AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Those words have never been said to me by anyone other than her, and I appreciate it so much more because of that. Deciding instantly to lean into it and let her take care of me because I’m needy as hell right now, I don’t object as she feeds me the pills. As soon as they’re in my mouth she’s ready with the water.
I admire her sweet face of concentration as I swallow them back, hoping they’ll work fast. “Come on, get back in bed. I didn’t mean to wake you.”
“It’s okay, it’s the middle of the day, I should probably stay awake,” she explains but climbs back on the bed anyway. “You can sleep though, you need it.”
Sighing, “I don’t think I could fall asleep now. My dream fucked me up. My blood’s pumping a little too hard.”
“We can talk about it,” she offers, grabbing my hand again.
There’s so much that I want to tell her, but I can’t. So, I take a minute to gather my thoughts, wanting to explain the things I can.
“Curtis is still missing. I thought maybe he was dead, that’s how they ambushed me, but Malec said he never found a body. So, I don’t know what happened to him.
“Nathan said it’s all thanks to you that they found me. If you wouldn’t have told him about me working with Malec, he wouldn’t have known where to start to look for me. So, thank you.” I squeeze her hand, pulling it toward me, wanting her closer.
“I felt bad that I couldn’t help more. I tried going out myself to look for you, but Nathan wouldn’t let me.” She pouts, making me smile.
“Good. That’s why he’s my best friend. No matter what, I’d rather you be safe.” She grumbles and rolls her eyes, I laugh softly.
“Kyle almost killed me,” I utter the words that I’ve been avoiding, but needing to rip the band-aid.
“What?” She gasps, covering her mouth. “Because of me?” She asks, her face paling.
“No. No. It was because of the group I was looking into. It was just a bad coincidence. Supposedly that’s why he needed money from you so badly.” I shrug, deciding not to mention all of the spewed threats he directed towards her. It’s better if she never knows that part.
“What happened to him?”
“He’s dead. Malec killed him, or Nathan did. I don’t know, they both claim it was their shot that did it. I’m just pissed they didn’t let me do it.” Malec insisted on claiming the kill shot for paperwork’s sake. He said it was going to be a nightmare regardless, so Nathan let him have it after a brief chest puffing match.
“He’s dead?” She was scared of the kid, he stole her money and vandalized her home, but she still has the biggest heart. Someone’s death will never be simple to her, and that’s okay. I like that part of her.
“Yeah. He won’t ever try to hurt you, or me, ever again.” That helps clear her conscience, I see it in the way she relaxes slightly.
“Now, what?” She asks, making me think about what parts I can tell her.
“The operation has been shut down. I’m done working on it. The commanders in my unit don’t want to be involved anymore, since it got too messy,” I explain, rolling my eyes internally. I begged them to take the threat seriously for weeks, and all they wanted me to do was collect intel. It got serious then they wanted to bolt.
Jameson is in the wind, and so are Derrick and Mitch. Malec plans on making sure the farm stays shut down, but there is no sure way of knowing what will happen next. Jameson could regroup, try to carry out his mission, or he could flee across the country.
I wish I could have stopped him, and made sure he was locked up, and I wish I knew where Curtis was. Those are problems I have to keep to myself though, the details of the operation are still classified.
“I can’t believe it’s over.” She shakes her head in disbelief. I can only imagine all of the gaps she has in her head that will never be filled, questions left unanswered. Kyle is dead, but that was only a small factor in a much larger scheme.
“At least your panties will be safe,” I tease. Laughing when I see how her jaw drops at my lame attempt at a joke. The karma is instant though, the shooting pain in my ribs leaves me breathless for more than a few seconds.
Once the pain dies down, there is a different signal pinging in my brain. Something incredibly important that I am having trouble recalling as a memory or my imagination.
“Thea… Did I..?” I cringe, remembering a sense of urgency to admit my feelings just as I was falling asleep. “Did I tell you that I love you?”
She bites her lip, trying to hide her amusement. “You might’ve let it slip.”
Instead of being embarrassed or upset that it didn’t happen how I wanted it to, I’m relieved. No more time is wasted without her knowing.
“Good, because I do. I love you with every part of me.” I look into her eyes, hoping she sees my sincerity. She scoots closer, placing her palms on my cheeks, and touching our foreheads together. “I’m sorry I didn’t say it sooner. I was waiting for the perfect time and then I almost died. I couldn’t stand the thought of you not knowing.”
“I love you, too.” She kisses me lightly and smiles softly. “So much.”
“Say it, again,” I beg.
