Theodore poured the coffee in two cups just as Abigail emerged from her room. He noticed that she seemed troubled and deep in thought, so he grabbed a croissant too that he knew she loved so much. He rested the coffee in front of her as she joined him at the kitchen island. “Thank you,” Abigail mumbled with a short smile as she snaked her fingers around the mug. She took a sip of the warm beverage, loving how it provided her body with even more comfort. She was accustomed to Theodore making her drinks and fetching her snacks by now. Whenever she came over for a dance, he would usually insist that she stay for coffee or a glass of his wine. It warmed her heart that he found the need to pick up a few croissants from Brown’s Diner since he knew that she loved them. It was sweet of him. Abigail tried to steady her thoughts as she turned to face Theodore. He stared ahead of him as he drank his coffee in silence also. As if feeling her eyes on him, Theodore shifted his gaze towards her and placed his cup on the island when he realised that there was definitely something on her mind. “What’s wrong, Abigail?” he asked, reaching over to rest his hand on top of hers. Although she trusted him and grew accustomed to his touch, sometimes she would still flinch when he touched her, even if it was ever so gentle. However, Theodore wasn’t offended. He knew that she was still getting accustomed to this new normal, so he remained understanding. After realising what she did, Abigail reached over and reconnected their hands as she reluctantly met his eyes. “I need to tell you something,” she said. Her voice dripped with the seriousness of her tone, and Theodore became tenser. He turned fully to her so that she had his undivided attention. Whatever she wanted to tell him obviously unnerved her. He wanted to ensure that she felt as comfortable as possible. “Sure, what is it?” he asked gently. He was cautious with his tone. The last thing he wanted was to upset her further. Abigail fiddled with her fingers even more as she steadied her thoughts. “I wanted to tell you everything about what happened to me and my mother that led to Nicholas.” Theodore wasn’t expecting this, so he was left stunned for a while. “Abigail, if you’re not ready—” “I am,” she quickly said, cutting him off. “I want to tell you, Theodore. I think you deserve to know. You have been too good to me.” Nodding slowly, Theodore reached for her other hand and placed a kiss on each. “Okay. But if there’s any time you feel like stopping, you don’t have to continue.” “Thank you.” She smiled at him, taking a deep breath. This was it. She would relive the past two years through a story, and there was no going back from here. Abigail gathered her thoughts and memories, all good and bad, as Theodore waited patiently. It wasn’t an easy thing to do. But she felt like this was the right thing moving forward. And so, with a deep breath, she started. “A little over four years ago, my mother married a man, Mark Jenison. I’m sure you know him.” Abigail waited a while as Theodore gathered his thoughts before his face lit in realisation. “Yes, I’ve heard of him. But I’ve never interacted with him before. He was your mother’s husband?” he asked in shock. Abigail nodded. “Yes. My mother met him at a dinner party where she was a caterer. One night of pleasure led to a phone call or two. Before I knew it, we were moving into a rich man’s house. At first, he was kind. He gave my mom and me everything that we wanted, even what we didn’t want.” The memories were still so vivid in Abigail’s mind. She remembered how sometimes she would think that it was all too good to be true, and in the end, she was right. “After about four months of dating, Mark proposed, and since my mother believed she was in love, she accepted. They got married within two months, and since she didn’t want to leave Denver, Mark bought a house there that was big enough for twenty people. At first, I didn’t mind. My mother could have her book clubs and meetings that wives of rich husbands do. It wasn’t all too bad. “But I was never naïve. I knew that eventually, things would change. It started with a fight at dinner when my mother made something that Mark was allergic to. He threw the plates across the room and told her to leave the cooking to the maids since that’s their jobs and not hers.” Abigail’s jaw clenched at the distant memory. She remembered everything about that day. Her mother wanted to make a homemade meal for her husband and daughter. Abigail lived on campus sometimes, so her mother was always happy and felt extra festive when she came home. She remembered how good of a cook her mother was, and sometimes she had to help the maid with dinner because it was never the same. Her mother cried so hard that night. All she wanted was to have a