He was the one who should feel ashamed.He should live with the humiliation of being exposed for exactly what he was—a rapist.
Walker had finally been exonerated.Sheriff Neil Grafton, the man who’d swapped DNA results and let an innocent young man stand trial, had been convicted of tampering with evidence.The disgraced former sheriff had never revealed whose name had actually matched the rape kit and was currently rotting in a state prison.
Maybe she should pay him a visit.
Melanie tried to bring her thoughts back to the present.She turned into the little lot beside the post office and parked.
After waiting through the short line, she turned in a change-of-address form and set up a PO Box for her writing business.Next stop was Sisters Hardware.Paul would fix the toilet if she asked him.She knew he would.But she was a homeowner now, and if her toilet wouldn’t stop running, it was up to her to fix it.She’d watched a video explaining the process step by step and it looked doable.
Wandering the aisles of the hardware store felt different now that she owned her home.Every display sparked an idea for how to spruce up the plain little house and make it more theirs.Her gaze lingered on a wall of cheerful paint chips.That lotus yellow would be perfect for Addy’s room.Bright and sunny.Maybe they could add some stenciled stars or hearts in a contrasting color.
Turning a corner, she spotted a kid’s wooden desk with a hutch and a matching chair.Simple, sturdy.The kind of space where a little girl could draw or do homework.She liked that the top was hinged and lifted for storage.Perfect for crayons and treasures.They could paint the desk together and maybe do some stenciling there too.
She wrestled the desk set into her cart and made herself walk past the paint section without stopping.Addy deserved to help choose the colors for her room and the desk.They’d assemble the desk, then pick out the colors together.
Melanie had almost escaped the home improvement area until a bathroom display sucked her in with ideas for sprucing up the dingy bathrooms.Twenty minutes later she forced herself to hit the brakes.She’d add the pretty mint green with white trim to her idea board for the house, but there were other things that needed to take priority over the bathroom.Like painting the outside and replacing the roof.
Paint was peeling on the window trim and eaves, and she’d known the roof was old when she bought the house.That’s how she’d gotten such a good deal on the price.She hadn’t seen any signs of leaks so fingers crossed it would stay that way until she could get to it.
She finally made it to the plumbing aisle, which wasn’t nearly as interesting as choosing paint colors.Melanie studied the information on the back packaging for a toilet flapper.
“Hey.”
Holy hotness.Gage Landry stood with his hands in his pockets, looking all ruggedly handsome in his faded blue jeans, his jacket open over a shirt of charcoal gray, dark hair combed back from his forehead.And dammit, this close she could see his eyes were green, a deep forest green fringed with spiky eyelashes.
She was beginning to wonder if she’d somehow imagined her character into being.Put a longbow over his shoulder and a broadsword at his side, and he was Alaric, warrior defender of Vaelora, queen of Balendon.
Dark brows winged up in question because, yes, she was staring.
“Hi, neighbor,” she said, fighting a blush.
“Problem with your toilet?”
Toilet.Focus on the toilet.“Yep.It keeps running.”
His fingers brushed hers as he reached for the package.A jolt zipped up her arm like a live electrical current.
Good lord.She’d written the “electrifying touch” trope a dozen times in her novels.But she never believed it happened in real life.But here she was, living proof, with the tingles still skittering through her system.Her pulse kicked and awareness flooded through her, more intense than anything she’d ever put on the page.
Gage, however, appeared oblivious.He studied the contents before handing back the package.“You don’t need this.”
