Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 127201 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127201 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
“He didn’t,” she says, cutting me off. “That’s not what he wanted.”
I pull back just enough to meet her broken stare. “What are you talking about? I thought—”
“I did too,” she says. “But it’s not me he wanted. It was Zeph. He’s obsessed. He just wanted to get me out of the way.”
My brow arches, never having imagined that in a million years, and as I reach my car, I slip straight into the driver’s seat with Tilly on my lap, not even caring if this is how we have to drive home. I’m not letting her go.
“Annie?” she suddenly asks.
“What?”
“The woman from Vixen,” she clarifies, confusing the shit out of me as she sits up on my lap, hastily wiping her eyes before sucking in a sharp breath as her fingers brush over a wound. “She’s Jordan’s mother. She was here earlier, completely in on it. She knew what Jordan was going to do and told him to do his worst. She wanted me out of the way so you’d seek comfort from her.”
Fuck.
“How long ago was she here?”
Tilly shakes her head. “It’s hard to say. It doesn’t feel like it’s been long. But I don’t know. It was dark down there.”
I wrap my hand around the back of her head, pulling her back in against my chest. “It’s okay, hellcat,” I tell her. “I did a sweep of the main house, but she wasn’t there, though that doesn’t mean that I’m not going to make this right. She’ll pay for her part in all of this. I promise you that.”
Tilly nods against my chest, her tears soaking through my shirt. “Don’t ever let me go.”
I close my eyes as I rest my chin over her head, my fingers weave into hair, and I hold her closer than ever. “I love you, Tilly. I was an idiot to push you away like I did. Believe me, hellcat. I can’t fathom the idea of ever letting you go now.”
“Okay,” she finally says, her voice muffled against my shirt. “Take me home.”
28
CAESAR
Tilly lies nestled in my arms as my fingers brush up and down the length of her arm. After getting home from the hospital and giving statement after statement to the cops, Tilly didn’t get to sleep until after four in the morning.
She’s fucking exhausted.
The cops hounded her all night, acting as though she’d been the one to do something wrong, and I don’t doubt that has everything to do with her connection to me, but after the paramedic confirmed just how bad her concussion was and gave strict instructions that she be left alone, the cops finally took off.
Tilly needed four stitches in her hairline from where Jordan cut her with his knife. I’m just glad that I got there when I did. Had I been even a minute later, I could have been carrying her out of there in a body bag, and I never would have forgiven myself. Losing her would have destroyed me, and I hate that it’s taken something like this for me to realize just how much I need her.
I’m in love with her. Fuck the vow I made her take. It doesn’t matter anymore because I’m never letting her go. Demon or not, she belongs right here with me.
I lay with her for hours, watching her sleep soundly in my arms, and by the time midday rolls around, she’s just starting to stir. She groans in her sleep, consciousness returning as her body remembers the pain she endured over the past twenty-four hours.
“Mmmm,” she moans, rubbing her face against my chest as my arm tightens around her waist.
“You okay? Need any painkillers?”
Tilly shakes her head. “Wow. I’ve been awake for less than two seconds, and you already want me to swallow something. Real nice, Caesar.”
I shake my head as I let out an exasperated breath, but there’s no denying the smirk that pulls across my lips. This woman never ceases to amaze me. “Glad to see you’re feeling better.”
The softest laugh rumbles through her chest, but it quickly fades. “Has there been any update from the police? Do they need anything more from me?”
“I think you’re in the clear for now. They got everything they needed last night.”
“And Jordan?”
The sound of his name on her lips sends an irrational rage pulsing through my veins. “They found him a little after five in the morning. An anonymous tip came in to say he was unconscious in the storm cellar, no doubt his mom. He’s in a coma, and as far as I’m aware, they’re not sure when . . . or if he’ll ever wake up.”
Tilly nods before shifting in my arms and lifting her sleepy gaze to mine. “I’m sorry,” she finally says. “You asked me to tell you to stop, and I couldn’t. I was selfish. I was only thinking about what I wanted . . . what I needed. But you . . . I should have told you to stop.”