Still Yours,
Johnny
I read it once. Then a second time, slower. I let every word sink in.
By the time I fold the letter and tuck it back in the box, my hands aren’t shaking anymore. My chest still aches, and my world is still upside down, but the hollowness inside me feels... less empty.
He’s right. I have made it through worse. And maybe I’m not okay yet. Maybe I won’t be tomorrow, either, but now, I remember how to hope.
I close the lid on the box and carefully pack it in my bag. Then I stand, zip up my suitcase, and square my shoulders.
I don’t know where I’m going yet, but I know I’ll be okay.
Chapter 15
Sean
Watching Jonathan knock Aro out wasn’t just unexpected, it was unsettling. Finding out theykneweach other? Even worse.
When I called him from the motel yesterday, I was desperate. Now I’m starting to wonder if I just handed her over to the devil himself.
I ditch the car a few blocks away, just like he told me, and hoof it back to the high-rise. The doorman lets me in without a word. The whole elevator ride up, I’m already sketching out Plan B, just in case I have to kill Jonathan. Can’t be too careful. Not with her on the line.
When the doors slide open, I step into a place that doesn’t belong to people like me. Floor-to-ceiling windows, clean lines, blood money elegance. I’ve worked for some rich assholes before, but this? This screamspower. And danger.
I knew Jonathan was dangerous. I just didn’t know he wasthisdangerous.
I move quietly through the penthouse. A dining table for ten overlooks the Nashville skyline. There’s a kitchen and living area to the right and an office and hallway to the left. All of it is quiet. Too quiet.
In the back corner of the living room, I notice a door tucked away. Glancing inside, I find her. Aro’s sprawled across a massive four-poster bed, unconscious but breathing. Relief floods my chest. Until I see the handcuff.
I take a step forward, jaw clenched. That’s when Jonathan strolls out of the en suite like he’s not holding a woman hostage in his bed.
“Ah,” he says, smiling like this is some kind of reunion. “You’ve joined us.”
“Yeah, man. What the fuck?” I nod toward the cuff. “Is that necessary?”
“Just a precaution,” he says smoothly. “I doubt she’ll be thrilled when she wakes up, and I don’t need her bolting before we talk.”
“She’s restrained,” I say, slower this time. “What the hell did you do to her?”
“That’s a long story.”
His eyes drift to her, and he gives her a loaded look filled with anger, possession, and… grief? It makes my skin crawl. I instinctively shift, blocking her from his view. He notices, and he doesn’t like it.
“Let’s get something straight,” he says, voice low and sharp. “You’re here as a courtesy. That invitation can be revoked at any time. Lina was—is—mine. She’s never in danger with me.”
His words piss me off, but something clicks.
“Lina?” I echo, blinking hard.
He tilts his head, and then starts laughing. Actually laughing.
“Oh, this is rich. You don’t even know who she really is, do you?”
“Lina’s her sister,” I say slowly, motioning behind me. “That’s Aro.”
He gives me a look so patronizing it makes my fists curl.
