Her voice cracks as she drops to the floor, pulling her knees to her chest and burying her face in her arms.
My chest tightens. I hate seeing her like this. I hate knowing someone has made her feel so afraid that she thinks disappearing is easier than letting someone help her.
I move toward her without thinking, wrapping my arms around her, pulling her against me. I press a kiss into her warm curls, holding her while she cries.
I want this to end just as badly as she does. She doesn’t deserve any of this.
I look up at Kaitlin. “Can you grab her some water?”
She nods immediately, heading toward the kitchen. A few seconds later, she returns with a bottle and hands it to me before sitting on the floor a few feet away, giving us space.
I open the bottle and tap Maddie’s shoulder gently. “Here, Princess. Take a drink.”
She takes it from me with shaky hands and brings it to her lips, taking a few small sips. Her face is flushed, her eyes swollen from crying, but despite that, she still manages to give me a tiny smile.
“Thank you,” she whispers softly, and I kiss her forehead.
“Of course, Princess,” I brush a curl away from her face, looking down at her. “Listen to me. Don’t worry about my apartment. None of this matters.”
Her brows pull together slightly.
“It’s just stuff, Mads. It can be replaced.” I pause, letting my thumb brush over her cheek. “But you can’t.”
Her eyes flicker, and I know my words hit her, but I don’t think she believes them yet.
“You matter to me.”
I don’t know what happened to her to make her think she has to carry everything alone, but I’m going to figure it out. I meant what I said. Her demons are mine now.
“I don’t mean to interrupt,” Kaitlin says, standing up. “But where’s your bathroom?”
I point toward the hallway. “First door on the right.”
She disappears, and the second the door closes, I lower my voice.
“I’m going to get a security system placed. Some cameras and stuff. I don’t want anyone else but you knowing about it, so don’t tell Kaitlin.”
Maddie studies me for a moment. “Why?”
Because I don’t know who to trust. Because whoever did this knows too much already.
“The fewer people that know, the better.”
She hesitates before nodding. I lean forward, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. She tastes like coffee and salt from her tears.
“C’mon,” I whisper. “I don’t want you sitting on the floor. There’s dirt and glass everywhere.”
I help Maddie up, guiding her toward the bed. At least the bastard didn’t destroy the mattress. I’m actually surprised he didn’t since he knew what took place on it.
The image of Maddie squirming beneath me while my tongue lapped up every last drop of her release has my cock hardening against my zipper, and I try to push it to the back of my mind.
I need to find out more about this stalker.
I sit beside Maddie and take her hands in mine. Every time I’ve tried to get close to the truth about her past, she shuts down and changes the subject. She always finds some excuse to keep me out. But I need to understand—I want to know how to protect her.
“Can you tell me more about home? Why did you leave?” Her body immediately stiffens as she looks up at me with wide eyes. She folds her arms across her chest and bites nervously at her bottom lip.
“Why do you need to know?”
