Page 18 of Burn For Me

“I already told you that you’d be disappointed.”

“Why, because Wade gave you some impression that you were lousy in bed?”

“Yes. Why else would he sleep with dozens of women?”

He choked slightly. “Dozens? He slept with dozens of other women while he was married to you?”

I nodded and stared at my plate. I was in for a penny. I might as well scare him away as I loaded the rest on his mind. “Yes, and he gave me three STDs because of all the women he was with.”

I watched his facial features change. The usually sparkling eyes dulled as another emotion flitted over his face. Perhaps he was chastising himself for being so dumb to entertain any thoughts of me. No man wanted to be with a loser woman who had been given STDs.

For a few moments, he didn’t look at me. In fact, he looked everywhere but at me as he wiped his hands, sipped his drink, straightened his silverware, and then sat back in his seat. “He had sex with other women, caught diseases off of them, and brought them back to you?”

I nodded, waiting for him to start laughing and call me a loser as he tossed his napkin on the table and walked away.

“I’m sorry, Lillian.”

Well, here it goes. He was probably going to stop flirting with me now and fire me too.

“There is no reason for you to be sorry.”

“There is every reason for me to be sorry. Your husband was a fucking jackass, and if he walked in that door right now, I would definitely tell him. You deserve so much better, Lilly.”

I blinked a few times as I stared back at him. “You say that like you don’t blame me.”

“Blame you? Why the hell would I blame you?”

“Because he always told me that if I were a better wife or lover, then he wouldn’t have strayed.”

“Lillian, let me ask you a question.” I waited. “Did you do the best that you were capable of? Did you do everything that he asked?”

“I tried to.”

“Then none of this was your fault. He was controlling you, Lillian. He was emotionally abusing you, and that is not okay.” He leaned forward. “And now you are going to let me show you how you should be treated.”

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