With Every Heartbeat
“You don’t have to say anything, baby. It’s obvious someone beat you with a belt.”
I swallowed hard. Oh, my…I…I didn’t even know how to process that. I’d felt the lash of my father’s belt more than once. But he’d never hit me so hard that I still had a scar from any of those experiences, except for the one on the back of my leg where he’d forgotten and used the other end. The metal clasp had caught my skin and ripped the flesh open. That had felt bad enough. I couldn’t imagine how much it must have hurt to make lasting scars all over my back.
Grabbing his shirt again, Cora used it to tug Quinn closer. “Now give me another kiss before I start beating you with a belt.”
I frowned at such an insensitive line but was sucked back into eavesdropping when she smashed her mouth to his. Then I leaned a little further out to watch.
I know it was wrong. But watching the way he kissed her was…I wasn’t even sure how to describe it. He carried honest caring and affection for her. I’d been worried after reading so many of Cora’s emails about him. She’d gushed over how perfect and gorgeous and sweet he was, and I had hoped she wasn’t blinded by lust and being used or manipulated by some jerk.
But Quinn seemed to reciprocate her adoration. I was relieved and glad Cora had found a relationship like this, even though I hadn’t known they honestly existed. It made my envy spark until a tiny part of me resented her...just a little bit for finding something so amazing.
She’d always had the nice family, a mother who annoyed her by how much she wanted to be involved in Cora’s life and a father who was one of the gentlest men I’d ever met. And I’d had a widowed father who’d hit me for things like overcooking his fried eggs.
It didn’t seem fair that Cora had gotten the perfect, dedicated boyfriend too. Which only made me choke on my guilt because here I was feeling jealous of the only person who’d ever befriended me while I was perfectly healthy and she was...not.
Oh, man. I was the worst friend in the world.
Quinn was the first to break away from the kiss. His breathing was accelerated, which made his voice sound huskier and in turn made me feel tinglier.
“I should get back,” he said. “The guys are waiting for their soapy water.”
“The guys can just keep waiting,” Cora argued as she kissed her way down his neck. “You need to satisfy your woman.”
He made a groaning sound, letting me know just how tempted he was, even as he set a hand on her hip to nudge her away. “I’ll make it up to you tonight. How about that?”
Cora pulled back and stuck out a fake sulky bottom lip. “Promise?”
He kissed her forehead. “We’d better get going before we’re caught in here together like this.”
Quinn just shook his head as he bent to pick up his bucket.
“Okay, fine.” Still in pout mode, Cora set her hands on her hips and spun away to flounce toward the door. “Be a fuddy duddy then. You better make it up to me twice tonight.”
Quinn began to follow her, but glanced over for some reason. I wasn’t expecting him to look my way, but when his gaze latched onto mine, I was caught.
I hunched back deeper into my hiding spot, but he froze and his mouth fell open, letting me know good and well he saw me.
I expected a hailstorm of questions and cringed even more under his gaze, already trying to think up an excuse for why I was here…and why I hadn’t made my presence known.
But he shocked me when his eyes filled with sympathy. Glancing after Cora as if to check if she was paying attention or not, he turned back. Then he pointed at me and mouthed the question, “You okay?”
I blinked.
He wasn’t going to expose me or demand answers? Why wasn’t he going to expose me?
Heart thumping hard, I nodded.
So he pointed after his departing girlfriend and mouthed, “Do you need Cora?”
I smiled a little, charmed that he was so concerned and yet grateful he was keeping my presence private.
When I shook my head, he smiled. After sending me a thumbs-up sign, he followed Cora from the warehouse.
I stayed there another minute, trying to rein in my scattered emotions. I was still mortified about being caught, even though Quinn had been so cool about it. It made me feel like an idiot for hiding in the first place. But most of all, I was ashamed.
Cora was my one and only friend. She’d been the only person to talk to me and introduce herself on my first day of public school after my father finally agreed I could stop using the tutors he paid to homeschool me. She’d been my rock and support every time after he’d punished me. I worshiped the ground she walked on. And now she was hurting, suffering from a debilitating disease. She deserved all the happiness she could get. What the heck was I doing, feeling jealous?