Love My Pain (Cape Falls Book 6)(5)

Was he doing the right thing? Cleaning the damages, and then pretending it didn’t happen?

Edward didn’t want to be like everyone else in her past. Everyone else just walked away, leaving her. He was the guy who walked away, and he didn’t want to be that way anymore. When he looked at Isabel, he wanted to be her everything. He could help her. He knew it deep in his damn soul.

“I get it. You’ve got to understand, Edward, I’m used to you walking away and not giving a shit. You’re that guy.”

“I know what kind of guy I am, and when it comes to Isabel, I can’t walk away. I won’t.” He had tried as well. Witnessing her cutting that first time, he had tried to stay away. It had lasted an entire day. He’d gone crazy wondering what the hell she was doing, and it wasn’t just worrying either. He enjoyed her company. She was fun to be around. There were times over the past year when he could forget what she did. She wasn’t all about the cutting. Isabel loved to watch movies, read books, talk about everything and anything. She loved to hear about growing up in England, some of the words he said like rubbish, wanker, bollocks, and stuff like that.

They could talk for hours and yet it only seemed like minutes. They had played games together, cards, and other stuff.

Spending time with Isabel made him feel alive, even if he was older than she was. A good ten years, okay a lot older than she was. He didn’t even want to think about the age gap. To him, age didn’t matter. She was a beautiful young woman, and there were times when he looked into her eyes, and he was convinced she was screaming, crying, calling out for help. He wanted to be the one to help her.

“Are you even listening to me?” William asked, pulling him from his thoughts.

“Not at all, sorry.”

“If you’re distracted having her, it’s not going to be a good idea.”

“I thought there would be women here. Why aren’t there women here?”

“We all have lives, and it doesn’t always revolve around a BDSM club. Laura’s working, and she has deadlines. Anna has kids to look after. We’re all busy. My Daisy is looking after our babies. Rose is out back cleaning up one of the playrooms.”

“I know, but of all the people she could be talking to … Peter.” He pointed at the Dom, who was in fact a really nice guy. Up until he found love in Rose though, he’d been a depressive sort. Was that good to be around a girl that liked to cut?

You’re so far out of your depth.

“It’s Peter, and he’s fine. Stop worrying so much. You’re actually driving me crazy with this girl. The way you’re making her sound, you believe she’s going to start slashing everyone.”

“Keep your voice down.”

“Does she need to be in the hospital?” William asked. “If she’s so scary and in a bad place, she really has to go to professionals.”

“It’s not like that. She’s … I don’t know. I can talk to her. I can reach her, okay? It’s not like I turn my back and she’s cutting. It’s not a regular occurrence. It’s not like every week on Friday at three o’clock, she’s cutting.” Edward ran a hand down his face. “I’m screwing this up. She won’t go and see anyone, and I’ve asked her to. She won’t. I’m not going to throw her ass in some kind of hospital so they can poke and prod at her. I’m not going to give up on her. I’m the one screwing this up.” He couldn’t help repeat the same words as that was exactly how he felt.

“You’re doing good, Edward. She looks fine to me.” William nodded his head toward the bar. “They’re just talking, and just having some fun. Calm the fuck down before you cause problems here. You’re the only one I see causing a problem.”

Edward couldn’t deny it. The damage he had seen was something he couldn’t get out of his mind. He was so worried, and yet she had clearly been cutting for a long time. She was used to covering it up, hiding the evidence. Her own sister didn’t know what was going on.

“Come on, let’s go and have a talk with them,” William said, getting to his feet.

Edward didn’t have time to warn him, or to stop him. Within seconds they were at the bar.

“Hey, Isabel, how are you doing?” William asked.

“I’m doing great, thanks. I’ve always wanted to see inside this place. It’s really nice.”

“You have?”

She nodded. “When I worked at the diner a lot of people would talk about it. They were curious about this place. They tried to pretend they weren’t, but they were. I guess a lot of people are just curious.”