It's your fault.

(Anna's Pov)

I was still reeling from Asher's words. How could he bring it up like it meant nothing? Fixing my blurry gaze on the projector screen which I wasn't even seeing anymore, shivers racked my body.

All I could remember were the days I'd been bullied...by the nurses back at the hospital, by the waitresses in Westside before I became the manager and the parents in my children's school. Asher had no idea how it felt to hear people whisper and call my children bastards, unable to do anything about it.

I was shocked by his question, and a chill ran down my spine as memories of those brutal days came flooding back. The pain of being bullied, the sting of rejection, the ache of loneliness - it all came flooding back. And to make matters worse, my physical wounds were still tender, a constant reminder of the brutal attack I'd survived from his evil step mother.

I felt myself shivering, and before I knew it, tears were streaming down my face. I tried to get up and walk away, but As