I can feel them. His words burrowing into me with such tenderness that I want to accept them.
“A man…” I whimper. “He took me here.”
“What man?”
“I don’t know,” I say, shaking my head. “The things he said, Killian…they were just…so awful.”
With such tenderness, he takes my wrist and runs his thumb across the skin, lighting me up inside. There it is again. That soft touch you’d never expect from a man like him.
“Tell me, Alice,” he whispers. “What did he say?”
A sob chokes in my throat as I replay the guard’s words in my mind. The poison returns, like a hole in my chest, I swallow hard and breathe deeply. “He said I meant nothing to you…that you’d replace me—”
“Nonsense!” His voice snaps, but his tone is defensive, not angry. Threading his fingers through my hair, he pulls my face to his. “Alice, you areirreplaceable. Do you understand?”
My heart trembles.
The change in his voice. Could it be? He barked at me from the door to keep up appearances, but now that we’re close, he can show his true feelings.
“Killian—”
“I know you’re innocent, Alice. You were set up, and it was all a ploy to get to me. To ruin me.”
I’m starting to shake now, allowing myself to hope. “But why would anyone want to ruin you?”
“The old warden wants his job back,” Killian growls. “He’s a scumbag and a liar and a criminal, and he’ll do whatever it takes to get it, including getting your old boss, Jamie Foxgrin, to lie about you.”
“What!?” My hands clench together.
“Look,” he says, pulling out his phone. My stomach twists when he shows me a photo of Jamie with some man I don’t recognize. “Thatis Brian Gumble, the man who had you sent to Last Rites instead of a women’s prison.”
“Holy…crap…”
Do I believe this?
I mean…it makes sense. In a twisted, conspiratorial kind of way. And what do I know about prison culture, about wardens, or about the political games they play?
Nothing. And why would Killian bother telling me such a story if he could easily just replace me?
Yes. Ineedto believe him.
I nod slowly. Trust flows like warm prickles through my cheeks and up my temples. I manage a smile as tears begin to trickle from my eyes.
“So what will you do?”
“I’m resigning.” His words strike me in the chest, shocking my system.
“Resigning? Killian, what about your career?”
“To hell with it,” he replies, shaking his head. He leans closer, pressing his lips to mine and filling me with such warmth. For the first time in a long time, I feel truly valuable. “All I care about, Alice, is taking care of you. Protecting you and providing for you. For the rest of my life. And do you know why?”
God, I am barely keeping it together. My vision is blurred from my tears. All I can do is shake my head as I stare up at his gorgeous face.
“Because I love you, Alice.”
His declaration shakes me to my core. Something foundational in me shifts. It’s like the feeling of when he took me for the first time in the infirmary, only multiplied by a million.
I scold myself for doubting him. The emotion evaporates so quickly that I can’t even remember how it felt to question him. It’s now my life’s duty to make Killian happy. All I want to do is please him and bring a smile to that chiseled face.
