Free Unbound Pursuit by Lindsay McKenna

he’d gotten those scars when he’d stepped between his father and his sister, Sage. Matt had made himself a target to protect Sage from being sexually molested. His body had been deeply scarred over time. To this day, Sage’s loyalty to her brother was solid, and Mattie knew why. Mark had protected her from her father. And Sage loved her brother as fiercely as Mattie did, but for different reasons.
    Sitting down, Mattie was grateful for Tal’s quiet strength, her hand resting on her slumped shoulder as she tried to control her inner tumult. “I don’t know why he suddenly showed up,” she whispered, her voice quavering. Tears spilled down her cheeks, and she turned her head, ashamed that Tal would see her cry.
    “Did you know he was coming?”
    “N-no,” she whispered, quickly wiping the tears away, humiliated that her future-sister-in-law was seeing her like this, a muddled mass of jellied emotions, pulverized by Mark’s shocking appearance.
    “Has he done this before?”
    Shaking her head, Mattie said hoarsely, “I have not seen him in four months. I figured he’d just disappeared out of my life forever. That’s why I was so shocked to see him again.”
    Frowning, Tal smoothed her hand gently across Mattie’s shaking shoulders. She was crying. Tal put herself in Mattie’s place. This would be a helluva shock for anyone to take. Almost like a dead person returning from the grave.
    “I-I’m sorry, Tal. I shouldn’t be crying. You’d think I’d learn my lesson . . .”
    “Sometimes, when you love someone, it takes a long time to get over it,” Tal told her.
    “I-I shouldn’t still love him!” she rasped, giving Tal a confused look. “How can I?”
    “Only you can answer that,” Tal said gently, smoothing back some strands of red hair that were sticking to her damp cheek. “Love and grief are entwined, I’ve found. And it’s a process you work through. There’s no time limit on it.”
    Sniffing, Mattie pulled a tissue out of her pocket, wiping her eyes and blowing her nose. “There’s so much grief and sadness shared between us. I knew one day he’d leave for good. And I thought he had. But he’s back . . . I-I never expected to ever see him again.”
    Never mind she still dreamed like the child she was of what might have been if they’d married once they were out of high school. The year they spent together when they were teenagers, after their relationship moved from friendship to something more, had been heaven on earth. Mark been so gentle and open with her, so incredibly loving. Sometimes, Mattie felt as if Mark had a lifetime of love stored up for her from the time he was born. At six years old, seeing him in the first grade, she’d fallen in love with him. It was the most beautiful feeling in the world to have him unveil the deepest, most beautiful parts of himself, his dreams, his wishes, with her. People called it puppy love, but the feeling had never gone away. And when she was sixteen and he finally opened up to her, let himself be as vulnerable as she was, and tenderly loved her, her soul had wept with joy and pleasure. He had been that loving. But then their lives had spiraled into a darkness she could never have imagined. And it had torn them apart even though they still ached to be with one another.
    After that, Mark had changed abruptly. Forever. He was no longer open with her; he shut down. She knew why. It was a secret both of them would carry to their graves. The more Mattie tried to remain close to Mark, the more he retreated from her, those hard shields that he had always kept between himself and most other people began rising against her, too, cutting her off from his soft side. Mattie was too ashamed, too guilty and young, to figure out how to salvage the love they held for one another. And to this day, she beat herself up, knowing that one night had changed their lives and made Mark suddenly disconnect from her forever.
    “We need to get home,” Tal urged