I hate that her life is being flipped upside down.
“I need to find my phone,” she says as she straightens her robe back over her shoulders. “I think I lost it while I was packing.”
“I’ll call it.”
“It’s on silent.”
“Did you leave it in the car?”
“Maybe. This night has been a mess.” She presses the heels of her hands into her temples.
“Are you okay?”
“No dizziness. Just a little bit of a headache.”
My lips press to her forehead, lingering longer than necessary as if I can take away the pain. “I’ll take your bags to the car and look for your phone.”
She nods as she glances around the kitchen, looking nothing but lost. Her thoughts are a million miles away from what’s in front of her face, and I don’t blame her.
It only takes me a few seconds to slide her bags into the back of my SUV, and one glance in the front seat makes me scoff. We both left our phones in the car, stacked on top of each other in the center console tray.
Both of the screens are filled with notifications. Missed calls, missed texts…
“Shit.” I sprint back into the cottage, trying to thumb through the texts from Malec, Thea, and Jesse.
“Liv! Thea’s been trying to get a hold of us. She found him! It’s–” My steps skid to a stop at the entrance to the kitchen, and both the phones fall from my hands, clattering to the floor.
Chapter Fifty
Liv
Iworked so fucking hard my entire life for everything to go to plan, just to end up at the mercy of some lunatic. I can’t believe this is happening.
I finally feel at home, at peace, and it’s being ripped away. Outgrowing the cottage is inevitable, but it’s my sanctuary, not the one with big black iron gates.
If Hayes’s house was in better condition, I’d insist he take me there instead of the bunkhouse, but I understand the risks. He wants to keep me safe, and I’d rather make that easier for everyone.
Putting myself in harm’s way only increases the chances that Hayes will do something rash and end up in hot water again.
I can’t let that happen.
The floor creaks behind me, and I sigh again. I haven’t moved past the kitchen in the search for my phone. I’m getting nowhere. “Was it in the car?” I ask him as I turn around.
“Hi, Livvy.”
I blink.
It’s the only part of my body that functions.
A man… A version of someone I knew a million years ago.
“That’s what he called you. And, you liked it. Remember?”His voice is deeper than I remember.
His hair is darker. Unnaturally so.
His eyes used to be so kind, but now they look desperate and dull.
“I’ve missed you, Livvy.” His clothes hang on him like they’re a size too big for his slender frame. He was never much larger than me, but he looks sick or malnourished now.
