She withdraws her hand, but she doesn’t move away. That surprises me. “I’m not afraid of you,” she says. “I’m afraidforyou.”
I stand abruptly, needing space, needingair. On the way to the front door, I remember that Alexei’s men are stationed outside.Fuck. I turn and head back into the bedroom, unfortunately. The mirror catches me mid-stride, and I turn away immediately. I’m not ready to see what he did to me.
The adrenaline finally drains after what feels like hours, leaving pain in its wake. My ribs throb, my shoulder burns, and exhaustion seeps into my bones. I lie down at last, fully clothed, staring at the ceiling. I don’t pull the covers up. I don’t want comfort.
The lamp clicks off, and the room dims to the soft glow of the city bleeding through the curtains. Adriana lays beside me, leaving space between us. A deliberate choice. I lie there, counting breaths like I normally do to chill myself out. Her presence is familiar, but it’s also fuckingwrong.
Because this isn’t where I should be. This isn’t who I should be beside. My body knows it even if my head won’t let me say her name. Even if I don’t know if I’m allowed to think of her anymore. I close my eyes and turn my face toward the space where someone else belongs.
I don’t sleep. I just lie there, broken and breathing, next to a woman who isn’ther.
Chapter nine
EMMA EASTON
I leave Nova at Mrs. Kent’s just after sunrise. Her front door opens before I even knock. She’s still in her robe, gray hair pulled back, eyes warm and bright.
“Well,” she says gently, smiling at Nova. “Good morning, sweetheart.”
Nova darts past me and straight into her arms like she lives there already. Mrs. Kent laughs softly, crouching to hug her, scratching behind her ears. Nova melts instantly.
I swallow. “Thank you again,” I say. “I— I really appreciate you watching her.”
“Of course,” Mrs. Kent says, waving it off. Then her eyes flick up to my face, then to Heather standing a few feet behind me,arms folded tight across her chest. She sees the packed car and the tension we’re not even pretending to hide.
Her smile fades, just a little. “Are you all right, dear?” she asks.
I open my mouth. Close it. Try again. “There’s…someone I love,” I say finally. My voice wobbles, and I hate that it does. “And he’s struggling. So I’m going to try to help him for a while.”
Mrs. Kent doesn’t push. She just nods slowly, understanding blooming in her eyes as she pulls me into a hug. It’s unexpected enough that I almost break. Her arms are warm and solid, the kind of hug that feels like a loving grandmother. She smells faintly of lavender and coffee.
"That boy I've been seeing around your place?"
My back teeth gnash together when I nod. "Yeah."
She smiles softly. “Be careful,” she murmurs into my hair. “Both of you.”
She turns and pulls Heather in next, squeezing her just as tight. Heather exhales shakily against her shoulder.
“I’ll take very good care of her,” Mrs. Kent continues, pulling back to look at me again. “I’ll spoil herrotten. And I’ll send pictures. Lots of them. You take your time.”
I nod again, my throat too tight to speak.
Nova presses against my leg, sensing something’s wrong. I crouch down in front of her and look into her beautiful brown eyes.
“Hey,” I whisper, scratching behind her fluffy ear, right where she likes it best. She leans into my hand, eyes half-lidded, tail thumping softly against the porch. “I’ll be back,” I tell her. “Okay? I promise. I love you so much, girl.” I bury my face in her fur for a second, breathing her in.
My eyes burn. When I stand, Mrs. Kent is watching me with that same loving expression. “We’ll be right here,” she says. “Go.”
Micah is already in the driver’s seat of the Audi when we get back to the car. He looks calmer than he did last night. Heather slides into the backseat. I take the passenger side. As we pull away from the curb, I look back one last time. Nova is in the window. Mrs. Kent lifts her hand and waves. Nova presses her little nose to the glass.
Something inside me cracks just a little. I have such a beautiful and peaceful life. And here I am, risking it for Jude. But I love him. I’ve always loved him.
He’s worth it.
The airport is annoyingly loud and bright, like every time I’ve been here. I hate airports. I always associate them with sickness. It's probably why I never bother to travel anywhere. Well, that and the turbulence scares me.
Micah handles the tickets, boarding passes, and takes charge at security. I let him. I don’t have the bandwidth to argue, and honestly…I don’t want to. There’s something kind of comforting about following him through the terminal, about knowing someone else is tracking the details while my mind is stuck somewhere thousands of miles east. He got us all seats together, thankfully.
