Page 75 of Caught Up In You (The Monroes 2)

Cora’s soft breathing, her very presence was everything he needed to stay strong, to face the demon that still haunted him.

“He grabbed my shoulders and shook me.” Braxton could still feel those strong hands gripping his slender frame. “My mom grabbed his arm and tried to tell him she’d find the lighter, but he turned on her and slapped her across the face. When she fell, I ran into my room and locked the door.”

A decision he’d regret until the day he died.

“My dad tore through the house, stomping and yelling. I heard my mom crying and decided I couldn’t hide, not when she needed me.” He pulled in a deep breath, the hardest part yet to come. “When I came out, my dad had a gun and was waving it around. He always had one on him because he was paranoid even inside our own house. He didn’t see me at the top of the stairs and my mom was frantically still searching for that damn lighter.”

Braxton blinked back the burn in his eyes. Tears wouldn’t change the ending. “At that point he was just angry because that was his default emotion. He kept waving that gun and when my mom came up behind him with his lighter, he turned and fired.”

Closing his eyes, Braxton willed the pain to go away, and fought to finish. He’d come this far.

“When he saw what he’d done, he crumpled to the floor and held her. For a few seconds, I caught a glimpse of the man my mother swore he was. In those few moments, he held on to her and told her how much he loved her, how sorry he was. And I know he was sincere. It took killing her to snap him back. But the second he picked up his gun, I knew. I just knew in my gut what he was going to do. I was still frozen at the top of the stairs, he never looked my way.”

Braxton choked out the last words. Cora framed his face, swiping his tears with her thumbs. He bit his quivering lip, hating that he couldn’t keep up his strength.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t mean to ruin the evening, but I had to tell you. I didn’t want my past between us because it did shape the man I am today and I wanted you to know everything about me.”

She threaded her fingers back through his hair and tugged until he rested his forehead against hers. “Nothing you tell me could change my feelings. If anything, I’m even more in awe of the struggles you’ve faced and how you’ve overcome each of them.”

Relief flooded through him. Needing the contact, Braxton slid his hands around her waist and held on. “I need to tell you something else.”

“Anything.”

He lifted his head, wanting to look into those beautiful violet eyes. “I’m pretty sure I’m falling in love with you.”

Cora stilled, her breath caught as her mouth parted. “You-you don’t mean that. It’s too soon.”

He smiled despite her reaction that stemmed from fear. “Is it? Because I can’t put a time frame on feelings. If you’re honest, you feel the same.”

She blinked a few times, her lips pursing together. “Really? You and that ego are full of it again. You have no idea how I feel.”

The pulse at the base of her neck quickened, her cheeks pinkened. Braxton closed the space between them and hovered his mouth just over hers.

“I know how you look at me, I know how you’re guarded, but when we’re together you let loose and you have this look of contentment.”

Her lids fluttered down as he stroked his lips back and forth across hers. “And I know you have feelings because I can tell when you touch me. You aren’t just trying to take in my physical appearance, you’re actually seeing me, all of me, and now you’ve seen my darkest side. You’re still here, you’re not afraid.”

Braxton trailed his fingertip down the column of her throat. Her head tipped back and rolled to the side as a soft sigh escaped her lips.

“Tell me you don’t feel everything when I touch you,” he whispered. “Tell me we aren’t on the same page.”

“Fine,” she groaned. “You win.”

Arching her back, she bit her lip as he continued to stroke his fingers over her skin. “Say it,” he demanded.

Cora sat straight up, gripped his wrists, and looked directly at him. He knew she couldn’t see him, but she literally stared right into his eyes.

“I’m falling for you, too. I didn’t want to, I even told myself I wasn’t, but you consume all of my thoughts and this new world I have started building. I need you, Braxton.”

Every bit of his tension, every single thing wrong in his past suddenly vanished for a moment. All that mattered was right now, this second and how Cora was opening herself just as much as he was. The fact they were both exposed and vulnerable only proved how deep they were forging their bond.

He knew her admitting her need didn’t have anything to do with right now and intimacy, but everything to do with life. And he needed her in his life, too. Needed her in a way that left his heart wide open for the risk of being crushed, but he didn’t care. Cora was worth . . . everything.

Braxton came to his feet and scooped her up into his arms. “I need you, too,” he told her as he carried her down the hall, toward her bedroom. “I’m staying tonight.”

Her hand caressed his jawline as she rested her head on his shoulder. “I wasn’t going to let you go.”

Chapter Fourteen

---