Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22359 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 112(@200wpm)___ 89(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22359 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 112(@200wpm)___ 89(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
I feel the spot on my wrist where he grabbed me, remembering his touch, the way he led me from danger with such confidence. So sure of himself. At that moment, as his grip tightened, the rest of the world fell away, and I felt truly under his control. Protected. Claimed.
My phone vibrates, and I quickly pull it out of my purse. It’s Mara, and I realize I’ve missed six calls from her and a load more texts.
“Hey, sorry,” I say as I answer. “I’m okay. I didn’t see your calls—”
“Do you know how worried I was!?” she shouts. I can hear the concern in her voice. “I thought you were dead!”
This is so embarrassing. What kind of a friend am I? I should have called her the moment I knew I was safe. “I’m so sorry, Mara. I’m all right though.”
“But how? Like…what happened to you? Where are you?”
I glance over at Caleb, who I know can definitely hear Mara’s voice blaring through the phone. “Caleb…he just happened to be in the area and…took care of Tony for me then drove me home.”
Long pause. I can just see Mara’s face in my mind as she processes this. She’s met Caleb before. “He just happened to be there, huh?”
Not good. I can just hear the wheels turning, the sarcasm in her voice. I have to squash this now before she becomes suspicious.
Something resembling a single laugh rises up from Caleb’s throat, but he covers it with an obviously fake cough. He still isn’t looking at me. I look better than I ever have in my life, yet he’s still just staring straight out the glass.
“Listen, Mara, I’m real sorry, okay? But I have to call you back.” I hang up and put my phone back in my purse. I stare at Caleb. I know he feels my gaze. So why won’t he look at me? He followed me to the club, he watched me, he saved me. He came for me. And now he’s acting like he doesn’t even know me—like I truly am that annoying little brat he left behind.
His large frame fills the cabin. His scent fills my lungs like a hypnotic cologne. It’s sweat and danger all bundled into one. And it’s causing something to stir within me.
Just as I’m about to look away, I notice it—the little thread of red yarn tied around his wrist. The bracelet I made for him last year when I didn’t have enough money to get him a birthday present. It was only meant to be a joke, but when I see it there, a warmth rolls over me.
“You still have it.” I smile, my voice soft.
“What?”
I point, and he looks down. His eyes soften briefly, but he quickly turns away, hiding his face from me.
“Yeah, well, it would have been heartless to throw it away.” Okay. Not sure if that’s a compliment, a thank-you, or just a nice way of saying he doesn’t actually give a damn about it. “Come on. Let’s get you inside.”
He exits the truck, and I feel a moment of loss, like he’s leaving again. I unbuckle and quickly hop out, but as I’m rushing over to his side, my foot catches a branch and sends me toppling over.
I cry out, but a pair of strong hands clasps me under the arms, and yet again, I find myself looking up into the mesmerizing eyes of my step-brother. Now he’s looking at me.
“Careful, Eliza. You don’t want to hurt yourself.”
I feel the cool night air on my butt and realize my dress has hiked its way up over my hips. Blushing, I quickly stand up and tug it down. Did Caleb notice? If he did, he sure isn’t letting on. He just turns his back on me and walks up the steps to the front door.
Why is he coming inside? He has his own place to go back to now.
I remember the night he left—when I watched from my bedroom window upstairs as the tears began to fall. The urge to shout at him was nearly overwhelming. To this day, I’m not sure how I pushed it down. When he drove off, I lost it and spent the rest of the night crying my eyes out.
He leans past me and closes the door. “Go get changed.” It’s not a request; it’s an order. An angry order. My shoulders slump and my heart sinks as I realize the truth; my outfit tonight isn’t pleasing him; it’s annoying him.
Or is it?
What if my outfit tonight is making him jealous? Maybe he’s angry because those other men saw more of me than he ever has. The thought makes my stomach flip. No, that can’t be right. Caleb is gorgeous. He could have any woman he wants. Why would he be interested in me?