“Me, too,” she whispered, drawing him down to her for a kiss.

Owen wrapped his arms around her and fell into the kiss, drowning in the sweet comfort he always found with her. He was so fully engaged with her that he almost missed the sound of his phone ringing in the pocket of his pajama pants. Withdrawing from the kiss, Owen kept one arm around her as he retrieved the phone. A quick glance showed a Virginia number on the screen.

“Give me the phone, Owen. I’ve got this.”

“Thank you, honey, but I’ll do it.” Her love had given him the strength to face anything, even his monster of a father.

He took the call and accepted the collect charges. Owen sat on the bed, and Laura put her nightgown back on and sat next to him. He held the phone so she could hear, too.

“Finally,” Mark Lawry said in a low growl that immediately put Owen on guard. Nothing good had ever followed that particular tone of voice.

“What do you want?” Owen asked.

“I wanted you to pick up the goddamned phone when I called you.”

“Why would you think I have anything at all to say to you?”

“Maybe it’s time you did some listening rather than talking. There are things you don’t know.”

“If you’re going to tell me some sob story that you think will change how I feel about you, then you’re wasting my time—and yours.”

“It’s not a story. It’s the truth. I… I was knocked around by my old man. I never knew anything else. They’ve got me going to court-ordered counseling here, and the guy got me to tell him that. He said I needed to tell my kids so they’d understand why I am the way I am.”

Stunned by the confession from a man who’d never once admitted to weakness of any kind, Owen tried to wrap his brain around what he was hearing.