Devastated (Anger Management, #1)(30)

“What about your sister?”

“She’s exactly like them.”

“Why doesn’t the rest of your family want anything to do with you?”

“Because they believe everything my parents said about me.”

“And why would they lie?” Hunter asked, watching her for any signs that she was lying.

“Because they were afraid that I was going to tell them all the things that they were saying about them and did behind their backs. They were also afraid that people were going to find out what they were doing to me. So, to make sure that no one believed me, they told everyone, neighbors, my teachers, their friends, anyone and everyone that I was a liar at every available opportunity so that no one believed a word I said. As I got older, the lies got bigger and bigger until no one wanted to have anything to do with me,” Kylie said, taking another sip before saying, “Next question.”

“Why are you afraid of thunderstorms?” he asked, thinking about the moment that he saw her running into his office like the hounds of hell were on her heels.

“Not thunder,” she said, her words starting to slur a bit at the end as she took another drink. “The dark. I’m afraid of the dark.”

“Why?”

For a moment, she just sat there, glaring down at the table as he decided that he knew enough. He moved to stand up when she beat him to it and before he could move, she turned around and pulled off her shirt, giving him a good look at her back marred with scars of every size and shape, running up and down her back, short ones, long ones, angry-looking ones and all of them were barely more than a light pink letting him know just how old those scars were, robbing him of his ability to breathe.

“Oh, shit,” he choked out in disbelief.

“That’s why.”





Chapter 17

“Are you insane?” Kylie stupidly asked when it was more than obvious that the man that was currently trying to drag her back across the orange line had lost his damn mind.

Then again, she’d figured that out a few minutes ago when he’d tackled her. That had been a fun time, she thought as she was forced to grab a handful of grass as she struggled to free her legs from the crazed man that refused to let her go.

“We need to talk!” Hunter snapped, tightening his hold around her legs and held on as she struggled to get free so that she could finish storming off and tell the jerk where he could shove this job.

“Let go!” she said, trying to kick her way free, but he simply tightened his hold.

“Not gonna happen,” he bit out, keeping her legs pinned to the ground as she desperately struggled to get away so that she could put this job, this jerk, and this state behind her and start over again.

Maybe this time she’d go to Texas or finally say the hell with it and put her passport to good use. There had to be somewhere that she could go where her past wouldn’t follow her and she was damn well going to find it, she decided with a surprised grunt as she found herself being dragged back towards the jerk and the job that she never should have taken.

“We’re going to talk about this, Kylie,” the large bastard said with a grunt as she wiggled, squirmed, and kicked to gain her freedom from the delusional man who actually thought that she was going to stay here after this.

As soon as she saw that file, she should have told him to go to hell and packed her bags, but something in her snapped when she saw the pitying look on his face, proving once again just how unfair life was. It had taken her a long time to accept the fact that her parents hated her simply because she’d been born but seeing it on paper had brought it all back.

She should have been able to shrug it off and walk away like she had every single time before, and God, had there been too many times when her parents’ lies had destroyed everything she’d worked so hard for. She’d hoped, prayed really, that her family’s reign of terror was finally over, but this only proved that she would never be able to escape them, and all because of the bastard currently trying to drag her back. But she wasn’t having it.

She was done.

She didn’t care about the ten-thousand dollar fine, the fact that she had nowhere else to go, or that her head was pounding, and she felt like she was on the verge of losing it, she was done. Absolutely done and as soon as she managed to get free, she was going to…

Well, she wasn’t exactly sure what she was going to do since all of her things were inside, including her car keys, but none of that mattered, because she was too pissed to care. But even as she continued to try to wiggle her way to freedom, she couldn’t help but regret her decision to leave her purse behind. Then again, she’d been a little preoccupied at the time with running for her life and all to think things through.

“Kylie!”

“I quit!”

“Goddamnit!” Hunter snarled just as she managed to break free.

A loud beep accompanied his curse and then—

She was free!

“We need to talk about this,” Hunter said, as he was forced to step back behind the orange line that he refreshed every week.

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Kylie said, dusting herself off.

“I fucked up,” he said, standing there, looking frustrated as he rammed his fingers through his hair.

“Yeah, you really did,” she said absently, as she glanced towards her car, noting that her car was within his reach.