Asha lowered her eyes, staring blankly at her bottle of water and playing with the label on it nervously. “I didn’t know him, didn’t even meet him until we married.”
“What kind of fucked-up deal is that?” Kade asked angrily. “You were sold?”
Shame washed over her as she answered in a whisper, “Not exactly. My foster parents had financial difficulties. How could I not do what they wanted? It was expected of me. They had fed and clothed me for fifteen years. They were counting on me to help them. My ex-husband Ravi’s family had some money. My foster parents had debt. Ravi’s family was willing to give them the money and settle their debt in exchange for his marriage to me.”
“It’s no different than being sold,” Kade grumbled, knocking his chair over as he rose and moved around the table, taking her hand and pulling her to her feet. “No woman should feel she has to marry. Did you fall in love with him after you were married?”
Asha looked up at Kade, unable to lie to him. “No,” she whispered. “We were married for seven years and I brought him nothing but disappointment.”
“What?” Kade exploded. “How could you disappoint any man?”
“I was a bad bargain for him. He wanted a child, a son. And I was never able to conceive. He got checked and he was fertile. I…wasn’t,” she answered, agony spilling from her words. “He was a very traditional Indian man and didn’t believe in divorce. But I had to leave the marriage. It wasn’t…good,” she whispered huskily, shuddering as she added, “I divorced him.”
“And he left you destitute?” Kade asked angrily, but his touch was gentle as he clasped her by the shoulders.
“It was my choice. I didn’t think past escaping. I wanted out. I had to get out.” Asha finished on a sob, her heart feeling like it had been torn from her chest. Had there ever been a time in her life where she hadn’t felt unwanted, unloved? If there was, she couldn’t remember it. She’d been happier since her divorce—traveling from place to place, taking jobs where she could get them—than she’d ever been in her entire life. Yes, she’d been alone, scrambling to survive, but the physical and emotional pain had subsided, and she felt like she had almost regained her sanity. “My foster parents no longer speak to me. Divorce isn’t something that’s accepted well in Indian culture, and I didn’t fulfill the agreement my foster father made with my ex-husband.”
Kade backed her up against the kitchen counter, his eyes flashing blue fire. “You’re a woman. A beautiful, talented woman. You aren’t a possession to be sold. Fuck! What kind of man does something like that? How can any of them sleep at night not knowing whether or not you’re safe and happy?”
Asha bowed her head. “I humiliated all of them. They don’t care.” Tears started flowing down her cheeks unchecked, her bottled-up emotions exploding from their hiding place.
Kade grasped her chin and forced her head up. His expression was fierce as he answered tightly. “No woman should ever be sold off and they had no right to expect anything from you. Their problems weren’t yours. They took on the responsibility of being foster parents willingly. And they got money to take care of you. That’s probably why they never adopted you. You were barely grown when they sold you off. You should have had the opportunity to live, to get an education if you wanted it. Dammit, you should have had choices!”
Asha watched Kade’s ferocious expression, but she wasn’t afraid. He was actually championing her, defending her rights as a woman. Unfortunately, he didn’t understand Indian culture. “I might be American, but I was raised Indian, Kade. We’re motivated by duty and guilt.” Was that dysfunctional? Yep. But it was hard to shake the things she’d been taught as a child and a young woman. It had taken her twenty-five years to be brave enough to break from tradition and escape a horrific marriage, and it still wasn’t easy. Shame and guilt still haunted her sometimes. “Since my divorce, I’ve tried to break free and find the American side of my heritage. But it’s still difficult sometimes. I move around a lot and it’s hard to make friends. I’m still learning to be an American.”
Kade moved closer, crowding her, his muscular, hot body pressed against hers. His arms enfolded her as he whispered hotly against her temple, “And was it all a duty? Was being married a duty? Or did your ex love you?”
Asha shuddered, unable to keep herself from wrapping her arms around Kade’s neck as her tears continued to fall. “He didn’t love me. He wanted a child,” she murmured against his chest. “He couldn’t divorce me, but I wasn’t what he wanted. He went into rages over the situation and it made the marriage difficult. Image was everything to him, and I couldn’t provide him with a family.”