“She got pregnant at twenty-one.We didn’t plan it, but it changed everything for us.She was working at a club when we found out.”
I look at him over my shoulder.His hands start to shake at his sides, and there’s a faraway expression in his gaze.
What club?I want to ask, but I can’t interrupt him.This is his story, and I’m guessing it’s not easy for him to tell.
“She wanted to keep the baby, but we were living in a trailer.There were fights all the time, and the drugs ...my mom was into it bad.I didn’t want my kid growing up like that.One of the guys at the club, I knew he was into Lauren.So I told her to try to seduce him.Let him believe the kid was his.That way, they could have a better life.”
“You gave up the woman you loved ...to save her life?”I ask, holding back the tears.
“I gave up two women I loved.”Zion sniffs.“Lauren let me sneak over the tracks to see Cleo a lot—like every week or so.Cleo thinks I’m her mom’s brother.I think Lauren convinced Callan I was an imaginary friend.”His eyes glisten over, and I want to take all the pain away.
I pull him into the shower.He kicks one of the bottles of shampoo, and it rolls along the floor.My arms wrap around his waist.My head is resting on his chest.His heart is ringing in my ear.He stiffens before melting into my body, his jeans now soaking wet.
“She died in the explosion,” Zion whispers, and I freeze.
I can’t breathe.Everything closes in around me.I rip myself out of his embrace, stumbling back until my back hits the tiles.
He looks at me and my whole world crumbles.Tears run down his face, blending in with the stream of the shower.
“I’m so sorry,” I say, like that will help, but I know better.Words won’t heal this.The wounds must still be so fresh.They haven’t been together for years, but she’s still the mother of his kid.
We stay like this for seconds, minutes, staring at each other.Time vanishes.Disappears around us.
“It’s not your fault,” Zion says and steps closer.He leans down, grabbing the conditioner.As he pours product into his hand, I turn around, and he brushes his fingers through my hair.
Then he massages my scalp in slow, dizzying circles I feel everywhere.I should be comforting him, not the other way around.My eyes flutter shut.Fuck, this is good.I don’t think I’ve ever had someone wash my hair for me—well, apart from my hairstylist, but it’s never felt this good before.Never this ...sensual.My knees become weak, and I need to hold on to something before I fall to the ground.
I reach out, bracing my hand on the shower screen.I’m trying to hold it for support, but it’s slippery and wet.What would it be like if I turned and kissed him?What would happen then?Fuck.This is wrong, but it feels so right.I should be fighting him, using this moment of weakness against him, but it’s impossible when it feels this good.I moan and Zion stops.
Damn it.No, that did not just happen.
All too soon, his fingers are gone, and I let out a loud exhale before stepping back under the warmth of the water and letting the waterfall consume me.I don’t dare open my eyes.I can’t look at him.Whatever just happened wasn’t supposed to.I got caught up in the moment.The ache between my legs is evidence of that.
When the loud bang of the bathroom door echoes around me, I open my eyes.He’s gone, and I’m left wanting more, forgetting that maybe, while he was distracted, I could have run.I could have escaped.
Chapter Nineteen
Bear
The door to my living room opens and slams against the wall, followed by the swish of the curtain.I sit up straighter on the couch, my notebook falling beside me.Zion storms through the room without so much as a glance my way before he leaves up the stairs, taking a wave of angry energy with him.Probably back to his trailer.
The corner of my mouth lifts, and I flip the pen around my fingers.What did our little princess do now?I knew she’d be fun when I first laid eyes on her.I was itching for a challenge, something that would light that fire inside me, and she’s exactly what the doctor ordered.
Judging by Zion’s swift exit, she’s not just affecting me but him, too, and that’s fucking perfect.Zion needs something to loosen him up a little.He thinks I don’t notice how cut up he’s been ever since his bitch of an ex died, and he’s been trying to see his kid, but I do.A distraction will be good for him.
I grab my notebook and pen, move toward the desk, and sit down on the chair to watch the live camera feed.Steam comes from the closed bathroom door.What’s she doing in there?What happened with Zion?I need to know.I need to see her.
Opening up my journal, I start scribbling down lyrics.
She’s an obsession, my only desire.
If we can’t have her, no one can.
What’s inside that mind of hers?Can we split her skull and find out?
I’m never letting her go.Oh, fuck no.She’s ours.Forever mine.
Movement catches my gaze on the screen, and I lean forward.Amirah emerges from the bathroom, a towel covering her chest.Her long, wet hair dangles down her back.I want to wrap every strand around my fingers and pull, watching the pain on her features.My cock stirs.
