“Better?” he asks.
I don’t answer. If I say yes, if I admit this feels good, it’s another brick gone from the wall I’ve spent years building.
So, instead, I take a few more sips before placing it on the side, then I flop down onto the pillow, turning away from him. “Is it a fetish?”
“Huh?”
“The need to feed me, watch me eat. Is it a kink?”
He sniggers. “Darlin’, my kinks don’t include food.”
His answer causes me to blush. “You can go now. I’m sure you have plenty to do.”
The chair scrapes back, but instead of leaving, he pulls the blanket higher over my shoulder. "I'm not going anywhere, Remi. Sleep.”
And damn him, his voice is softer than the blanket, steadier than the rain outside. For the first time in forever, I let my eyes close, even though I know better.
Because men don’t stay.
Not for me.
I don’t know how long I was out for, but the low murmur of voices drags me back. At first, I think it’s the rain again, threading through my dreams, but then a laugh cuts through—sharp,female.
I stay very still, lashes heavy against my cheeks, breathing slow and steady like I’m still asleep.
“Tell me it’s not true,” the woman hisses. Her voice is familiar, and then it clicks.Sasha.
“You gonna keep your voice down?” Shadow mutters back, low and edged with irritation.
“Don’t dodge the question,” she snaps. “The women are talking. They said the street rat’s staying. Here. Inyourroom.”
Street rat.My jaw tightens, but I don’t move.
“She’s got nowhere else,” Shadow says after a pause. His tone is flat, like he’s explaining something obvious.
“Since when do you care?” Sasha demands. “You’ve never given a shit before. Girls come, girls go. That’s the way it works. But her? What is she to you?”
“Enough,” he warns. The sound of his body shifting carries across the room. “I’m not having this conversation with you.”
“I turn down others to be with you, Shadow. And I’ve never complained before, but recently . . . since she’s been around, you’ve changed. What is it with her?”
“It’s none of your business.”
“When you insist I’m your own personal whore, it has everything to do with me. This woman is a liar and a thief. She’s gonna bring you trouble.”
Her words are met with silence, and I’m tempted to open one eye, but then his voice comes, quieter this time. “I don’t know what to tell you, Sash. But until I’ve explored whatever this is with her, I can’t see you again.”
My chest tightens.
“Are you serious?” she hisses. “You’re brushing me off for a tramp you found on the street?”
“You need to get the fuck out,” he snaps, his voice laced with a dangerous edge. “You talk about her again like that and we’re gonna be having a very different conversation. We clear?”
Sasha makes a sound, a scoff maybe, and then I hear the door close as Shadow releases a long breath.
I lie frozen, fingers fisted in the blanket, forcing my breathing to stay slow. My heart doesn’t listen, hammering so loud, I’m sure he can hear it.
And the fact he stayed, even when he was desperate to shut her up, because he promised he would, makes my chest ache.
