Revealed by You(55)

“You should talk to someone,” I suggested.

He didn’t respond but leaned his forehead against mine.

“Brett…”

He cupped my cheeks and reined kisses on my face. “I love you. I fucking love you so damn much. If I ever hurt you like that, I…I would never be able to forgive myself. I’m a…I’m a monster.”

“No,” I snapped and pushed out of his hold. “You are not a monster. Don’t even think that. You won’t hurt me. What happened just now was intense and yes, it s-scared me but…”

“But what?” he asked softly.

“I’m more scared for you. I feel like I’m losing you slowly. I’m not a doctor but I know that your mother is a trigger for this rage inside of you.” A tear rolled down his cheek and I brushed it away with my thumb. “I love you. You. Yes, what your mother and that man did to you is disgusting and unforgivable but who fucking cares about them? This is about you. You, Brett,” I said, shoving a finger against his chest.

He let out a shaky breath. “That’s why I moved. To get away from her. This rage I feel has never been this bad. I thought I was over it.”

“You can’t get over something like that, Brett, but you can learn to deal with it. I’m here and I’m going to help you.”

Brett wrapped his arms around my shoulders, squeezing me tight like I was his life line. “I don’t deserve you. Any part of you.”

“Stop. We deserve each other. You’re stuck with me,” I said, trying to ease the tears that were burning my eyes.

“I love you. I don’t know where I’d be without you, Evvie. I…” He leaned his forehead against mine and sighed, the tears now rolling freely down his face.

Seeing him cry was one of the hardest things I had ever experienced. My big bad possessive boyfriend, emotional and distraught. It broke my heart and I don’t think I would ever forget the image of him breaking before me out of my head.

His finger brushed down my arm. “You’re my center, Evvie. Without you, I couldn’t deal with this. With me. It’s like a furious battle of control deep inside of me. That’s why there was all the women.”

Jealousy burned through my stomach but that was over. His past.

“I need to be controlling during sex. I swore to myself that I would never allow someone to force me to submit again…until I met you. I…I think I need help.”

My breath caught. I never wanted to see him submit again. “We’ll get you help.”

“Thank you,” he whispered. “Just…thank you.”

I nodded and swallowed past the hard lump in my throat. How was I going to get him the help he needed? Every time he saw his mother and that man now, would he need sex to calm himself? What if it went further? What if he hurt himself? What if I wasn’t enough?

“Stop.”

I frowned. “What?”

“Stop over thinking. We’re in this together,” he said, using my words. “You’re mine, lover. Only you. You are enough for me.”

At that point I let the tears fall freely down my face. “How…how did you know what I was thinking?”

He pinched my chin and placed a soft, tender kiss on my mouth. There was nothing sexual in the least about it. It was pure raw love. A claiming. An ownership. He was letting me know that I was his. That I was enough.

I think I fell in love with him all over again.





SIXTEEN

A couple of nights after we saw his mother and stepdad, Brett and I walked into The Red Love, before it opened. Things had been off since he saw them but cooled down a touch. He was timid around me, like he thought the wrath of his rage would take control again and he wouldn’t be able to stop it. I tried reassuring him but that hadn’t worked.

“Wait,” Brett said, stopping me in my tracks. “Close your eyes.”

I frowned. “Brett, I don’t really—”

“Close them,” he demanded.

I huffed and did as I was told.

Heavy hands gripped my shoulders and pushed me a couple of steps further into the hallway. “Okay, lover.” He kissed the side of my neck. “Open.”

I opened my eyes and gasped as my gaze fell on the photos lining the hall way. Spotlights centered above each large black and white canvas. The pictures…of me…of us…tears welled in my eyes.

“What do you think?” he asked, grabbing hold of my hand.

I shook my head. “They’re beautiful.” Each photo had me in a different position with Brett’s large hand touching me in some way. Either with it wrapped around my throat, spread out on my lower belly or holding my bound wrists…it was simply breath taking. The pictures held a hint of sexuality but not enough to be deemed inappropriate. They let the viewer know that the models loved each other on a deeper level that couldn’t be explained by words.