Beneath the Scars by Moreland Melanie

Author:Moreland, Melanie [Moreland, Melanie]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Melanie Moreland
Published: 2014-10-13T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

We were huddled under the blankets, a mass of twisted limbs. Zachary trembled so violently it seemed to take forever to get him upstairs and into bed. His grip on me was tight, as though he was afraid if he loosened his hold, I would disappear.

Given what he told me earlier, I could hardly blame him for thinking that. Everyone in his life, up until now, walked away. Proved to him what he already felt about himself: he wasn’t worth sticking with unless he had something to offer.

He still couldn’t see the greatest thing he had to offer anyone was himself.

I had no intention of repeating that pattern he had seen over and again. I wasn’t sure, though, if I could ever convince him of his own self-worth.

He pressed into me, warmth beginning to return to his body as I held him, stroking my fingers through his hair, up and down his back while my foot ran over his calf, letting him feel me tight against him everywhere. I needed to feel him as much as he needed to feel me.

The shock of hearing his story had been great. His reaction to letting it out, even greater. Watching him cry, elicited a deep need to protect and care for him, causing me to brush my own tears aside. I was sure I witnessed a side of Zachary no one had ever seen: him at his most vulnerable.

He had expressed so many emotions: grief, torment, pain. And then, in the last few seconds of his tortured confession: a declaration of love.

Zachary loved me. He said the words—his need so fierce, desire so great, there was no room left for doubt. His emotional outpouring left me speechless and unable to do anything as he raged in my arms, his tears so thick they soaked my shirt. It was then the tremors took over, and I knew I had to get him upstairs into bed. The day had been one emotional upheaval after another, and he was losing his strength. I struggled under his weight as he leaned into me, grateful when we finally reached the bedroom.

There was no rest, though, not yet. He was still overwrought and needed reassurance; he also wanted to give me as much information as he could. It was as if, now he had opened up the floodgates, he wanted the words out in the open.

“Will you stay with me?”

“Yes,” I soothed, running my fingers though his hair.

“Even though you know now what a bastard I am?”

“I don’t think you’re the same person anymore, Zachary. Do you?”

He lifted his head. “I don’t want to be. I try not to be, although I know I fail at times.”

“We all fail at times. I don’t expect you to be perfect.” I paused. “And you shouldn’t expect it of yourself.”

“I want to be for you.”

I shook my head. “I’m not perfect, either. Don’t set yourself up to fail. Just be Zachary.” I kissed him, my lips soft on his skin. “That’s all I need.

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