Page 25 of Unbroken

“I wish he could take back every bad thing that happened to you,” he said sincerely. “But I’m so glad I met you.”

They spent the next hour learning one another’s preferences—food, music, movies. Everything under the sun. The more he talked with her, the more he realized just how much he liked her. Not that he was surprised by that. He’d known from the first that Maya was special.

Even in the aftermath of her abduction and resulting trial, the inner light that shone from her eyes was still there. It was slightly more wary now… but it was still there. She’d endured hell at the hands of a madman, but she hadn’t allowed him to break her.

Not wanting to end the evening too soon, he ordered coffee as well as chocolate cake to share. Over dessert, he learned that Maya was working for a manufacturing company in their customer service department. They allowed her the luxury of working from home, and the situation worked perfectly for her. It wasn’t in her field of study, but she was happy enough at the moment to receive a consistent paycheck.

When he could drag it out no longer, he tipped his head toward the door.

“I think they’re trying to close up. Should we head out?”

As if she hadn’t realized it before, she tossed a quick look at the servers cleaning and prepping for the following day. Her cheeks pinked with embarrassment before she turned her gaze back to his. “I didn’t even notice.”

“Me either.” He waited until she stood, then followed suit. “I was enjoying myself so much I wasn’t paying attention to the time.”

Maya tossed a smile over her shoulder at him as he settled his hand on her lower back and guided her toward the front door.

Tonight had been absolutely amazing.

Maya was quickly becoming a very important part of his life, and he hoped this was only the first of many nights spent together.

CHAPTER

SIXTEEN

A comfortable silence settled over them as they drove back to her apartment. But by the time they got inside, Maya’s body vibrated with nervous energy. Aiden had followed her inside and now stood next to the door, watching her warily. He seemed to sense the shift that had occurred within her but didn’t know exactly what to do about it, if anything.

She wanted to reassure him, wanted to tell him everything was fine. But it wasn’t.

Inside, she was a mess. She’d analyzed every minute of their date over and over on the way home, rethinking her responses and wondering if his had been genuine. By the time she walked through the door, she was questioning everything.

Mainly, why he wanted to be with her.

“Are you okay?” he ventured cautiously.

He had to think she was a complete nutcase. It had been a whole year. Why couldn’t she move on? She’d tried so hard. She’d gone out on dates, even with just a group of friends. But it was awkward and stilted, and she always felt out of place.

She was like an oddity to them, a novelty rather than a person. Most people saw her as the woman who’d been abducted and held captive the year before. Few of them, if any, cared about who she really was.

The only person who treated her like he truly cared was Aiden.

“I don’t know what to do,” she admitted.

His head tipped slightly to one side in question. “What do you mean?”

“I can’t…” She trailed off, trying to put her thoughts into words. “I’m trying so hard just to be normal, but I just… I feel like something’s wrong with me.”

Aiden straightened, those dark brown eyes locking onto hers. “There is nothing wrong with you.”

She shrugged helplessly. “I’m so tired of people asking me about it. That’s always the first thing they ask: ‘Aren’t you that girl who escaped?’ I’m so tired of being that person. I want to be the woman I was before.”

She glanced up at him. “You want to know why I came to your place yesterday?”

Tears of frustration burned the backs of her eyes, blurring her vision. “I needed someone to talk to. Someone who wouldn’t judge me.”

“You can come to me anytime,” Aiden said quietly.

He held out one hand, and she stared at it for several seconds before sliding her palm into his.