Page 19 of Twilight of Embers
“No. It’s just me.” Which meant I’d been all that more alone after my parents died.
Knox shifted in his seat, seeming to choose his words carefully. “What happened to your parents?”
It was a bold and nosy question. Especially for someone who didn’t really know me, but I appreciated it somehow. That Knox simply asked what he wanted to know instead of probing around the subject.
It wasn’t something I talked about. Not ever. But somehow, I didn’t mind giving Knox the truth, even though just thinking the words made my stomach hurt.
“They were murdered.”
10
HAYDEN
Knox’s entire body stiffened, and I swore his eyes flashed gold. “Murdered?”
I nodded, dropping my gaze from his. I couldn’t handle seeing other people’s reactions. Not when their emotions only amplified my own. “When I was eleven.”
“Hayden.” Knox’s voice was strangled, garbled. “I’m so sorry.”
I picked at a loose thread on my jeans. “Me, too.”
His large hand covered mine, and a buzz lit beneath my skin. “Who took care of you after?”
I bit my bottom lip, wishing I could avoid this part of the conversation. “I didn’t have anyone. I thought maybe this friend of my parents would take me in, but they couldn’t handle a kid. I ended up in the system.”
Knox’s hand clenched around mine. “Foster care?”
I nodded. “It wasn’t that bad. I got lucky with my third placement. The Johansens were really kind. They even let me stay after my eighteenth birthday so that I could finish high school.”
The only sound was that of Knox’s ragged breathing, as if he were struggling for control.
It forced my gaze away from my lap and toward those beautiful green eyes. There was only one word to describe the emotion there. Anguish.
“You were alone,” he gritted out.
I shrugged. “Aren’t lots of people?”
“You shouldn’t have been alone.”
How many times had I wished I’d had someone? Anyone who really knew me. “Maybe, but I got through it.”
Knox’s eyes searched mine as if looking for any hint of a lie. “You’re not going to be alone anymore.”
I stilled. What did that mean? It seemed like a hell of a promise from someone who didn’t know me at all. Unease trickled through me, and I pulled my hand free. I’d known someone else who’d made similar promises, and he’d bolted the second he’d taken my virginity.
Hurt flashed across Knox’s expression, but it was quickly replaced by determination. “I just know what it’s like to lose the people you love. But I had East. He might be a cantankerous fucker, but he’s my twin, and I know he’ll always have my back.”
I studied Knox for a moment, looking for any hints of deception, but I didn’t sense anything. “Who did you lose?”
A hardness settled into his jaw.
“You don’t have to tell me—”
“No. I want to. I just—I don’t talk about it much. My whole family. Parents. Little sister. Older brother. They all died in a, uh, fire.” Knox’s gaze shifted away as if he, too, couldn’t take my reaction to his revelation.
God, I couldn’t imagine losing that many people in a single moment. “I’m so sorry.”
He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing with the action. “It’s why East can be a prick sometimes. He doesn’t like to let himself care about anyone any more than he has to.”
