Heart Of Marley by T.K. Leigh

you like, Cameron?”
    I groaned in response to her sensual voice. I wanted nothing more than to leave that public market and go somewhere that it could just be Brianna and me.
    Opening my eyes to gaze down at her, I was happy to see a playful smile on her face. “I sure do, Bri…” I stopped short when I observed a familiar-looking silhouette in the distance walking toward us. Shaking my head, I tried to convince myself I was seeing things, thinking that it would be too much of a coincidence if it turned out to be true.
    “Shit. Marley…” I said under my breath. Scanning over the heads of people, I was thankful for my towering six-and-a-half-foot frame for the first time in my life.
    “What? What is it, Cam?” Brianna asked as I pulled her through the crowd of people, officially on Marley damage control.
    “Hopefully nothing, but I can’t risk it. I’m sorry. I can’t really explain.”
    The fuzzy silhouette came into view and my heart dropped.
    “ Marley !” I shouted at the top of my lungs, everyone in the market continuing on with their business, except for Marley…
    And Buck.
    He stopped in his tracks and met my eyes. I shuddered at the sight of a woman on his arm. He looked dramatically different than he did all those years ago. He was more muscular and he no longer had a glaze about his eyes. His brown hair was graying in places, but he was clean-cut and shaven, wearing a crisp polo shirt, khaki shorts, and loafers. He looked rather distinguished, like someone who was finally moving on with his life. The thought filled me with peace and rage at the same time. Peace that I didn’t kill him. Rage that he had moved on when my sister was still sentenced to live in the past.
    I broke my gaze from his and met Marley’s eyes. His eyes followed mine and my heart shattered in my chest at Marley’s reaction. From ten feet away, I could feel her entire world crumble as she met those eyes that she had hoped to never see again. She let out a sob and grew weak in the knees, losing her balance. Doug steadied her and I pushed through the crowd of people, the mere feet between us feeling like thousands.
    Finally reaching her, I wrapped my arms around her and quickly ushered her out of the crowded market, rubbing her back as she wailed, her entire body convulsing as I had never seen before. Approaching a relatively deserted alley, I turned to Brianna and Doug. “Can you just give us a minute?”
    They halted and nodded their heads. I could see the look of concern and confusion on their faces. I wished that I could explain exactly what happened, but I couldn’t do that. I was probably already in deep water with my aunt for what I said to Mrs. Dumond at church. No one was supposed to know the truth. I absently wondered if that had caused Marley more trauma than the actual events of her past.
    Pulling her farther down the alley, I glanced over my shoulder and turned to face her when I was certain that we hadn’t been followed. “Talk to me, Mar,” I said, wrapping my arms around her trembling frame. “Please. What’s going through your head? I need to know. Don’t keep it inside.”
    “He has a girlfriend?!” she screeched. “How?! He never should have been released!”
    “Shhh…” I attempted to soothe her sobs. “It’s okay. He doesn’t know where you live. He’ll never hurt you again.”
    She leaned back and stared into my eyes. Wiping her cheeks, she said, “But what if he does it to someone else, Cam? What if it’s all an act? It was an act with us and Mama at first. Don’t you remember? He was the perfect gentleman and then the monster that lies beneath appeared out of nowhere. What if he’s doing it again? What if that woman has a daughter? What if he marries her and they have a daughter? Will he do it to his own child? I can’t just…”
    “You have to, Marley. Believe me. I know what’s going through your head right now. I feel it. It hurts me, too. But you can’t take matters into your