The Imperfections

“You don’t know?” he asks, sounding a tad surprised. “Does that mean your first time with Brant wasn’t very nice?” His hand drifts lower until his palm is pressed between my legs, cupping me through my jeans. “Did you give him a taste of your pussy, Alyssa, or did he take it?”

Helpless tears well up in my eyes and I’m so furious when one slips out and slides down my cheek. Fighting to keep any more from falling, I tell him angrily, “He’s going to kill you, you know. He’ll be home any minute, and he’s going to kill you.”

“I don’t think he will. I don’t think you’re gonna tell him.”

“What could possibly possess you to think that?” I ask, aghast.

“Because if you do, I’m going to tell Bri I fucked you. I’ll tell her you’re pregnant with my baby. I’ll tell her Brant knows. It started out as my secret, but now? Now it’s his. Funny how that worked out, isn’t it?”

I swallow down the lump gathering in my throat. “You won’t get a chance to,” I tell him lowly. “What makes you think he’s going to let you leave?”

“Oh, I’ll be gone when he gets home,” Theo assures me, pulling the button on my jeans free.

“No. Please,” I say through gritted teeth, hating to plead with him but desperate to keep this from going any further. “Please don’t. Just leave now, and I won’t tell Brant you were here.”

Ignoring my offer, he unzips my jeans and pushes his hand down inside. I push my head back against his shoulder, squeezing my eyes shut.

He didn’t push beneath my panties, just into my pants, but now he presses against me, pushing the tips of his fingers inside me with only the thin barrier of the fabric between his flesh and mine.

Whatever he’s planning to do next, I don’t find out. The sound of Brant’s truck engine revs real fast like he’s speeding up then dies abruptly, followed by a slamming door.

“Shit,” Theo mutters, yanking his hand out of my pants. Squeezing the chain tight against my throat, he says low in my ear, “Do not say a fucking word to him, Alyssa. I mean it.”

The chain falls and Theo’s weight pressed against me is suddenly gone. I lean forward, bracing my body against the barn wall and trying to collect myself as Theo opens the man door and hurries through it.

The big barn door shudders open and light comes streaming back in. Scout rushes inside with Brant right on his heels.

I turn my body, angling it away from him as I lean against the wall and quickly reach down to button and zip my jeans back up. My heart is racing and I don’t know what to do. On one hand, I need to tell Brant what just happened, but on the other hand, what if Theo wasn’t lying? What if he really would tell Bri?

If I tell Brant and he rushes right over there, Theo’s going to know I told him. Bri won’t let Brant in the house, but Theo will still tell her, and then what?

“Alyssa?”

I lean my head back against the wall miserably for just a second, but there’s fear in Brant’s voice and I want to ease it. Quickly swiping under my eyes to brush away any remaining tears, I turn to face him.

“I’m okay,” I assure him, opening my arms.

Brant grabs me and pulls me tightly against his chest. His big hand gathers my hair in a fist at first, then he releases it and pets the back of my head, bringing his lips to the crown of my head for a hurried kiss. “You’re okay?”

“I’m okay,” I assure him, wrapping my arms around his strong midsection and squeezing him tight.

“Where is he?” he demands.

“He’s gone. He heard you pull up and he ran.”

“Fucking coward,” he mutters. Then, a little less worried now that he has me in his arms, his voice hardens. “What the hell was he doing here, Alyssa?”

My insides cool and a chill sweeps over me, as if the temperature in the barn has dropped several degrees. A little voice inside urges me to tell Brant everything, replaying his command to never lie to him and desperately wanting to obey it.

But my fear has a voice, too. It’s not me I’m most afraid for if Theo tells Bri the truth, it’s Brant. Like Brant said when he told me we couldn’t be together, being with me despite what I did meant he took on all the risk. If Bri knew everything, of course she would be angry at me, but it would be so much worse for him. He’s her brother, her constant protector, and if she knew he fell for me and chose me knowing what I did with her husband…

I can’t do that to him. I can’t make him pay for my mistakes more than he already has.