Page 30 of Seducing Daddy

She took a deep, shuddering breath, eyes vacant, as if she’d emptied herself of every painful emotion she’d been holding on to by keeping her secrets. “It’s okay. Rex.” Her voice was bereft of emotion now. “You can see why I don’t like to talk about it.”

“Yes, my love.” There. I said it out loud. My timing was absolute trash, but I couldn’t hold back anymore. I wanted to be her confidant, allowing her to bare her soul to me beyond all others. She could talk about anything she wanted and trust that what she told Daddy stayed with Daddy. The one from whom she withheld nothing. The one who didn’t mind waking up if she needed to talk at three a.m. “I can understand exactly why you’d want to leave that behind you. And also how, no matter how hard you tried to outrun it, it would catch up with you.”

Jolene looked above my head, seeing something that wasn’t visible in this room, focusing on it. “The thing is, I always wanted a family like yours. To one day be a parent who was open emotionally. To marry into brothers and sisters—everything I’ve never had in my life, a sense of belonging somewhere. But that’s not what I got when I married him.” Her abrupt bark of laughter had no funny side.

“He didn’t deserve you, baby girl,” I insisted.

She dropped her lashes quickly to hide the hurt. “I needed a fresh start. That’s why I came here. And I felt like I was to blame for my life falling apart the way it did.”

“That’s not true.” I couldn’t help but say it out loud, even though intellectually I understood it was important for her just to speak and be heard instead of having to shove her memories down inside as some kind of dirty secret she blamed herself for.

“I thought of leaving him a million times. I’d have done so, but I was so depressed. It was like I was frozen in my own life. I couldn’t make decisions. Every time I’ve thought of ending my marriage, the weight of sadness pulled me down. Sometimes, it was hard for me to even get out of bed, and, of course, that made him even angrier…” She paused and continued in sinking tones, which made ice spread through my stomach. “Once, when I was sobbing uncontrollably—I was so hormonal during my pregnancy—he just snapped.” I put my hands on top of her thighs, trying anything I could to comfort her and remind her where she was. With me. Here, with nothing to fear, where no one could get to her. “He ended up storming out of the house that night, but not before shoving me hard against the wall. When I hit the ground”—she put both of her hands up to cover her face, and her words became muffled—“my pregnancy was over. I lost my baby!”

God, I wanted to help her and take away all her sadness. As if that were even possible. “Look at all you’ve accomplished, Jolene. You climbed out of that mess and started over; you got away from him. That, in itself, is an achievement. Maybe you’re not ready for another relationship, but I certainly can’t walk away from you now.”

Yes, my timing sucked on this one. But for once, I was the weak one, and she was my confessor. I had to tell her, could no longer hold it inside. This resilient, wounded woman had my heart in her hand. She’d been so afraid of falling for me. But that didn’t change my feelings.

“I knew I was falling in love with you even before you shared your secrets. It’s never too late to begin again, no matter what’s happened to you, baby girl. Let me love you, wounds and all. Show me all the parts of you that you want to hide so I know where to begin.”

Chapter 16

Jolene

I trusted him enough to get wild and naughty on my knees for him and had no regrets about that. But crying like a baby made me far more vulnerable. No denying his Daddy-dom ways put me at ease. Still, I couldn’t believe I told him everything.

I couldn’t even say it silently to myself—the part about my baby.

I’d stayed with an evil man, allowing him to treat me like shit, only mustering the courage to leave after he did the worst thing imaginable. Every day, I lied to myself about being over it.

Rex was right, I thought, staring at the small patches of snow that remained on the ground as we passed them by on the way back home. I got away from the worst mistake in my life, but somewhere along the line, I’d lost myself. He insisted on driving me the entire way, saying he’d get someone to deliver my car to me later since I was still visibly shaken after my crying jag. I considered myself a pretty good faker, but apparently, my tricks didn’t work with him.

Jesus, he said he was in love with me.

It was the last thing I expected to hear after confessing my greatest sins.

Deep down, I knew I wasn’t ready for a romance, and yet wondered.

Would he forgive me twice?

I was afraid to pursue a relationship with him, even though his sunshine erased the shadows on my heart. Should I hide that secret from him, or talk to him about my fears?

I’d found sanctuary here in Briarville but avoided getting involved with men.

Even though Rex wasn’t just any man, it still scared me stiff to get emotionally invested. Was I making yet another huge mistake?

Inside, it was business as usual for Ms. Wound Tight Paris. I remained silent the entire way home, bereft of words.

At least I didn’t yank my hand away when he grabbed it. It was a sign even I could recognize—I’d let my guard down with him.

But it didn’t mean I trusted my heart enough to stop thinking so much and go where it led me.

Rex pulled into my property and insisted, “Let me walk you to the door.”

Not for the first time, I admired the rich outlines of his shoulders straining against the fabric of his shirt as he sauntered in front of me. Any woman in her right mind would be all over him like a tick on a dog, but here I was… damaged goods, questioning every choice I made with him.

That’s what it was.

The human heart could only take so much. Life taught me it was possible to be emotionally beyond repair. I had to tell him. A good man like him deserved the truth.

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