wonderful dinner with her husband and daughter, who had just returned home for spring break. Then and there, Abigail decided that she would move home instead of living on campus. The rage in Mark’s eyes haunted her for days, and she wasn’t comfortable leaving her mother with him. After seeing her discomfort, Theodore gave Abigail’s hand a reassuring squeeze and a smile of encouragement. “From that day, I decided that I’d live at home,” she continued. “And I’m so glad I did, or my mother would’ve probably been dead sooner. Soon, throwing objects wasn’t enough anymore, and he began throwing hands.” She winced as she said this. “Did he ever…” Theodore knew what he wanted to ask, but he couldn’t bring himself to even say it. The very thought of a man’s hand on Abigail in a violent way made him angry. Picking up on what he wanted to ask, Abigail quickly shook her head. “No. He never touched me before, but my mom got the worst of it,” she told him, and he evidently relaxed a bit. “I was there when he first hit her. I was studying, and then I heard a crash. I ran downstairs, thinking he threw something again. But then, when I went down, my mother was sobbing, and her cheek was swollen and red. Mark didn’t even look back as he stormed outside and drove away.” “Oh my gosh,” Theodore mumbled. He wished there was something else he could do to make Abigail feel better. This was evidently painful for her. “I comforted her that night, and on the next day, he brought flowers.” Abigail scoffed as she remembered all the flowers her mother got. “He always brought flowers, and just like the sappy delusional person my mother was, she stayed with him because he always apologised the day after and brought her gifts. He brought me gifts too to buy my silence, but I didn’t fall for it. I told him that he was a sorry excuse of a human being and that he should stay the hell away from me. He could fool my mom, but not me.” She sighed, realising that she was coming to the hardest part. “I called the police a lot of times, but my mother always dismissed the charges and threatened me that if I don’t stay quiet, she’ll cut me off, as if I needed Mark’s money. Eventually, in my final semester of college, I moved back to a dorm on campus. By the day my graduation came around, I had got the news that my mother was dead, and Mark was nowhere to be found.” Theodore couldn’t take the distance anymore. He moved around the island and took Abigail in his arms. Then, he skillfully lifted her from her seat and sat there instead, where he rested her on his thigh. It was a bold move resting her on his lap, but he couldn’t bear being away from her while she was doing something so hard. He wanted to hold her, and luckily, she didn’t protest. In fact, she felt relaxed being with him like this, and it made everything seem much easier. “Thank you.” She smiled at him as his arms tightened around her waist. “Continue,” Theodore probed. “I’ve got you.” With a quick smile, Abigail resumed her story. “At my graduation, only my aunt and a few cousins were there, but it still wasn’t the same because we all were in mourning. My mom’s funeral was the day after. I can’t say it was easy, but somehow I felt no remorse. I begged her… literally begged my mother to leave Mark. I got a job on campus and worked extra hours so I could rent an apartment for her in the city, but she never listened.” Abigail felt the tears threatening to spill, but she remained strong as Theodore rubbed comforting circles in her back. “I’m probably an awful person for saying this, but my mother got what she wanted. She chose those stupid, vain flowers over me and her own life, and I hate that this is how I’ll remember her from now on.” Abigail squeezed her eyes shut as she tried to get a reign on her emotions. “It’s okay,” Theodore mumbled, trying to keep her as calm as possible. “You’re not a bad person.” This wasn’t anything she hadn’t heard before. Abigail tried to mourn her mother on many occasions, but it only brought her regret, contempt, and bitterness. So, she simply gave it up. “I came to New York to get a fresh start. I got a few jobs, I got accepted into a master’s programme, and I found Najay.” She paused briefly to meet Theodore’s expectant eyes. “Remember when I told you that I thought I found love?” she asked. Theodore nodded. “Yes. The day I met you at the hotel, you told me why you were there.” “Well, turns out, Mark had a son that nobody knew about.” “Nicholas,” Theodore concluded. “Yes,” she confirmed. “After he killed my mom and got away with it, Mark felt guilty and tried reaching out to me. He left me the house and a ton of money, but I left it all behind. I didn’t want his sorry money.” Just thinking about it made her angry all over again. She had no idea what was going on in Mark’s mind when he thought he’d