Total pages in book: 157
Estimated words: 155900 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 780(@200wpm)___ 624(@250wpm)___ 520(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 155900 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 780(@200wpm)___ 624(@250wpm)___ 520(@300wpm)
I went to the mini-fridge and grabbed a bottle of water, undid the cap, and guzzled half of it down, hoping it might stand to cool this raging inferno inside me.
No such luck.
We were scheduled to be in Moonlit Ridge until Monday, day after tomorrow. I’d had the urge to pack our things and run the second I’d gotten back from the altercation with Kane earlier this afternoon, but somehow, I’d managed to keep my cool and spend the afternoon playing with Maci as if nothing had happened.
But I’d been wrought with anxiety the entire day.
The same way as I was then.
I paced in it, wandering the room, as if it could assuage the turbulence.
Seeking a distraction, I thumbed into my phone.
I frowned when I noticed I had a text notification. One that hadn’t been there when I’d attempted to go to sleep at eleven.
I swiped into my messages, and the twines of that complexity only tightened further when I saw it.
Winding.
Constricting.
Confounding and terrifying.
It was from two hours ago. At about twelve-thirty.
Unknown
I want to meet her.
Dread sank to the pit of my stomach, and a cold sweat broke out on my skin. My head began to whir, spinning through the muddle that instantly dragged me into a pit of despair.
I replied with the first thing that rose to the surface.
Me
How the hell did you get my number?
It was almost three in the morning, so I really shouldn’t have expected a reply, but somehow, I wasn’t surprised when dots popped up that he was typing.
Unknown
I have my ways.
Another one of those warnings. Warnings I’d ignored or maybe had been attracted to. One that Kane Asher likely issued with one of those mind-altering grins.
Another text blipped through.
Unknown
It’s not that hard to find someone’s number, Emery. Don’t spin out on me over it.
Was he serious? Don’t spin out on him? When he had figured out who I was and come to my hotel? When he took the effort to find my phone number, which I wasn’t so convinced was readily available, anyway?
But I didn’t have time to contemplate it. What really mattered was my response. How I was going to protect Maci from him.
Me
I already told you I have her. You don’t need to worry or feel guilty. Like you said, she’s four. You shouldn’t be expected to suddenly be a part of her life. It’s not fair to either of you.
His response was almost instant.
Unknown
She’s my daughter.
My spirit flailed. I could almost hear the crack in his voice. A whip that blistered through the atmosphere.
Another text came through before I had the chance to respond.
Unknown
I want to see her. I have the right to.
Me
You didn’t even know she existed before today.
Unknown
But I do now, and that changes everything.
A beat passed before another text popped up.
Unknown
You came to me, Emery. You showed me what I should have been shown a long time ago.
Unknown
I just want to see her. Meet her. Then you can leave like I know you’re planning to do.
I pressed my trembling fingertips to my temple, trying to squelch the shearing pain that suddenly cut through. Piercing and sharp. The fear that lancinated.
But this was what we’d come here to do.
Honor my sister’s wishes.
I could barely type out the response, one I prayed I wouldn’t regret making.
Me
Okay. We’re taking her to the little downtown park by the lake at noon tomorrow. She doesn’t know who you are, so please don’t confuse her any more than she already is.
Unknown
I’ll be there.
I wavered, trying to come to terms. The only thing I could come up with was trying to dissuade him.
Me
You don’t have to do this.
Unknown
Yeah, I do.
I stared at the phone for the longest time before I sighed out in surrender.
Me
Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow.
I hesitated, tongue stroking out across my dried lips before I clicked on his number and added him to my contacts. Deadly Dragon.
Because I was afraid this man might be the end of me.
FOURTEEN
KANE
From where I stood hidden in the shadows across the street, I stared up at the seventh floor to the darkened window. The faintest glow glimmered from within.
I could see her there. A few feet back from the glass.
Her silhouette.
Her shape.
This woman who had the power to do me in.
One who’d touched me two nights ago in a way that no one before her had had the ability to do.
A woman I could never keep.
One I shouldn’t want to keep.
Not her nor the little girl I could somehow feel beating through my veins.
I knew better.
Knew this life.
Knew what I’d done.
The horrible ways that I’d failed.
I needed to get over this shit. This insane idea that had crept over me throughout the day, growing stronger with each second that had passed.
Like building blocks that threatened to become set in stone.
I’d be nothing but a monster dragging an innocent into this life.