“And you shouldn’t try,” Jared warned. “With either of us.”
This was getting very intense very fast.
She attempted to wriggle off Jared’s lap, but he held her still. “I would stop moving like that if I was you.”
She froze. “What? Why?”
“Why do you think? I have excellent control, but I’m no saint.”
Oh my God.
Did he mean what she thought he did?
“Then let me off your lap!” she demanded.
“All right. If you’re sure that’s what you want.” Jared lifted her off his lap and she knew instantly that wasn’t what she wanted.
She wanted to be back there. Warm and safe in his arms.
God. This sucked.
In an attempt to distract herself from all the feelings running through her, she grabbed a handful of chocolate. Then some popcorn and finally some potato chips. Before she went back to the chocolate.
“That’s enough,” Jared warned.
“What?” she asked.
“You’ve had enough sweet stuff to eat. You’ll be bouncing off the walls at this rate.”
No, she wouldn’t.
“I’m not a child. I know when I’ve had enough.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Do you? Tell me, how old is your Little?”
Eek.
Why was he asking that? She glanced over at North. He was settled into the corner of the sofa, watching her.
This was as relaxed as she’d ever seen him look.
“I don’t . . . I don’t know exactly. I just . . . whenever she’s come out it’s usually been in high stress situations where I don’t have much time to pay attention.”
Jared cupped her chin as she tried to drop her gaze. “So never when you were happy or relaxed?”
Angie thought about that. “Not that I can recall. Mostly when I’m anxious or scared. Like when I’ve had a bad dream or I’d just been to a therapy session that went deep.”
“Did therapy help?” Jared asked.
“Um, yes. It was online therapy. My therapist is great, but sometimes she’d push me and it would . . . it would trigger old memories of what Fergus did to me. Sometimes, I’d have a panic attack. Other times, I’d retreat to my bedroom, lock the door, and my Little would take over. She’d protect me.”
“Do you still talk to the therapist?” Jared asked.
“No, I probably should. She helped a lot. However, there’s part of me that just wants to forget. I know I’m just burying my head in the sand.”
“Sometimes, you just have to do what you can to survive,” North told her.
Huh.