be able to buy her forgiveness. “He wanted to know how I was managing without his money, so he sent his son to seduce me. I hate to say that it actually worked,” she chuckled humourlessly with a shiver of disgust. “My life had just started falling in place, and a love interest was just the cherry on top. At first, he was sweet and kind, much like Mark. I should’ve picked up on the pattern.” She mumbled that last part mostly to herself, but Theodore hated that she blamed herself. “Hey, you wouldn’t have known,” he told her in hopes to soothe her mind. Abigail shrugged. “I guess. But I beat myself up for weeks for not picking up on the signs sooner. Mark used Nicholas to keep tabs on me and my life, but eventually, Nicholas grew a bit too obsessed. Still, I didn’t let it bother me too much. I had what I thought was a good man, and I didn’t want to ruin it. Turns out I was wrong. It was around eleven in the night when we were just about to make love when his phone went off. It rang and rang and rang until I decided that we couldn’t avoid it any longer.” Abigail’s eyes were distant. She was evidently lost in the memory of that night. It was still so vivid in her memory like it was yesterday. Although it was long ago, that night still haunted her even now. Theodore tried to stay calm. He knew this would be the hardest part for him to hear, but the last thing he wanted to do was make her think he was uncomfortable. This wasn’t about him. Abigail entrusted this with him, so he tried to remain strong for her throughout it all. His heart broke a bit when Abigail spoke again. Her voice was barely a whisper as she reflected on it all. “I was a bit tipsy, so I grabbed his phone from the nightstand. He didn’t try getting the phone from me until we saw the caller’s ID. It read ‘Dad’,” she mumbled, remembering every detail about the word. “I tried answering it, but he fought for the phone until he got it. So, I waited until he was asleep to check his messages with his ‘dad’. When I saw who it was, my entire world came crashing down. “I left in the middle of the night. I didn’t even bother trying to wake him up and talk to him about it. I just left. I drove and drove for hours until my mind was clear. But I should’ve kept driving. I shouldn’t have gone back.” And that did it. The first sob broke from her lips at the immense regret and pain she felt at that very thought. Trying desperately to soothe her, Theodore engulfed her in a full hug as tears streamed down her cheeks. Thunder shook the house’s foundation, and lightning provided quick seconds of light as the rain poured on the outside, reflecting Abigail’s mood perfectly. Theodore didn’t want her to continue. He could imagine what happened next, and he didn’t want to put her in any more pain. However, trying to be strong, Abigail continued. “I… I went back in the morning,” she mumbled through a hiccup. “He was up, and he was angry. When I went to the bedroom, his eyes were bloodshot red, and the phone was in the same spot I had left it. I still remember the look on his face when I entered. He was so, so mad. There was no remorse for what I must’ve been feeling. He lied to me for months, and the worst part was that he knew what Mark did to my mom, and he still went along like everything was normal. “He was a pathological liar, and I had already made up my mind that I was getting my things and leaving. I left the car he got me in his garage; I left all the jewellery and gifts and packed my overnight bag with whatever I had at his place. But as I guessed, he wasn’t willing to let me go that easily.” She took a deep breath to steady her mind and emotions as she approached the most challenging part yet. “He… he decided that he wasn’t letting me go without a fight, and it turned out to be a literal fight. First, he wanted to ‘remind’ me of why I had to stay with him by forcing himself on me. I screamed and fought him throughout it all to the point where he couldn’t even get my jeans off. Of course, this angered him, and it was then that I saw that he was a true Jenison. Even though he didn’t go by his father’s last name, he was the same as Mark. When I wouldn’t stay still, he fought back and let’s just say, it went a bit too far. I was unconscious before I could even get a chance to scream for my life.” “Christ,” Theodore hissed. “When I woke up in the hospital, I learnt that it had been a few days since I was admitted. Najay was there with me, and as I suspected, history was trying to repeat itself when she told me that Nicholas was M.I.A. He brought me to the hospital and just vanished. But I wasn’t going to let it go down like that. Najay and I ensured that he was brought into police custody, and though I was in no mood to do so, I testified against him in court.” Fresh tears escaped Abigail’s eyes when