**Undergoing Reconstruction**

“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Tell you what, Richard? What would you have done?”
“I don’t know. Apologized sooner? Bought you a burger to make up for it?”
Her eyes lit up with fire, “You think what you did to me… you think a burger can make up for it?” her eyes twinkled like she was fighting tears. Did I hurt her that badly? I was just a foolish teenager.
“Nita, I am sorry. I was young, I was stupid. I wish I could take it all back and tell you how I feel instead of being a constant jerk to gain your attention.”
“How did you feel that would justify what you did to me?”
I paused for a minute, finding the words. “I had a huge crush on you at the time. And I didn’t know how to express myself. I was full of myself, I was the school’s ladies' man and the one girl I had eyes for didn’t even care if I existed,”
 “And that justified what you did to me? Richard, you broke me. I can forgive you for ‘accidentally’ spilling your ice cream on me, or throwing my due assignment in the toilet, or the gum in my hair, or the glue in my chair but tell me how can I forgive you for what you did that night? Tell me!”
“What night? Nita, what are you talking about?”
“Remember when you asked me if I knew who sexually assaulted me?”
I nodded, but what does that have to do with anything?  The more we spoke, the more confused I became.
“You did and I cannot believe that you would stand there and pretend like it didn’t happen!”


Nita has spent years trying to forget the torment she endured at the hands of Richard. When her family’s financial ruin forces her into an arranged marriage, she is horrified to find out the groom himself was her bully.
Richard, a charming and successful businessman meets the first woman to be repulsed by him. Intrigued, he proposes a deal of a one year marriage of convenience.
Navigating life as a couple, old wounds reopen, buried memories surface. As Richard learns more about his wife, he finds that he has enemies that followed him from his past to continuously cloud his wife’s judgement.
Will Nita believe the truth and bury old wounds or will the pain of the past prove too strong to heal?

Damon tightened his grip, the barrel biting harder into the hollow between my jaw and collarbone. The cold metal was an obscene contrast to the warm pulse under my skin. "Stay right there, Richard. One more step, and I won't hesitate."


I swallowed, keeping my voice measured. Adrenaline sharpened my thoughts into a crystalline focus. "Damon, right," I began, forcing lightness into my tone. "Can I call you Damon?" I didn't wait for an answer. "I'm just going to call you Damon. I don't know your last name, so Damon it is." 


Richard shot me a look that screamed are you crazy?—that particular look that asked how I could be so calm when a gun pressed to my throat. I met his eyes and signaled with my fingers: give me a second. Let me talk.


Damon's breath was hot in my ear; his nails dug into my shoulder a little harder. "Don't play games."


"I'm not." I kept my words steady. "Do you even know what you're doing?" I asked. "What are you trying to prove?"


Chapter 53 - Let Her Go