Anthony stepped into my office and slammed the heavy wooden door shut behind him.

Already on edge, I flinched at the loud noise.

Placing his fisted hands on his hips, he stared down at black and white checkered floor. He didn’t move, didn’t speak. The only noise coming from him was the sound of his heavy, frequent breaths.

I didn’t like his silence one bit. I’d rather him scream his head off and throw things around the room than ignore me. I don’t know why but I couldn’t handle him being silent. It made me feel distant from him, and that was something that I couldn’t—much to my dismay—handle.

“Tony,” I said, fidgeting in the chair where I sat. “Say something, honey.”

Nothing but silence.

Unable to stand it a second longer, I rose from the chair and moved toward him, closing the space between us. His intoxicating scent tickled my nose making my head feel fuzzy. “If you want to yell at me, Tony, then do it.” I lifted a shaking hand and placed it on the center of his hard chest. “But don’t give me the silent treatment. That’s not something I can tolerate, sugar.”

In the blink of an eye, his hand shot toward me. My body jerked in response, a reaction caused from being abused by Damien for years on end. Not feeding into my fear, Anthony wrapped his long, adept fingers around my wrist and yanked me toward him. My chest slammed into his abs, almost knocking the breath right out of my lungs.

I yelped as he gazed down at me with hard eyes. Despite the cold look plastered on his face, I wasn’t afraid. Not of him.

Never of him.

Deep in my heart, I knew that it didn’t matter how angry I made Anthony, he’d never hurt me. Even when he was fit to be tied, my man wasn’t like Damien.

Would he spank me as punishment? Maybe.

Beat me? No way in hell. He’d step into oncoming traffic first.

“Tony,” I whispered his name. “Talk, baby.”

Anthony lifted his head, and his eyes met mine. “I was standing in the middle of the station, talking to a uniform that’s interested in taking the detective’s exam when the call came in.”

Shit.

“Dispatch came over the radio,” his jaw ticked, “and all I heard them say was: Toluca Women’s Shelter, assault on a female, injuries possible.” My heart clenched at his words. “I’ve never been more scared in my life, Shelby. All I could picture was you lying on the ground, hurt or dead.” I sucked in a breath. “Did you even stop to think about what you were doing? About what could happen to you?” He kept speaking without stopping to take a breath. “D-Boy could have fucking killed you. Do you realize that?”

“Tony, I—”

“Don’t.” His tone was firm, unrelenting. “There isn’t anything you can say to make this any better.” He shook his head and continued to stare down at me with unforgiving eyes. “You should’ve thought about Lucca, about what losing his mother would do to him.” I froze. “Did you even bother to think about what would happen to him if you’d been murdered by a pimp with a rap sheet longer than both of my arms put together?” Shaking his head, he didn’t relent as he tossed verbal barb after barb my way. “How could you be so damn stupid? I know you’re hot headed, but this is beyond that. What you did was fucking reckless!”

His words should’ve pissed me off, but they didn’t.

Instead, they hurt. Like a dagger straight to my heart, they cut me deep.

He thought I was stupid? Because of what I’d done? It had nothing to do with being hotheaded or stupid. I was just trying to protect Ashley, to save her.

Like someone should’ve saved me.

Wrenching my wrist free from his hand, I took a step back. I bit my lip to stop my chin from wobbling. I’d never—not once in my entire life—allowed a man to reduce me to tears over something as small as spoken words. But Anthony was about to. I was weak and vulnerable when it came to him. The man may not have realized it, but he could break me in a way that Damien never had.

The thought alone scared the hell out of me.

“Stupid is my middle name, Tony.” My throat suddenly felt tight. “I would think you’d have figured that out by now. Especially considering all the dumb shit I’ve done in the past.” I humorlessly chuckled to myself. “Seems I never learn.” My chest felt like it was splitting in half. “Probably best you realize that now. Makes it easier for you to walk away.” I sarcastically winked. “Because let’s face it, that’s probably what’s about to happen.”

Heart-shattering, I walked out of the room without saying another word.

* * *

Hope pounded on the window of my truck as I slid the key into the ignition.

“Shelby!” She hollered, frantically, a look of panic etched across her flawless face. “Roll the window down,” she begged in a high-pitched voice, “please.”

Blowing out a breath, I rolled the window halfway down. “What is it, my little muffin?”

“Where are you going?” Her brows were furrowed, her eyes shiny with worry. “Are you crying?”

I closed my eyes, blocking her view of the unshed tears that filled my eyes. “I’m taking the rest of the day off. I’ve already texted Maddie.” Drumming my shaking fingers on top of the steering wheel, I tried to keep my traitorous tears from falling down my cheeks. “It’s not a big deal so why don’t you go on and head back inside, sugar. I’m sure Evan is looking for you.”

Hope didn’t move, and her stare didn’t relent. “Why isn’t Anthony taking you home?” She leaned against the door and propped her chin on the half-opened window as she peered at me with wide eyes. “Did you guys have a fight?”

I shook my head as my throat began to close. “No, we didn’t have a fight,” I choked out. Turning the key, I started the truck’s engine. “Though I don’t think you’ll be seeing much of Anthony anymore.”

It physically pained me to speak those words.

“What?” Hope shrieked. “Why?”

My entire body ached as red-hot pain sliced through me at the speed of light. “Because I’m pretty sure he just realized the truth about me.” The first tear slipped free. “Better it happens now rather than later, I reckon. At least now he knows how fricken stupid I am and how much time he’s wasting by chasing after me.”

Hope’s head jerked back as if she’d been slapped. “Did he call you stupid?” Her normally soft voice hardened a tad. “Because if he did, I’ll kick his ass myself.”

Any other time, I would’ve laughed at sweet little Hope threatening to kick someone’s ass. But at that moment, I was too busy trying to keep my heart from splintering into a million pieces. “Don’t worry about it, muffin.” I shifted the truck into drive. “Can’t be mad at him for speaking the truth.”

“Shelby—”

“Back up, Hope. I wouldn’t want to run your pretty little toes over.”

She took a step back. “Shelby, wait. I can see your hands shaking, and I know you’re fighting back a slew of tears. Don’t drive like this. Let me take you home.”

“No,” I replied, easing my foot off the brake. “Just go back on inside and help Maddie out, okay? She gets off in a few minutes and the transition to night crew needs to run smoothly.”

Hope hesitantly nodded. “Will you at least call me when you get home? If you don’t, I’ll worry all night.”

It was my turn to nod. “Promise I’ll call.”

Forcing a smile just for her, I removed my foot from the brake and stepped on the gas. My spinning tires kicked up dirt and gravel creating a cloud of dust behind me. Nearing the exit, I looked in the rear-view mirror and saw Hope standing exactly where she’d been before, except now she was tapping the screen of her phone with lightning quick fingers.

Bet I know who she’s texting.

Focusing my gaze out the windshield of the truck, I headed for the main road that would lead me away from the shelter and to my duplex.

I’d barely made it past the gate before the first wave of tears fell.