Page 87 of Deceived Wrath

He really is setting the bar high. Orgasmsanda fresh towel. He really does spoil me.

The thought makes me pause.

I’ve gone from using sex as a way to get information to acting like Cormac is my boyfriend in less than a second.

I’m the one who is meant to be manipulating him, and yet one dinner has me feeling like a lovesick teenager.

This is not good. I cannot afford to take my eye off the ball like this.

I’m too consumed by my own conflicting thoughts to even enjoy the shower. Maybe once I’m back in my own apartment, I will be able to think clearly, because right now, all I can think of is how much I want to stay the night. And that is setting off alarm bells in my mind.

Cormac Sullivan is meant to be the bad guy in my story, but somehow I keep forgetting that the moment I see him naked.

I hurry to get dressed and head back downstairs to find Cormac hanging up a call with a grim expression on his face.

I frown. “Is everything okay?”

Cormac shakes his head as he looks down at his phone, his dark brows pulling together in a deep frown. Any trace of the man who just pleasured me within an inch of my life is gone without a trace.

“No, it’s not.”

My stomach plummets at how quickly the mood has shifted. I know it’s none of my business, but I ask anyway, “What’s wrong?”

“I need to fly to LA, immediately.”

“LA? Why?”

Cormac lifts his eyes to meet mine.

“I need to go and collect my son.”

Chapter Nineteen

CORMAC

The momentthe wheels of the plane touch down in LA, my chest tightens to the point of pain. The whole flight, I’ve been running the scenario over and over in my head.

Ray collapsed right in front of Scout.

That’s enough to traumatize a kid for life. And if he doesn’t make it…

The thought makes a cold sweat break out on the back of my neck.

Scout’s terrified voice keeps echoing in my mind, replaying every frantic step he took to alert a neighbor of Ray’s collapse.

My gut twists, thinking about him running down the street, full of adrenaline and fear. No six-year-old should have to deal with that.

I should have been there. I should have seen the signs and anticipated the strain I’d been putting on Ray, the responsibility I dumped on him.

What if he dies, and it’s all my fault?

The cab crawls through the LA traffic, every red light and honk making my stomach tighten.

I hate feeling this helpless. I hate the way my chest aches with guilt.

Ray’s life is fragile, more fragile than I like to admit, and if I fail him, if I fail Scout, I won’t ever forgive myself.

I stalk through the sliding doors of the hospital, ignoring the receptionist’s startled glance as she looks at my face. I don’t have time to ask about visiting hours or to make small talk. I just walk until I hear Ray’s deep voice echoing down one of the halls of the cardio wing.