Chapter Five
RILEY
The soundof a siren outside the window jolts me awake, and I bolt upright in bed as an overwhelming sense of panic hits me.
I’m not at home.
Where the hell am I?
The events of last night come flooding back all at once, and I realize that I’m in Kieran Sullivan’s apartment.
“Urgh.” I collapse back against the too-soft pillows.
Seriously, I didn’t think pillows could be thissoft, but these feel like I’m resting my head on a cloud.
The early morning sunlight is starting to stream in through the gap in the curtains, adding much-needed warmth to the otherwise cold-looking room.
Whoever Kieran hired to decorate the place should be fired. I’ve been in hospitals less sterile than this apartment.
If the furniture isn’t black or gray, it’s white, and the same goes for every piece of decor too. It’s a stark contrast to the bedroom I left behind at my family’s estate, and if my plan works out like I hope, I doubt I’ll ever step foot inside that house again. At least not while my uncle is alive.
I reach for the burner phone that I set on the bedside table and check the time.
It’s not much past six, but I have a feeling that Lucy will already be awake. So, I open up the keypad and dial her number from memory.
“Hello?”
I wince at her panicked tone.
“Hey, Luce. It’s me.”
“Riley? Where the hell have you been? I’ve been calling you all damn night!”
“I’m fine.”
“Tell that to your brother who’s been blowing up my phone like a damn booty call.”
“First off, that’s disgusting. Please do not ever refer to Oscar as a booty call again. And second, I’m completely fine.”
“Then why aren’t you at home? Oscar rang at like one A.M. saying that your bed was empty and your car was still parked out front.”
“It’s a long story…”
“I’ve got nothing but time, Riles.”
I roll my eyes. “Look, I can’t get into it properly now, but I couldn’t stay at the house any longer.”
“Why?”
“Because my uncle has decided it's time I get married.”
“Hewhat?”
“Like I said, it’s a long story…”
“You could have come to my place, you know that.”
“Yeah, and so does Oscar, which is why I couldn’t.”
