Bad Love an Alpha’s Regret by Elise Sinclair

Chapter 313

He holds out his hand and I take it, shaking.

His grip is firm and cool, and there’s something almost comforting about it.

“I’m Emily,” I tell him in return.

His smile deepens. “That’s a pretty name.”

I laugh at this.

Ronan might be too charming for his own good.

“I think it’s pretty basic myself, but you’re welcome to your opinion.”

He gives a quick, friendly laugh.

“So, Emily, what has you out here looking so down on a day like today?”

I take a slow breath, working out how I can explain without sounding crazy.

“Something bad happened to me, something traumatizing,” I begin, choosing my words carefully. “Something that went on for a long time. I finally got out just recently, and now my family are treating me like I’m fragile and broken. Maybe because I am.

7

But I don’t want to be. And I can’t stay with my family, I can see that. It’s just not going to work. They’ll hate me when the realize the truth of everything that happened to me. Except I don’t know what to do, and don’t have anywhere else to go.”

Ronan nods, listening with sympathy and understanding.

And I realize it’s something no one has bothered to do since I got home.

They all just assume they know what happened to me, and what they should do about it.

have that moment with Axel

wasn’t real..

he–more than anyone–would be first in line to kill me if or when the truth

Ronan says thoughtfully. “You don’t seem broken and fragile to me. Truthfully, I’m pretty sure the fact that you’re here talking to me points to you actually being extremely strong and brave. You survived that bad thing you went through. And maybe these might seem like empty words, but I’m sure if you look inside yourself, you’ll see that you came

I’ve ever stopped to consider that I might be

to me.

is right. Just not in the way he probably means.

www

experiments were literally torture, but I can do things

saying that makes it all worthwhile.

choose not to ever go through that, because

me in greater danger

I decide to look at it from a different perspective.

sincere voice. “In a way that no one in your family can probably see.

this stranger has actually seen me- in a way Aaron and Jessica and Axel and everyone else maybe never will.

they just not

for ten years, so they’ve all moved on without me–that

mean in a spiteful way, I just mean in an

kind of way.

can’t see any of that. You’re strong. You’ve proven that to yourself. You don’t need to prove it to anyone else, even if they are

I’m speechless.

don’t know what to say, but I’m

say to him, emotion

gets

like to hike these trails a few times a week,” he says.

I reply, smiling, because I hope I do see him

also get to my feet, and we stand there

forward and

seems surprised, but then hugs me back,