Total pages in book: 147
Estimated words: 136048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
I invite myself into his destroyed bar, grab a bottle of whiskey off the top shelf, and stride back over to the armchair to refill my glass. I take a seat, giving myself a moment to catch my breath as I put the bottle down and replace it with the glass, taking a small sip and welcoming the burn as it sails down my throat.
“Here’s what’s going to happen,” I tell him, knowing he’s listening loud and clear. “You’re going to turn yourself in to the Blackstone Police Department for the stabbing and sexual assault of Harper-Rayn Madden. You’re going to confess to stalking and harassing her, and you’re going to burn that fucking mask. Fail to hand yourself in, and I will drag you to the station by your fucking teeth. I can’t possibly be any clearer, Elias; you will never lay eyes on her again, and if you do, I will personally end your life.”
Elias laughs. “What’d I tell you? Too fucking weak to put me in the ground.”
I close my eyes, needing a moment to compose myself before getting back to my feet. I stride over to him before pulling the gun from the holster on my hip and pointing it directly between his eyes as he stares back at me like the piece of shit that he is.
“Don’t confuse human decency for weakness, brother, because I can assure you, when it comes to Harper-Rayn, I have neither of those things. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to protect her, even if it means taking your pathetic life.”
And with that, I squeeze the trigger and watch the bullet penetrate the floor, only millimeters from his face.
21
HARPER-RAYN
The early-morning sun streams through my small private hospital room, shining against my face and forcing me awake, and as I stretch, I’m immediately reminded of how much everything hurts.
It sucks. Actually, it more than sucks.
Becoming the object of someone’s affection sounds like a walk in the park. It sounds fucking splendid if you’d ask me, except if that person whose affection you have just happens to be a raging psychopath with fuck-you money and a God complex that makes him far too big for his boots.
Elias thinks he’s untouchable, and I’m starting to wonder if he’s right. He’s a billionaire, for fuck’s sake, and he has the ability to do whatever he wants and pay off anyone who gets in the way of his twisted games. When he approached me in the parking garage, he didn’t stutter, he didn’t falter or second-guess himself. That tells me I’m not his first victim. Elias is well-versed in the art of stalking women, and I just hope that those who’ve come before me didn’t end up on my table down in the morgue.
Fuck, wouldn’t that just be poetic. It would be like a full-circle moment.
“Girl, you know you fart in your sleep,” a familiar tone comes from across the room.
My head snaps up from the pillow, finding Diesel sitting in the armchair in the farthest corner that gives him the best view of the door, the window, and the private bathroom.
Embarrassment floods through me, but I quickly shrug it off. After having both Diesel and Ace walk in while I had the devil vibrator stuck inside me, I don’t think there’s a point in being embarrassed anymore, not with these guys. I lost all my dignity on that couch, and I don’t think it’s coming back any time soon.
“You know, Izzy told me that she thinks Ace is packing more than you,” I tell him. “And for the record, Knight thinks my sleep toots are adorable.”
“Knight’s been knocked around a few too many times,” he smirks.
I grin right back at him. “And you haven’t?” I tease. “But speaking of, where is he? I didn’t realize he was capable of walking two feet from my bedside.”
Diesel shakes his head. “Don’t ask questions you’re not ready to have answered,” he warns me. “All you need to know is that he’s on his way back. He should be here soon.”
A chill sweeps through my veins. There’s only one place he would have gone, and that’s to deal with his brother. “Shit. He was with Elias.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Is he okay?”
“Define okay,” Diesel says. “Physically, I believe he’s alright, but Elias is his brother. What he had to do couldn’t have been easy, and while he would do anything for you, that kind of shit leaves scars. Not to mention the guilt that’s been riding on his shoulders ever since he realized he was wrong. The man’s a mess, Harper.”
My whole body slumps, and despite having a full night’s sleep and being reenergized, I suddenly feel as though I haven’t slept in years. “Shit.”
“I know he’s all about groveling right now, and so he should be, but don’t be too hard on him. All he ever wanted was to make sure you were okay.”