she remembered the injustice she faced throughout it all. “However, his father pulled a few strings, and he only got two years. Even with evidence that he indeed took advantage of me when he knocked me out and gave me a concussion, even with evidence and solid witnesses from neighbours who heard my screams and saw him leave his home with me… even with everything, there was no justice for me. None.” Theodore ran out of ideas to comfort Abigail. She was a sobbing mess, and all he wanted to do was make the pain go away. Still, all he could do was hold her and whisper sweet-nothings in her ear. However, what surprised him was how well he was controlling his anger. If Abigail wasn’t there with him, his urges would’ve driven him to go find that bastard Nicholas and his father and give them both what they deserved. How dare they do this to a sweet, innocent woman like Abigail? She didn’t deserve any of this trauma that she had to live through. None of it. And just because they had money and power doesn’t mean they should get away with things like this. But Theodore swore that Abigail’s cry won’t be in vain. Because she now knew someone with even more money and power, and his name was Theodore Freaking Adams. “I spent months in therapy after Nicholas was put away. I got a restraining order against Mark, but apparently, I couldn’t get one against Nicholas until he was ready to be released from prison. Still, it has been a hard time for me. I got so scared of men, even when I’m not trying to be rude. I almost flunked out of school; I lost jobs… I lost myself, Theodore. I didn’t know who I was anymore.” She sighed and dried her eyes before continuing. “As weird as it sounds, when I became Kitten and got that job at SHI’s Enterprises, I started finding myself again. But I was always haunted by the memories and trauma. I didn’t allow a man to touch me until you, and just when I thought everything would finally be okay, I learned that Nicholas got released early. I mean, don’t those people know what he did to me? I’m still recovering from it all, and now he was back and looking for me. I don’t know if I’d be able to see him again. I won’t be able to bear it, Theodore. I won’t.” Theodore kept his eyes shut as he squeezed her impossibly tighter. “It’s going to be okay, Abigail, I promise,” he mumbled softly as he ran his fingers through her hair. “He won’t be on the streets for long as long as I’m alive, and he won’t get anywhere within fifty feet of you. I swear it.” Abigail rested her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his neck. “I have been so caught up with accepting that he’s out that I hadn’t gotten around to getting a restraining order against him too, and now he knows where I am. I can’t see him. I just… I just can’t.” “I know,” Theodore whispered. “Don’t worry about the paperwork. Within three days, I’ll have it done for you. Then I’ll get that asshole back in prison, okay?” “But—” “Abigail…” Theodore lifted her head from his neck and brought her eyes to his. He used his thumb to wipe her tears and held her cheeks in his warm hands. “Look at me and believe that I mean it when I say no harm will come to you by that man’s hand or words, okay? I am a man of my word, and I protect what’s important to me. And as it stands, you are important to me, Abigail.” Abigail searched his eyes for any hint of dishonesty but found none. “Do you mean that?” she asked. Her voice was barely audible, and her eyes were so bright yet vulnerable. “With all my heart,” Theodore replied. “I’ve got you now, Abigail. You never have to worry about anything anymore.” “But… why? Why would you go through all that trouble for me?” Ironically, Theodore chuckled at her question. If only she knew half of it. “Since the very night I saw you dashing down the naked streets of New York, I knew that you would’ve turned my world upside down. As I said, Abigail, you are important to me now.” Her eyes burnt again, but these tears weren’t from pain or sorrow. It was the wonderful feeling that blossomed in her chest as she gazed at this wonderful man in so much gratitude and adoration. His firm hand on her cheeks that held her head in place, gazing in his truthful and beautiful eyes, evoked emotions that she didn’t even know was possible. And before she knew it, Abigail found herself leaning closer to his face. Theodore caught her slight but evident gesture, which only sent his heart racing too. However, he didn’t move away. Instead, he leaned closer too until there were only mere centimetres between them. “Theodore?” Abigail called softly, reaching up to run her finger along his welcoming lips. “Yes, Abigail?” “Kiss me,” she instructed softly, and the twinkle in her eyes showed no doubt. So, Theodore heeded her request and brought his lips to hers, initiating their first kiss.