Page 123 of Mine For The Winter

“Sure.”

He followed her to the kitchen, that damn phone still in his hand.

“You don’t have to stay if you have something better to do,” she said. “Cole is fine. He’ll be sleeping for a while.”

“You desperate to get me out of here so Kris can come over?” Lyle asked. “I guess I should be thankful that you’re not kissing him when I’m in the same house like last time.”

She frowned. “That was a long time ago. And I apologized so many times. I was upset, scared. And you were not in a good place.”

“Because you were pregnant with my kid and you were kissing someone else. Probably sleeping with him, too.”

She opened her mouth to protest but stopped. He’d never let it go. She knew that now. She’d probably known it then when he’d punished her over and over again. “I never slept with anybody but you when we were together.”

Lyle looked away, shaking his head. “He’s not going to stay around for you. You know that, right?”

Kelly swallowed, even though her mouth was dry. “It’s none of your business if he stays or not.” She grabbed the coffee from the cupboard, scooping it into the machine. She wasn’t going to let Lyle upset her.

“Remember how you felt when he left for college?” Lyle continued. “He was fucking his way across campus and you were crying in my arms. You were always the second choice, Kel. The small town girl he came to when he wanted to get his dick wet.”

Her stomach turned. Why was Lyle such an asshole?

“You know how I know he never wanted you?” Lyle asked.

God, she was sick of this. She looked over at Lyle who was leaning against the counter. She wanted him out of her house. One more minute and she’d be kicking him out.

“Because we made a pact, that’s how. He threw you away with the shake of a hand, you know that? Said he wasn’t interested in you.”

She blinked, her brows furrowed.

“That surprise you?” Lyle asked. “I guess he never told you about that when you two were fucking.”

She wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of asking, but somehow the words crept out. “What kind of pact?”

“That neither of us would touch you. You were seventeen then. Pretty as a fucking peach. All the guys wanted to be your first.”

She stared at him, trying to comprehend. “So why did you break the pact?” she asked him.

“Because I was in love with you, believe it or not. And if Kris had been in love with you he would have broken it too. But he wasn’t. He didn’t care. Until he came home and his options were limited so he decided to try to take my girl. Nearly did, too. Don’t you think I know how much you cried when he left? How my kid heard those tears while he was in your belly? You never knew what loyalty meant, I know that now.”

She felt weirdly cold, despite the heat blowing full blast in the house. Why had Kris agreed to that? And why had he not told her?

They’d agreed to something behind her back when all three of them were supposed to be friends. Like she was a piece of meat to be bargained over.

The coffee machine started to sputter. She turned to look at it, mostly so Lyle couldn’t see her tears.

All those years. All that waste. And Kris had never said a word about his agreement with Lyle.

It hurt. She hurt.

“You can have this coffee and then you can leave,” she said, her voice low. “If you want to see Cole tomorrow, that’s fine. Just call first.”

“I’m heading back to California tomorrow.”

She wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or annoyed. “I thought you said you’d visit Cole over Christmas.”

“I changed my mind.”

Of course he did. But right now she couldn’t bring herself to care.

---