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A treasure like Kitty is the kind men fight kingdoms over.
Hell, the men outside know just how precious she is, hence their deranged need to get a piece of her.
I grip her tighter, my jaw clenching before I respond. “An hour might be too long, warden. But I’ve called in a favor of my own.” I brush my lips lightly over Kitty’s temple and the corner of her mouth.
Her hitched breath drives me to full mast in a nanosecond.
“But whatever happens, I’ll keep her safe. No one will take her away from me.” I don’t mean to say that last bit out loud but I don’t take it back. I mean every word of it and her father is better off knowing right now anyway.
The warden remains silent for several seconds. “Do whatever you need to do to keep her safe, Monroe, and I’ll be in your debt,” he says eventually. “You have my word.”
My insides clench tight at hearing that. But I’d been given promises before by men I thought were my brothers who only turned around and stabbed me in the back.
The only person I can truly count on is myself.
I remain silent until the warden clears his throat. “Can I speak to my daughter?”
I silently hand the phone over and wrap both arms around my girl as she finishes talking to her parents.
When the call ends, I pick her up and walk her out of sight of the men leering through the widening gap in the door.
Holding her tenderly, I slide down the wall until my ass hits the floor and she’s tucked into my arms.
Then I grimly count the seconds, refusing to hope but nevertheless praying the General took the bait of me being in his debt to deliver on time.
When the loudest screech of metal widens the door a good three inches, Kitty flinches at the deranged bellow that accompanies it.
“Not long now, pretty thing. Then you can have a real man splitting that pretty pink gash in two.”
“Oh God.” She buries her face in my throat.
I caress her soft cheek then notch one finger under her chin to tilt her face up. My guts twist at the fear swimming in her eyes.
“Hey, sweet thing, don’t listen to them, okay?”
She sniffs then nods. “O-okay.”
“Do you trust me?” I ask, even though I have no right to.
We just met.
And while she’s become everything to me in the space of hours, I’m still a criminal doing hard time.
Hell, she was doing a paper on me.
But my heart soars at seeing a trace of fear recede right before she swallows and say, “Yes, I do.”
“Then keep those pretty eyes on me. I’m going to cover your ears now, and you’re going to list your favorite things, working your way down from twenty to one. Okay?”
Her eyes widen for a moment, then she nods again.
Moving my hand up from her chin, I tuck her closer and cradle her beautiful head.
Thankfully my hands are large enough to easily close over her ears and she looks relieved as the sound of hammering decreases.
Peering into her gorgeous eyes, I nod her for to start.
I block out the noise and listen to my girl list her favorite things.
