Page 17 of Saved By A God
He nods before looking down, hiding his face from my view, and I watch as he moves from one security point to the next.
Shoving my chair back, I shoot up and jog to the doors, and the moment they open and Enzo steps out, I grab hold of him.
His arms clamp incredibly tight around me, and hearing his ragged breaths, I instinctively press a kiss to his jaw while cradling the back of his head with one of my hands.
“You didn’t know.”
Instantly, Enzo pulls away from me, and stalking to my workstation, he begins to clean up.
Knowing it’s his way of coping, I rein in the urge to hold him and leave him be.
I return to my chair, but I can’t focus on work, conscious of every movement Enzo makes and how his breaths don’t calm down.
The energy coming from him is violent, and scared he might leave in this state, I activate the lockdown protocol.
Even if someone has a code, they won’t be able to get in, and there’s no way for Enzo to leave the building.
When the shutters lower over the windows, Enzo’s head snaps up. He watches as the sunlight disappears, and as the lights flicker on, he turns to look at me.
“I’m just keeping you with me until you’ve calmed down,” I explain.
He doesn’t reply and walks to the small kitchen, only to return minutes later with a mop.
I watch as he cleans every nook and cranny, and when there’s nothing else to do, he stops to stare at me.
Seeing he’s far from calm, I get up, but as I walk toward him, he shakes his head and steps backward.
Enzo’s eyes collide with mine again, and disgust ripples over his features. His lips part, and as he groans, my heart breaks into a million pieces from the wounded sound.
“Last week I hurt a woman,” he admits, his tone hoarse and broken. “A virgin. She didn’t divulge the information, and I hurt a fucking woman against my will.”
Overwhelming regret and guilt pour hot and fast through me. “I’m so sorry.”
He shakes his head. “And today I learned that I fucking beat another woman. I almost killed her and once a-fucking-gain it was because a woman hid the truth from me!” He shouts while his hands fly up, his fingers locking behind his neck as his chest rises and falls fast with harsh breaths.
“None of what happened is your fault,” I say, my tone pleading.
“I almost fucking drowned you last year!” There’s so much rage on his face, fear trickles into my chest. “I always fucking knew I’m too volatile. When I hurt you, it just confirmed it. Then there’s the fucking virgin, and now this body double…” His breaths come even faster, an expression I’ve never seen carving hard lines around his eyes and mouth. “Three times. Three fucking times.” Shaking his head hard, he whispers, “I’m done, Rosie.”
I shake my head. “Don’t, Enzo. You didn’t do any of it intentionally.”
“Three times,” he roars, unable to hear me because he’s too far gone.
His gaze drops to the floor, his teeth bared as he sucks in desperate breaths. “Three fucking times I’ve hurt a woman.”
Tears escape, rolling down my cheeks, as I whisper, “That’s not what happened.”
“It is!” His voice turns hollow. “I threw you into a pool, and you almost drowned. I was way too fucking rough with a virginbecause she hid the truth from me. I tortured a woman because I was made to believe she was a man.”
I take a step toward him, but once again, he moves backward.
“Enzo...”
“I don’t care whose fault it was.” He drags a hand over his face. “The end result is the same.” His eyes meet mine again, and the disgust he feels for himself makes a sob burst from me. “Three women got hurt.” I’ve never seen him this upset before. “And I’m the common denominator.”
“You’re not.” My tone is pleading as I shake my head.
For a moment, I think about coming clean with Enzo so he won’t carry this crippling guilt, but something tells me to shut up. It will only make things a hell of a lot worse if he ever finds out I was the virgin, and it will be the end of our friendship.
