“My father called us in, it’s why I left so soon after you proposed. When me and Micah walked into his office, I had every intention of telling him about us. But he tossed his phone on the desk in front of us and told us if either of us ever thought we could betray him, he would do the same.”
I turn to face Phantom. “When you proposed I knew I was pregnant. I wanted to tell you but everything happened so fast. But when I saw my brother’s lifeless body crumpled on the floor in filth, something in me broke. I left the house that day and never looked back”
Phantom pulls me into his arms and crushes me to his chest. “Fuck, baby. Why didn’t you come to me? I could have protected you and our unborn child. How did you survive?”
“Chloe is a forger. She got me a fake name and papers. I’ve been living under Kandy Williams for three years.”
When Phantom doesn’t say anything for several minutes, I push to my feet slowly. The ninja moves I pulled off earlier tonight are making my muscles cramp. The last few hours of the night will be over soon enough and I need a shower. If I’m lucky, I can catch a couple of hours of sleep before Kaylee wakes.
I drop my borrowed coat on the edge of the bed and kick off my boots. I leave Phantom behind and head for the ensuite bathroom.
The mirror inside is not my best friend. The braid I started the evening out with is more like a knotted mess. Twigs and leaves cling to my hair. Smudges of dirt streak my face and my black onesie has seen better days. The rip-proof material is very muchnotrip proof at all. There’s a gash across the stretchy material on my outer thigh. Another on my hip and one under my left breast.
I’m a mess.
Phantom walks in behind me, his eyes sweeping over my body and the near misses on my life.
And then he sees it. The chain around my neck and the ring at the end. The elegant gold band is easily worth thirty grand with the amount of diamonds and sapphires rimming the band.
His gaze lifts from the ring to find mine. Hurt and love stare back at me. How he lives with that mixture for the world to see, I don't know. It’s a skill set for sure.
A moment of silence passes between us. This is about what I did to us and how it can be fixed. I know it is, but I honestly don’t know what else to say to fill the void.
Phantom takes a step into the large bathroom and comes up behind me. He starts working on releasing my hair from its mangled braid.
“I loved you back then, Everly. I gave you my heart and you still feared your father more than you trusted me.”
I want to dredge up fits of fight and wrangle my sass back from the sidelines, but it’s not happening. Not only because what he says is the truth. But after twenty-four hours of pure adrenaline cranking through my bloodstream, I’m washed out. Water rims my eyes.
“Loved,” I ask hesitantly.
Phantom’s nostrils flare and his gaze meets mine in the mirror with the force of a blazing inferno.
“And now,” I bravely ask.
“And I still love you despite trying to erase you from my heart and memories. I learned how to be patient.”
He whispers those words softly against my ear.
My body shudders. If he doesn’t touch me soon, I’m going to die.
I watch through the mirror as strong fingers find the zipper to my outfit and it’s in a puddle at my feet in less than three seconds. It took me much longer to squeeze my curves into the thing, but I’m glad it doesn’t take as long to discard. I don’t want anything to be in the way when I ask him, “Can you find it in your heart to forgive me, Phantom?”
Every inch of my body is suddenly beyond exhausted and yet I hold my chin high and wait for the answer.
Over my shoulder, Phantom drinks in my fully nude body and he slowly wraps an arm around me just below my ample breasts. His dark hair hangs over a section of his forehead and gives him a softer look. He’s a good foot taller than me in those biker boots.
Standing like this I fit directly beneath his chin. Remnants of his morning aftershave linger through the smell of smoke and I draw in the masculine scent.
“There’s nothing to forgive. I came to understand I was a plaything to anger daddy for a while and when it got too serious, you bailed.” His voice hardens with what he considers the truth. Reality takes hold and I realize I have a big misunderstanding to straighten out.
I slowly turn in his arms and take either side of his face in my palms. I look him dead in the eye and make sure his heart is connected to mine through our touch, our shared warmth and the pure love I send out to him.
“You were never a plaything to me. I love you more than myself. I always have. From day one. I am proof love at first sight is real. I knew the day you found me on the side of the road with a flat tire you would always be my hero.”
“Always?” He slowly flowers his forehead to mine and we breathe each other's essence in.
“Always. I was incredibly lucky you found me that night and not some pot-bellied trucker. Hear me when I say I left to protect you and our baby.”
