Crossroads of Innocence (Injured Heroes Series Book 6) by Danielle M Haas

Author:Danielle M Haas [Haas, Danielle M]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-05-17T16:00:00+00:00

13

The thick, creamy sauce turned to stone in the pit of Jude’s stomach. She’d promised Wade she’d tell him everything tonight, but why had she opened her big mouth and started the conversation off in the worst way possible?

Yes, she knew Wade was grieving when she’d asked him to leave town with her, but she was so fixated on getting the hell out of a dodge, she’d seen his refusal as nothing other than flat out rejection. She’d imaged a new life where they could move on from their hurt and pain and create a brighter future.

Instead, she’d left with a broken heart and a shattered soul without giving Wade’s needs a second thought.

She squared her shoulders and folded her hands in her lap. Her heart pounded like crazy, and a subtle buzzing rang in her ears. “You’re right. I didn’t think about helping you cope with the loss of your dad,” she said, running a hand through her hair as frustration knotted her nerves. “I thought about what I needed, and what I would need if I were you. That meant leaving Pine Valley and getting away from our troubles.”

Wade scrubbed a palm over his face as if he wasn’t sure if he was ready for this conversation. “You wrecked me when you left. But my mom needed me. She was a mess after Dad died. I couldn’t abandon her. Leave her alone to run the Chill N’ Grill by herself when she was struggling to just put one foot in front of the other.”

Guilt twisted her insides. “I never wanted you to abandon your mom.”

“Are you sure about that? You had no problem abandoning your own mother.”

She winced and dropped her gaze to her half-filled plate.

“I’m sorry,” Wade said. “I shouldn’t have said that. If today showed me anything, it’s that I had no idea what you were going through at home.”

She tightened her grip on her intwined hands, afraid to meet his gaze. “I deserved it. You’re right. I haven’t spoken with or seen my mom since I left, and I have my reasons for that. But I shouldn’t expect you to understand those reasons if I never explained them.”

“Will you?” Wade asked, voice low and husky. “I want to know. I want to understand.”

Sighing, she finally met his gaze. “I left because of my dad.”

He tightened his jaw, eyes hard. “I figured that part out today.”

A sad smile lifted the corner of her mouth. “I used to be better at hiding how he made me feel. I think being gone for so long, then blindsided when he showed up when I was already so emotionally raw, made it impossible to put on the mask he demanded we all wore. Made it impossible to paste on a smile and pretend he wasn’t a monster.”

“You’ve been through a lot the last couple of days. The fact you’ve kept any semblance of composure is remarkable.”

She huffed out a humorless laugh. “I was a trembling mess when he walked into that office.

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