8. Cutter #2
“My younger foster brother, Seth, knocked over his beer,” Sadie continues, not giving me time to dwell on my revelation.
“Mr. Craig lost his mind. I had never seen him like that. When I saw him charging toward the six-year-old who accidentally spilled his drink, I didn’t think twice about stepping in between them.
I remember wrapping Seth up in my arms and crouching on the ground, shielding him from our foster dad.
Seth was so scared. He shook and shook in my arms but never cried.
I didn’t realize Mr. Craig had picked up the broken beer bottle in his drunken haze until the glass tore through my skin. ”
“Jesus,” I growl. Fucking hell. I knew it was bad, but this? And I know without asking that he wasn’t the last person to hurt my Sadie. Every single one of them will pay.
“He must have snapped out of it when he saw me bleeding. Mr. Craig sent Seth and the other kids to our room, then cleaned me up. I almost passed out when he pinched my skin together and covered the gaping wound with duct tape. The only thing that hurt worse was when Mrs. Craig got home the next day and ripped the tape off so she could give me proper stitches.”
“You didn’t go to the hospital?” I choke. I can hardly swallow past the lump in my throat.
“Doctors ask too many questions,” she says, shrugging her shoulders. It’s obviously something she was told over and over again during her time with the soon-to-be-dead Mr. and Mrs. Craig.
“How old were you?”
“Nine.”
Fuck, it hurts. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that,” I tell her. My voice is a lot calmer than I feel, but I’m trying to be what she needs right now. “I can’t even imagine… fuck, sweetheart.”
I nuzzle into the side of her neck, placing a few tender kisses on her skin.
Breathing in her sweet scent, I close my eyes and thank the universe for delivering this incredibly brave and kind woman to me.
Someone out there knew I’d never leave the mountain to find love on my own, so they dropped her off in the middle of my forest for me to find and care for.
“I’m okay now,” she whispers, though I don’t quite believe her. She’s escaped her painful past, but she doesn’t have confidence in her future. Yet. I’ll make sure she knows she belongs right here, by my side, forever.
“Thank you for trusting me.” She nods, her eyes glistening with tears. “I’ve got you,” I tell her softly as I tuck her head under my chin.
We lie in silence for a few moments, and I know it’s time for me to confess something to her as well. My brave woman surrendered a bit of her tender heart to me just now. It’s only fair that I do the same.
“My father died five years ago.” The words feel like razor blades on my tongue, and Sadie gasps, her hand pressing against my heart.
“Cutter, I’m so sorry.”
“No,” I say a bit too harshly. “You don’t understand.
It’s my fault. I… fuck.” I take a deep breath and blow it out, trying to find the words.
“We were supposed to go to Jay’s Lumber and Hardware that afternoon.
I was working part-time at a bar while getting my canned goods and spices business up and running, and I picked up a shift for extra cash instead of meeting my dad at the store.
He went by himself and ended up falling off a ladder while reaching for something on the top shelf.
Something I could have easily gotten for him if I were there. ”
“But–”
“The doctor said the fall broke his spine in several places, thankfully rendering him unconscious for what happened next.” I brace myself for the worst of it, but I can’t stop now.
“The shelf fell on top of him. No one was there for my dad. I wasn’t there for my dad.
Don’t you get it? I don’t deserve pity.”
My breaths are ragged and tears sting my eyes, but I don’t let them fall.
Sadie props herself up on my chest and rubs the tip of her nose against mine, the sweet gesture bringing me back into the present.
“I don’t pity you, Cutter,” she tells me, her eyes never leaving mine.
“I hurt for you and your loss. I know you don’t believe me, but it wasn’t your fault.
” I’m about to protest, but my woman raises an eyebrow and gives me a stern look.
“You can’t live the rest of your life like this.
Punishing yourself and isolating yourself from everyone. ”
“I like my mountain,” I tell her honestly.
“I like it, too,” she says with a smile. It eases the tightness in my chest ever so slightly. “But you should be out here because you want to, not because your shame drove you away. We have to make decisions out of hope, not fear.”
Well, damn. This woman has me dead to rights. “I don’t know how to do that,” I admit.
“We can learn together.”
I lean in for a kiss, not knowing how else to express the gratitude overflowing in my heart. Once again, I didn’t know I needed to hear those words, but she’s giving me everything without even trying.
Before our lips meet, someone pounds on the front door of my cabin. I furrow my brow while Sadie’s face turns completely white. The love and light vanish from her eyes, replaced with panic.
“Stay here,” I tell her, not sure what has her so afraid. I have no idea who is knocking on my door this early in the morning, but I plan to send them on their way with a grunt and a slammed door in their face.
I’m not sure who I was expecting, but it certainly wasn’t another woman in business attire.
She’s around the same age as Sadie, maybe a few years older.
As much as I want to tell her to scram, I can’t in good conscience leave yet another woman stranded out here.
When I peer over her shoulder, however, I see a car that doesn’t belong to me.
How the hell did she find my secret road? And who is she?
“Hello, Mr. Morgan. My name is Gabby. I work at Top Spot Realty.”
“Nope. Not interested. You can see yourself off my property, or I can run you off my property. Your choice.”
“Yes, you’ve made your stances very clear on that front,” she says in a clipped voice. “However, this visit isn’t about buying or selling land. I’m here to check on a co-worker of mine, Sadie Canfield.”
My vision tunnels, and it feels like my ears are popping, disorienting me for a moment. No. No fucking way. Sadie, my Sadie, doesn’t work for these money-hungry assholes.
A soft gasp comes from behind me, and I look over my shoulder at the trespasser who snuck her way into my bed. Fuck that, she snuck her way into my heart, and now…
The horrified and guilty look painted on her face says it all; she betrayed me.