Glow (Glimmer and Glow 2) - Page 50

Hurts.

“I thought he cared about me, even if it was just a little,” she finished.

&nbs

p; “Well, he didn’t sell you out for the reward money. Maybe he really did consider you family. That must mean something. People are strange. Complicated,” Dylan added, reaching for her hand. He grasped it in his encompassing, warm hold and settled it on his thigh. “That’s one lesson life has taught both you and me. People can be cruel, petty, self-involved, and yet they can suddenly do something that makes you see their humanity. Sometimes I think it’d be better if they didn’t, because it would be easier just to straight up hate them that way.”

Alice turned her head, staring into his eyes. She knew he was ambivalent about his mother, who had been a prostitute. His mom hadn’t planned for or wanted Dylan, and typically treated him with disgusted anger, or merely discounted and ignored him. Dylan had been left to fend for himself in a cold mean world.

Yet Dylan had loved his mother, too, and wanted to be loved by her. It was human nature, to crave connection, nurturance and approval from a mother or father figure. Alice knew that lesson all too well.

She released her hand from his, leaned toward him and pressed her palm to his heart.

“I hate Sissy for what she’s done to me,” she said shakily, staring at Dylan’s chest. “I don’t think I’ll ever forgive her. But I don’t hate Uncle Al. Sissy was the worst among them. She was always the instigator. She’d whine and complain and manipulate until they finally did whatever it was she wanted, just to shut her up. As weak and ineffective as she seemed on the surface, she was the leader of them. She was the Queen of Passive-Aggressive Land. Al’s and my other uncles’ worst fault was weakness, but Al stood up to her the most. Almost every time he did stand up to her, he’d do it for my sake.” She grimaced, lost in painful memories for a moment. “At least if Sissy were in prison, she’d be away from the drugs. She might live a few years longer away from the poison. Same for most of my uncles. But I don’t want to see Al locked up,” she admitted miserably. She was suddenly having trouble meeting Dylan’s stare. “That makes me weak, too, doesn’t it?”

“No. The last thing you are is weak, Alice. It’s a complicated, confusing situation. I think you need time to let things settle. It’s a lot to absorb.”

“Do you mean that someday, I might want vengeance? I might want to see Al sent to prison?” She wasn’t sure she’d ever want to see that day come.

“I mean that nothing is going to happen this minute. We have a reprieve, although I can’t guarantee how long that reprieve will last. I wanted you to have some time, no matter how brief it is, so you can start to come to terms with things.”

“That’s why you didn’t want Jim Sheridan to understand who I was yet,” she said. She pressed tighter with her hand, feeling dense muscle and the strong steady beat of his heart resound into her flesh. A powerful longing rose up in her to be surrounded by his arms. Her throat ached. He covered her hand, and she sensed his nonverbal prompt. Uncertainly, she raised her gaze to meet his.

“If Jim finds out the truth, he’ll be obligated to inform the FBI. It’s their case. They’ll come here to question you and me.”

“And you’ll have to tell them about Sissy and Al and the others,” she whispered, understanding making her throat constrict more.

“Sissy and possibly some of your uncles are going to be implicated in this crime eventually. I want you to understand it’s not something I can stop. Because I’m not telling the truth immediately doesn’t mean I’m condoning silence forever about this. The keeping of secrets is what got us to this point. The truth should be told. When the time comes, I’m going to tell the FBI everything I know. Call it what you want: fate, karma, or simple justice, Sissy and some or all of your uncles knowingly harbored a kidnapped child for years and years. They lied regularly about her identity and prevented her return to her rightful parents.”

“They lied about my identity,” Alice said, staring blankly at Dylan’s chest.

Shivers ran in rivulets down her body. It felt like ice water had been poured on top of her head. Dylan grasped her wrist and lifted her hand from his chest. Her gaze shot up to meet his.

“I was Addie Durand.”

A muscle leapt in his taut cheek. “You are Addie Durand.” Another shudder coursed through her. “You’re Alice Reed, too,” he assured roughly. “You always will be, no matter what happens.”

Her eyes stung. She shut them reflexively. She wasn’t so sure she wanted to be Alice Reed anymore, given what Dylan had just told her. It had always felt like she didn’t belong as a child, the notes of her spirit clashing discordantly with her supposed kin’s. Now, here was the truth. They’d never been her family. Never. It was a jarring, horrible, incredible truth. And yet . . .

It was starting to feel real.

She shook. His arms closed around her. He brought her against him, so that her chest pressed against his ribs and her face was buried in his chest. It felt wonderful.

This. This was the opposite of what she’d felt in Sissy Reed’s trailer. This was what she’d longed for her whole life, to feel safe and prized.

She hugged him back. Hard. Thankfully, he didn’t speak for several tense moments. Perhaps he realized if she was forced to respond, she’d betray her ragged emotional state . . . expose her grief.

“Alice?” he asked quietly when she’d wiped the last of her tears on his shirt and brought herself under control.

“Yeah?” she sniffed.

“You okay?”

“Yeah.”

He chafed her upper arms with his hands.

“We never got to talk about what happened the night you found me under the stairs,” she said.

Tags: Beth Kery Glimmer and Glow Erotic
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