But now, thirteen years later, she wasstilldoing it—running from the good in her life.
She could. She would.
She threw off the sheets and climbed out of bed. The creak of the floorboard was loud in the quiet room, and the darkness made a shudder course down her spine.
She grabbed her phone and left her bedroom. She only wore an oversized shirt, but she didn’t bother to pull on sweats or shoes. She lifted both the keys to her apartment and Zane’s from the hall table.
The only moment she questioned her decision was when she stepped into the empty hall. It was late. Or early, depending on which way you looked at it. Two-in-the-morning kind of early.
Quickly, she locked her apartment and jogged to Zane’s door. It wasn’t until she’d stepped inside and locked the door after her that she breathed a sigh of relief and felt that this was the right decision. It slipped through her entire body and felt warm and safe.
Then, she padded down the hall.
She wasn’t sure why she’d expected to find him asleep. He was a former Army Ranger. Of course he’d woken the second she’d opened the door.
He lowered the gun back to the drawer. “Bonnie. What’s wrong?”
Without a word, she crossed the room, set her phone and the keys on his bedside table, and pulled back the sheets. Butshe didn’t slip into bed beside him. She climbed right on top of him, her entire body covering his. Then she laid her cheek on his chest, his heart thumping loudly beneath her ear. “It was a bad idea.”
“What was?”
“Sleeping separately. I want to be here with you.”
There was a moment of pause, when he didn’t move. And she almost wondered if she was alone in this realization.
But then he grabbed the sheets and pulled them over both of them. His strong arms wrapped around her, making her feel immediately safe. “I want you here too.”
That last bit of tightness eased from her chest and she breathed him in, his earthy scent filling her. It was crazy how one person’s scent could become so familiar so quickly.
“I’m sorry I ran earlier today,” she whispered, the frustration bleeding out of her. Frustration in herself. In the decisions she’d made in her life. “It’s my crutch. It’s what I do when things get hard.”
“You run, I follow, Bon. Always.”
She looked up at him. “Really?”
His blue eyes seared into her, so intense. “You think there’s anywhere else I’d rather be?”
Her heart gave one of those giant thumps. The kind you felt from your head down to your toes.
Just like in her apartment, he lifted his mouth and kissed her forehead. “Sleep,” he whispered. “I’ve got you.”
She lowered her head back to his chest and closed her eyes, letting the strong beats of his heart lull her to sleep.
CHAPTER 23
Monty Cruz leaned his head back against the wall of the van, the low rumble of the engine vibrating beneath him. Two prisoners sat to his left and one to his right. There were more on the other side of the partition.
Nine in total. Everyone knew what was about to go down. There were others involved. The DOC Correctional Transport Officer. A couple more paid on the outside. The prison warden had been the hardest to get onboard. But even that was easier than it should have been.
He bit back a laugh. People were so fucking easy. Flash a few dollars in front of them and they fell at his fucking feet.
The best part though? Zane wouldn’t see this coming. It would hit him square in the fucking face—and Monty would enjoy every second of it. He’d waited long enough to get his revenge after what that asshole had taken from him. Too damn long.
Monty had given himeverything. A new life in the UFC that came with money and freedom and the opportunity to fuck any bitch he wanted. And the one time Monty needed him, he hadn’t been there. No, instead of helping him cover up Sasha’s death,Zane had done everything he could to make sure he was locked away.
A familiar rage clawed at his insides, climbing up his throat like bile.
Well, cousin, your time is coming, and it’s coming soon.
