Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 70417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
She shivered.
I rolled over so we were face-to-face. “Skylar, I’m going to see him—Orson—tomorrow. The storm has passed, and I have no more excuses. He’s already impatient.”
“Will he be angry?”
“No. I’m still useful, and he wants me with him. So my indifference to him is a challenge. But it’s time to make my next move.” I tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “I need you to listen to me. I’m going to be gone for periods of time. It might be hours, days…even longer. Sean will be as well. We have to.”
Her eyes got wide. “And me?”
“You have to stay here. I have to know you’re safe.” Wrapping my arm around her, I drew her close. “You have to promise me you won’t run. I’ll come back to you, I promise.”
“Will you lock me in my room?”
“No, MacGyver. I think those days are over.” I frowned. “Aren’t they?”
She nodded. “I was only running because of how I felt about you, Cian. I won’t run anymore.”
Brushing my lips across her forehead, I smiled. “Good. There’ll be lots of food and books in the house. I’ll leave a burner cell in case. You only use it for emergencies, you understand?”
“Yes.”
“You won’t be alone all the time. Sean will come and go, and I’ll get back as often as I can. One of us will get a message to you every day. It’ll be short, but you’ll know we’re okay. But I need you to promise me something.”
“Anything.”
“If you don’t hear from either of us at any time in a forty-eight-hour period, there will be a number on the phone labeled J. You call that number and say Tony is in trouble. Someone will come and get you.”
“What about you?”
“They’ll know what to do. But you have to swear to me you’ll stay here and do exactly what I say.”
A shudder ran through her. “I will.”
“Everything is going to be okay.”
“Don’t make me promises you can’t keep, Cian.”
I pulled her closer. “I will keep this one. I just found you, Skylar. I’m not losing you now. I’ll keep you safe, and I’ll take care of that fucking bastard. Then we’ll start.”
“Start?”
“A life together.”
“Where?”
“Wherever we decide.”
“Will you still be, ah, doing this? Being undercover? Catching bad guys?”
“No. I want to do something else. Maybe work with Sean and open a new business. Something with fewer guns.” I paused and cleared my throat. “I’m tired of blood.”
She glanced up at me, worrying her lip.
“Ask me,” I pleaded. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“Do you do that…a lot?”
“Do what?”
Her voice was barely a whisper. “Kill people?”
I shifted uncomfortably. This was the part I didn’t want her to know. I could barely live with it myself. I wasn’t sure she could forgive me. “I’ve had to prove myself to Orson, Skylar. Show he can trust me.”
“Did you know when you went in you’d have to do that?”
“Yes.”
“Were they bad people?”
“Yeah, they were.” I shut my eyes. “It doesn’t make it easier, though. I thought it would. But taking someone’s life—it stays with you. No matter what.”
“Will you be in trouble after?”
“No. There was an agreement. Sean made me get it in writing. I’m safe. Once this is done, I’m free. There’ll be no repercussions.”
“Can you?” she whispered. “Can you leave this behind?”
My response was firm. “Yes.”
She still looked worried, and I understood her fears. She’d already had so much loss in her life. Now, she was afraid of losing me.
“I want a life, Skylar. I want a house and kids. I want to come home every night and be around every weekend. Go on family trips and have friends over for a barbecue on holidays. I want normal. I want what Sean tried so hard to give me.” I kissed her forehead. “I want that with you, Kitten.”
“How can you be so sure?”
I didn’t know how to tell her. How to explain to her that it was something I knew instinctively. The moment I pulled her out of that fort made from cardboard boxes and looked into her eyes. I had to be the one who cared for her and protected her—no matter what.
“I just am.” I rubbed her back in long, slow strokes. “Do you think that maybe you could feel the same way?” I drew in a deep breath. “I want to take care of you, Skylar. I’d be good to you—we’d have a great life together. I promise you.”
“I want to take care of you too.”
“That doesn’t include any more drugged soup, does it?”
“Only when you piss me off.”
I brushed my lips over hers. “I’ll hire a taste taster, then. I have a feeling I’m gonna piss you off a lot.”
She pulled my mouth back to hers.
“I hope so.”
The kitchen was dark as I sat at the table, sipping a cup of coffee. The only light was the dim bulb over the stove, which threw more shadows than actual light. Hearing heavy footsteps, I looked up to see Sean in the doorway.