Tucking the comforter around me, I stare at the screen until everything begins to blur, taking a deep breath before settling into the pillows with determination.
There are over two dozen people in this building. If anything were to happen,someonewould hear me scream.
But even as I try to reassure myself... I know the truth. Ultimately, people are the same wherever you go. Why would a single person in this place leave the comfort of their beds for the sake of a stranger?
Chapter 4
Boden
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The others don’t standa chance. They’re going to take one look at those sad, bright blue eyes, and that’ll be the end of it. Add in the fact that this little human risked her life to protect one of us, saved our sister where we failed?
They’re going to be fucking goners.
Sabrina climbs in beside me, her white summer dress riding up her thighs as she slides into her seat. My knuckles tighten on the steering wheel as she fastens her seatbelt, the woman a picture of sweet innocence and vulnerability that makes me want to tuck her against my side where I know she’ll be safe, not out throwing herself at dangerous men twice her size.
You’re a dangerous man twice her size, you fucking hypocrite.
Tucking a lock of her dark hair behind her ear, she gives me a timid smile. “Thanks for the ride.”
I grunt in acknowledgement, not trusting myself to speak yet when she’s over here saying shit like that, making me think of a very different sort of ride I’d rather be giving her. Pulling onto the road, I quickly work my way through the heart of the city, knowing we only have a small window before the nightlife crowd hits the streets.
If my silence bothers her, she doesn’t show it. Relaxing in her seat, she stares out the window, watching the world fly by around her. All the while, she taps three of her fingers quietly against the bottle of wine in her hands to the beat of whatever song is running through her head. She acts like she’s just... happy to not be alone in the silence, not that it bugs her.
As the sun begins to set, my other half starts to make himself known, my senses gradually sharpening. And with every passing minute, her scent chips away a little more at my concentration. Like I wasn’t already distracted by her enough, now I can’t even inhale without breathing her in.
Of course she smells like fucking vanilla and espresso. One taste and I bet she’ll have you up all night.
“So, what do you do?” she asks out of the blue.
“Whatever needs to be done,” I reply without really thinking about it.
Lips twitching with a suppressed smile, she clarifies, “I’m not surprised you and Emmy still live together at home; housing costs are ridiculous out here, so I wasn’t taking a jab at your age. I meant more along the lines of job, or however you spend your days.”
Huffing out a breath, I debate how much to tell her. “Our eldest brother took over the... family business, when our parents died. I help him keep it running, and that can mean any number of things, so I can’t really define it. I just do whatever needs to be done.”
