Page 77 of His Little Secret in Discretion
Stepping out of the car, I cracked my neck to the side as I approached slowly.
His voice trailed off mid-apology when he realized I was nearing the two of them. Maia glanced between us, chewing her lip before she whispered, “I’ll be right back,” before she swiftly slipped away to avoid the tension.
Once she’d left, it was only me and him.
He rubbed a hand down his face, shoulders hunched. “You don’t have to look at me like that. I know I’m a screw-up. I never wanted her to—” His voice cracked, probably rough from too many cigarettes, too many nights drowning himself in regret. “She deserves better than a washed-up old man who can’t get his shit together.”
I gave a light shrug. It wasn’t a lie. “You’re right. She does.”
He sat down on the step once more. His head dropped lower, shame etched in every line of his face.
“And despite that… you’re still here,” I continued, voice even, deliberate. “Which means she’ll keep giving you pieces of herself until there’s nothing left. She doesn’t know how to quit on people.You do.”
He swallowed hard, staring at the cracked concrete between us. “She’s all I’ve got.”
“Funny. She said the same about you.”
His head lifted, eyes glinting with something raw, almost desperate. “Then you know why I can’t let her go. She’s the only reason I’ve made it this far. Without her…” His words trailed off, his voice breaking as he dragged another shaky hand through his thinning hair. “Without her, I don’t have a damn thing.”
I stared down at him, jaw tight. “And with you, she’s drowning.”
“I know she is…” He sighed, shaking his head. “Kid’s a giver. Always has been. Not a damn thing in this world was handed to her, so when someone needed, she gave. Even when it left her empty.”
His mouth twisted, shame flickering in his eyes. “I leaned on that. I knew she’d break herself to keep me standing, and I let her. Felix—” His throat worked, bitter. “Felix saw it too. Only he made it worse.”
I felt my hands curl into fists, but he wasn’t finished.
“You say you’re different.” His gaze flicked to mine, wet and weary. “But men like you… suits, money, power… you see a girl like Maia and you take. You tell yourself you’re saving her, but you’re still taking. And she’ll give until there’s nothing left. That’s who she is.”
I leaned down, close enough he couldn’t miss me. I’d never wanted to punch someone more in my life, but given he was my future wife’s only family, I couldn’t exactly knock some sense into him.
“You’re right,” I murmured. “She does give everything. And I’ll take every last piece. Every tear, every scar, every broken part of her past.” My voice dropped lower, sharper. “But unlike you… unlike him… I won’t leave her empty. I won’t leave her worthless.”
I held his stare, letting the truth hit his chest. “Because she’s mine. And soon enough, she’ll know it. Not because she owes me. Not because I hold something over her head. But because she’s the only goddamn thing I want in this world. And when she finally believes it, she’ll never doubt her worth again.”
He had little to say in response.
Hearing a few footsteps, I looked up to see my Maia, her eyes gazing at me with tears as she tried her best to smile, probably having heard my words.
Wes didn’t argue as she gave him a final hug, telling him she’d call him soon. He said nothing as he watched us return to the car. The look in his eyes, however, had changed from regret and bitterness to something almost like understanding.
And then he nodded. Just once.
Approval. Permission. Whatever the hell he thought it meant, I didn’t need it. She was already mine. But I understood it for what it was… his way of stepping aside, of saying he knew she was safer in my hands than in his.
Odd, really. He cared for her, wanted her protected from being used, yet he’d been one of the ones to use her the most. Letting her go was the closest he’d ever come to taking care of her.
Chapter twenty-nine
Maia
Sitting at the kitchen island in Blaine’s penthouse, I held the phone in my hand as the message taunted me through the screen.
It was late, I’d already eaten dinner, gotten ready for the night, and I was even going to head up for bed soon, but Felix wasn’t going to give up. He wasn’t going to let go of me without taking something from me first. My happiness? My sanity? I still didn’t know.
The words blurred as my throat tightened. My thumb hovered over the screen like I might finally answer, though I had no idea what I’d even say. Not like it would matter much to the egocentric bastard.
I made a move to place the phone face down, in the hopes that it would help me forget I’d ever gotten the message, when a shift in the air behind me made me flinch. Blaine hovered over me, his chin resting on my shoulder as he wrapped his arms around my waist. He smelled like fresh rain, soap, and everything I wanted to curl up against in that moment.
