She took a deep breath, her slim freckled shoulders rising.
“The last day of exams, Wade followed me when I got out of school.”
His hands curled into fists and rage rose in him. “What did that fucker do? Did he hurt you?”
Twyla shook her head. “No. I mean, he grabbed my arm and left a few bruises, but it wasn’t a big deal.”
“That is a big deal and you know it.”
It was one thing for her to get a few bruises on her bottom from being spanked. It was completely different for her to have marks from someone grabbing her or hitting her non-consensually. He would drill that into her head until she mumbled it in her sleep if he had to.
“It is,” she agreed easily, nodding. “And I shouldn’t say it’s not. I just didn’t want you to worry.”
“It’s what I do. I can’t help it. And I don’t want you ever blaming yourself for something that’s someone else’s fault.”
“I know. And that’s why I went to stay with Marni after a couple of days. I gave Wade and my mom a chance to show me they’d changed and they hadn’t, at all. So when he grabbed me like that, yeah, I got out of there.”
He wanted to hug her, wanted to hold her in his lap and pet her, make her forget all about that shithead. Mark her in ways she’d consented to, that she enjoyed, but he just stood there, not knowing if she wanted that from him. Yet, or ever again.
“Anyway, I went with him because he threatened to have people go to Principal York and the police and tell them you’d been fucking me since I was sixteen. I couldn’t let him do that. You would’ve lost your job, maybe gone to jail, and you hadn’t done anything wrong.”
Her chin had started to tremble, and her voice had gone shaky. It broke the last thread of control and he went to her, wrapping an arm around her waist and brushing away the tears that had started falling with his thumb.
“Sweetheart, I’m a grown man and I can handle myself. You and I know what they were going to accuse me of is absolutely not true, and that’s the only thing that would matter. But you shouldn’t have tried to handle this yourself, little girl. That’s what I’m here for, to help you and protect you. I hate that you felt like you had to handle this alone.”
“I knew you would’ve done your honorable truth-telling thing no matter how many disgusting lies they threw at you, and I couldn’t stand it. I would never be able to forgive myself if I was the reason you couldn’t be a teacher anymore.”
She buried her head in his chest and he could feel her tears soaking through his shirt. More so, though, she was back in his arms, and he wasn’t letting her go ever again. He would hold her tight, make her feel safe and never let her be alone ever again.
It felt like hours and seconds at the same time that he held her against his body, loving the soft, warm feel of her, the clean smell of her hair, how it felt as though they’d never been apart although he hungered for her like he hadn’t had her in years.
Eventually though he loosened his hold and tipped up her chin so she would look at him.
“What changed, sweetheart? I’m so glad you’re back even if the answer is nothing. I wish you wouldn’t have left in the first place and we could have dealt with this mess together. But you’re a stubborn little thing, aren’t you? I know you wouldn’t have come back unless you felt like it was safe for me.”
And there would be hell to pay for that, but they’d get there later.
“I, um, went to stay with Marni and I would go help my mom for a couple of hours a day. Wade beat her up again, broke her wrist and gave her a concussion.”
Gunnar squeezed her biceps and put his lips to her forehead, murmured against her soft skin, “I’m so sorry. No one should have to go through that, you shouldn’t have to see that.”
Twyla shrugged. “But I did. And after school was out, I got a job. Miss Williams and Marni and Dr. Eric vouched for me, and I’ve been doing some filing and other secretarial work at an office. It’s called Houston Tech, they do a lot of computer stuff I don’t understand. Anyway, I wouldn’t want to do it forever, but I like it and they’re super nice to me.”
She said Houston like the street in Manhattan, not the city in Texas, and he knew immediately where she worked.
Yes, he knew Gage Houston who was the CEO and yeah, he and anyone who worked for him would be kind. They would be anyway because Gage ran a tight ship of good and loyal people, but if Eric had introduced Twyla to Gage, then Gage would make sure everyone would be extra kind because he’d know Twyla was a little.
“So I’ve made some money and I’ve learned a lot, and I also hired a lawyer.”
His head tilted of its own accord. “A lawyer? What for?”
“You know how you said I should press charges against the boys who hurt me?”
“Yeah.”
Of course he remembered. He’d asked half a dozen times if she didn’t want to before dropping it but not without telling her she could change her mind anytime and he’d help her with it.
“Well, I did. And against Wade.”