Page 55 of Jude

‘You cooked. I handle the mess.’

She surrendered the dish with a smile, slipping onto a counter stool while I loaded the washer.

‘Your crew is wild, Jude,’ she said, eyes on me. ‘They talk so fast, and they look like members of an outlaw motorcycle club, but they’re solid.’

‘They’re sold on you,’ I said, closing the distance between us.

Driven by instinct, I hauled her off the stool, pulling her flush to my chest and locking my arms around her.

‘Thanks for tonight. You were a fucking legend.’

Sofia went still for a beat, caught off guard, before relaxing and resting her forehead right under my collarbone.

We fit together almost too well.

Her heat burned through my cotton tee, driving a surge of wild electricity straight down my spine.

I cut the embrace short, shoving myself back as a sudden knot tightened in my throat.

‘Plates are in. Pots are next,’ I gritted out, grabbing the dish soap and cranking the brass faucet to drown out the thud in my ribs. ‘Get some sleep.’

Her gaze held mine for a long, quiet second before a soft smile hit her lips.

‘Good night, Judah.’

The way she said my name with her Italian lilt almost made me lose my damn mind.

She slid off the counter and walked out.

I stared at her tight ass as she left me alone in the dead quiet of the kitchen, staring down into the sink while a scorching ache tore through me.

I wanted her back in my arms, needing her heat, and the force of that truth hit me like a solid fist to the gut.

This was dangerous and so not the plan.

I was meant to be her protector, her safe harbor, not a man losing his grip on his own boundaries to a woman he promised to shield.

Chapter 13

JUDE

The clock on the dresser glowed 3:15 a.m. when the first muffled cry cut through the air.

I sat upright, naked, the way I preferred to sleep, as my brain booted out of slumber.

A noise came from Sofia’s bedroom down the hall, and it was far from normal.

Another scream followed, and I kicked my sheets loose and found a pair of shorts.

Tugging them on, I moved to the corridor, my bare feet silent on the hardwood floorboards.

Another ragged gasp echoed from behind her door.

I pushed the unlocked oak frame open, as my gaze locked onto the bed.

Sofia was thrashing under the covers, her head whipping from side to side on the pillow, her hair plastered to her forehead with sweat.

She let out a choked sob, her fingers clawing at the sheets like she was trying to pull herself out of quicksand.