Sage and clean laundry.
Normally, I wasn’t into incense and crap like that, but for some reason, on this guy, the heady smoke from those herbs was doing all the right things to me.
God, I hoped he was telling the truth.
I wanted to fuck him so bad.
“How much farther?” I growled into Ryan’s ear, and my cock throbbed as I noticed the flesh on the side of his neck pebble beneath my breath.
“He’s just in here,” Ryan whispered back to me. I prodded him in the back with my gun hard enough that he stumbled forward.
“Hurry the fuck up. I don’t have all night.”
That was a lie. I did have all night. Killing him had literally been my only plan, but I was getting anxious. I usually didn’t spend this long with a mark… and if I had really fucked up so bad that Ryan actuallywasn’tthe right guy… well, I needed to know as soon as possible so I could figure out what the fuck I was going to do with him.
Ryan quietly pushed one of the ancient wooden doors on the second floor open to reveal a tiny figure curled up in the middle of a large Victorian bed.
Moonlight was spilling in through one of the large bay windows and bathing the child in a silvery glow.
He looked so peaceful sleeping that I almost didn’t want to wake him up.
“I’m going to put my gun away so I don’t scare the kid, but if you tryanything,I will fucking kill you and your cranky ass sister too. Do you understand what I’m saying, ginger snap?” I growled into his ear, resisting the urge to pull the soft, fleshy lobe into my mouth.
Jesus. Why was I so hot for this fucking guy?
Ryan nodded, and I shoved my gun back into the holster under my hoodie.
Creeping forward, I sat on the edge of the bed and shook the boy gently.
“Hey… hey Caleb, wake up,” I whispered softly. The boy rolled over to face me, rubbing his eyes sleepily. He was so groggy and clearly needed sleep. I remembered how hard it hadbeen to sleep sometimes when I had been locked in that fucking cage. I would get so cold, and my mom never gave us blankets or pillows. The first time Damian had let me sleep in a real bed, I had slept like a fuckingrock.
“Who are you?” Caleb asked, his small child’s voice barely a whisper. I gave him one of my more charming smiles.
“I’m a friend of Ryan’s,” I said. Ryan made a quiet scoffing sound that I ignored, though my lips twitched on their own accord. “I have to ask you some questions, and it’s really important that you tell me the truth, even if it’s hard to talk about. Can you do that for me, Caleb?” I asked, keeping my voice quiet and soft.
The little boy glanced nervously over my shoulder at Ryan, who must have given him an encouraging motion because when he turned back to me, he nodded.
“Okay.”
“Was Ryan the man who hurt you?”
The kid’s eyes widened in shock, and he shook his head. “N-no. Ryan would never hurt me. He’s my friend. He said I could stay here so I don’t have to go back.”
My heart fuckingleaptin my chest at the confirmation that Ryan wasn’t this kid’s abuser. I don’t think I’ve been this outrageously happy since the first time I tasted fuzzy peaches, which, next to the day we escaped my mom’s house, was still probably one of the best days of my life.
Fucking was officiallybackon the table!
Unable to contain my shit-eating grin, I glanced back over at Ryan, who was fidgeting awkwardly and flinching like something was hurting him.
My smile faded, and I frowned.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” I asked, and he shot me a distressed look. He was paler than he had been after our fight, and he definitely wasn’t hard anymore.
“I wish you would have let me bring up the sage,” he replied, flinching again.
What was with the damn sage?
Now I feel bad. He clearly needed it for some reason. He lookedreallyuncomfortable.
