Page 20 of Worth Risking It

What the hell was I going to do? I was in love with two men. One could give me everything my heart desired other than monogamy, the other would only get us both killed. I was lost, had no one to talk to, and no clue how to find my way.

Chapter 8

Chastity Monroe

Teeth rattling, my nose numb, I was shivering as I stepped off the elevator after my hasty retreat from the house earlier. So distraught and desperate to get distance from Wyatt, I hadn’t even taken into consideration it was December and snowing. Had I had the right frame of mind, I would have at least taken my coat.

Swinging open the door to the front section of the house, I slammed into Wyatt’s chest as he was heading down the main staircase from the third floor.

He clutched my elbows to balance me, his brows furrowed. “Whoa…hey, hey. What’s going on? Why are you blue? Holy shit, Chazzy, you’re ice cold.”

I don’t know if I nodded or if I just trembled harder. My muscles were locked, and I couldn’t feel my fingers or toes.

“Shit. Come on.”

He wrapped his arm across my shoulders and dragged me into my bedroom. Tugging the layers of sheets and blanket back, he coaxed me to sit, removed my shoes, then pushed me to my back to cover me to my chin. He jogged around the foot of the bed to the hearth, crouched, and arranged a few logs to start a fire. Once it was blazing, he scooted under the blankets, as well, rubbing his palms over mine.

“Are you fucking crazy?” he grumbled, bringing them above the sheets to blow on my fingers. “How long were you out there like this?”

Continuing to shiver, I stammered, “Don’t know.”

Rolling to his side, he pulled me against his chest, draping his leg over mine. One arm under my neck, the other wrapped over mine to my back. His chin on the top of my head, he enveloped me with his heat, rocking us back and forth.

Gradually, my teeth stopped clattering and I regained feeling in my fingers, realizing they were clutched around the front of his shirt.

“Wyatt? If you could have made your own choices in your life, what would you have done?”

The rocking abruptly stopped, and he didn’t answer for almost a full minute. “I honestly have no idea. I never bothered to fantasize because there was no point. This is all I’ve ever known. Other than a couple close calls, my life hasn’t been bad.”

“Close calls? What do you mean?” Astonished, I tipped my head and blinked. “Have you been hurt?”

He chuckled lightly, brushing a lock of hair off my brow. “You can’t be in this life without getting hurt.”

I pushed away so I could see him better. “How? When? Where?”

As if it were no big deal, he scrunched the side of his face and shrugged, peering over my head. “There was the one time I was stabbed.”

Taken aback, I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

“Been shot a couple times—”

“What?” I shrieked, slapping his chest to make him look at me.

Genuinely seeming surprised I was upset, he furrowed his brows. “What? Only one was life threatening.”

“Where was that?”

He poked his chest. I had never seen any scars. Then again, he had so many tattoos, it would be impossible, and every time we’d been intimate, I had been so consumed with lust, I wouldn’t have noticed. How did I not feel them during the massage earlier?

Taking my hand, he unbuttoned his shirt and directed my fingers to the spot. Sure enough, now that I was aware, I could feel the blemish.

“Oh my god. This is real,” I rasped, rubbing my thumb back and forth.

“What did you think this was? You thought I was kidding with my warnings?”

Lifting a shoulder nonchalantly, I stared at the mar in the flickering flames of the fire. “I dunno. It’s easy to underestimate the severity of a situation when it’s just words. This is tangible. It’s real.”

“It’s very real. Aren’t you glad you listened to me and decided to stay with Milo?”