When Sinners Fear (House of Skin, #4)

by Charlotte E. Hart

The

“She’s nothing like Lexi. She’s something else entirely. She’s … I don’t know what she is, or why we've become what we have, but she’d never accept being here and I’m not sure I’d want her to.” “Why?” “She’s not meant for this. For us. For me.” He chuckles, long and low, and eventually blows out some breath like he’s trying to ease the tension surrounding that laughter. “Chivalry at its finest. First for a Cortez, no doubt.” Smiling a little, I refill my glass and relax further into the couch. “How about you just talk to her? She might surprise you.”

That head of yours blows my mind sometimes. You’re allowed to feel, Knox. We all are, regardless of our lifestyle. I love my wife. She’s a bitch, but I don’t breathe without her being part of that breath anymore.

The connection we have has been forged in pain and darkness. We were each other’s light, and that’s important to me.

Sighing, I lean on the balcony rail. It’s only her that brings me any peace, and, to this day, I don’t know what that love is based in or why it came. It came with a force I couldn’t ignore, and it’s now so deeply embedded in me, I’ll never let it go. It’s a shame this view and her smiles don’t diminish the memories of the bruises I put on her. And while she might forget, forgive, or move through those memories, I never will. I can't. I don't forget a damn thing because of this gift I've been given. Everything stays in my head – crystal clear. Forever.