Our tardy arrival wasn’t even close to what Axel voiced to Ryan months ago. We weren’t doinganythingthat resembled sexual activities. We merely trusted the directions of a gas station attendant. It was a foolish mistake—one of many I made that year.
Tobias’s deep sigh returns my focus to him. “If you give meeverythingI need, Savannah, Iguaranteeto keep you and your father safe.”
Even with his tone matching the promise in his eyes, it doesn’t stop me from saying, “By hiding us? Pretending we don’t exist—”
“By returning your life to what it would have been if yourparentshadn’t made the decision they did years ago.”
He overemphasizes “parents,” ensuring I know the brunt of our setback doesn’t solely reside on my mother’s shoulders. My father is somewhat to blame as well. He was so desperate to keep his family living in luxury, he sided with an evil man. He made a mistake. I can forgive him for that.
“You will have a good life, Savannah. A good,honestlife.”
I wish Tobias’s guarantee filled me with gratitude. It doesn’t. I can’t do this. My dad refuses to leave his room, and I refuse to leave Ryan. He has had me under a spell since I was four, but the few weeks we had while Axel was at football camp turned the spell into a full-blown trance. I honestly felt like I couldn’t breathe the months following Justine’s eighteenth. I wouldn’t survive leaving him again. Furthermore, I’d rather face the consequences of my actions than hurt him more than I already have. He’s been through enough. He doesn’t deserve more heartache.
“I can’t,” I mutter, my two words barely audible since they were forced through the fear clutching my throat. “I can’t leave Ryan. I can’t give him up.”
Like I can be any more stupid, I up the ante. I’m racing for the front door of my house before Tobias even registers my legs are moving. I hear him shout my name, but nothing can stop my steps. It has been weeks since I’ve seen Ryan’s smile in the flesh. I’m not giving that up for anything.
Not even a bullet.
Chapter 3
Savannah
“I’ll be back.” Although my pledge is worthless, I still issue it, praying it will keep me from getting shot.
Mercifully, it does.
Tobias doesn’t even draw his gun. He just watches me dive into the driver’s seat of my car and kick over the ignition with an amused expression brightening his face. If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear he was encouraging my evasion.
I have no clue what I plan to do when I reach Ryan, but it feels right to be running toward him during a crisis instead of away from him like I usually do. He is the glue that kept my shattered remains together the past five years. If it wasn’t for his touch, affection, and words the past nine months, I wouldn’t be half the woman I am right now. He didn’t just fix my cracks, he repaired them so flawlessly, no one can see them. Even I have trouble spotting them. He made me whole again. He made me—me.
With blurry eyes and a heart in coronary failure territory, I somehow arrive at Ryan’s residence in one piece. I honestly don’t recall which route I took or how many traffic lights I stopped at. But I am here—where I belong—finally.
If I am arrested and charged, it will be as bad as it can get. Not just for me, but for Ryan also. He is a rookie police officer at Ravenshoe PD. This won’t look good to his colleagues, no matter how brightly he shines a light on it. I know Ryan will support me. He will stand by my side no matter what happens. I just hope I don’t drag him too far down. He is a remarkable man, but even the strongest men can only take so many knocks before they eventually crack.
I don’t want to break him any more than I don’t want him to break me.
After clearing the sweat from my hands, I grip the trestle I’ve climbed many times in my childhood before raising my head. I stare at Ryan’s window without thought. My mind is so overworked, I don’t remember exiting my car, much less walking through the side gate.
I suggested many times that he spray some fish oil on the hinges to stop its annoying squeak, but he never did it. He likes having his own personal doorbell. The instant he hears the gate creak, he knows I am close, as I am the only person who uses it.
I’ve barely scaled two rungs of the ivy-coated wood when I hear my name being called by a voice a million years won’t erase from my mind. I take a moment to clear the anguish from my face before cranking my neck to Ryan. I don’t want him to see my turmoil—not yet—not until I’ve seen his smiling face first.
The air I’ve only just sucked in rushes out in a hurry when I spot Ryan standing next to me. With only a towel wrapped around his hips, his panty-wetting body is on display for the world to see. His hair is wet, as if he has recently showered, and his heaving chest shows signs of exertion.
“What are you doing outside . . .?” Shock resonates in my tone. Tonight isn’t as cold as the weather in New York, but it certainly isn’t warm enough to wander outside half-naked. “Why are you only wearing a towel? Aren’t you cold?”
Ryan’s lips twitch, but before a word can spill from his mouth, a weird moan sounds from the back of his house.
I jump down from the trestle, taking a dozen ivy leaves with me. “Is that your mom? Is she okay?” I ask, my tone half-worried, half-suspicious.
The sound was unlike anything I’ve ever heard. It wasn’t quite a moan, but it wasn’t a groan either. It was somewhat of a feminine roar? Or perhaps even muffled laughter?
“It’s not my mom. It’s nothing.”
A dash of insecurity smacks into me when Ryan seizes my elbow in a firm grab. His eyes show his hesitation at his unusual manhandling, but his aura is screaming of desperation.
I want to pretend they are the only signs I’m reading from him. Unfortunately, they aren’t. I can also sense betrayal.
