Page 156 of A Wild Darkness

SEBASTIAN

Asliver of light slips through my heavy, cracked eyelids as a cool breeze drifts across my face. A familiar, sweet scent settles around me, and I know exactly where it comes from because I’m obsessed with it.

Stevie.

I pull my eyes open fully and scan the room—I’m in Thornfell Lodge, then a weight on my right has me circling to the side.

There she is, safely beside me. Stevie is curled under my arm with her eyes closed while tiny sounds escape her parted lips.

My heart is in a vise seeing her next to me. I try to move my left shoulder, but a sharp bolt of pain halts my movement. And then a memory comes hurling back, and I quickly remember getting shot by Silas at Moore Mansion.

What happened after Silas shot me?

Did Hayden and Christian finish them?

How long have I been out?

Oh, fuck. An image of Stevie with her back turned toward me, and the crack of another shot echoes, pulses my eardrums and flashes through my mind. I need to figure out what happened.

A failed attempt to clear my throat, has my voice still cracking. “Stevie?”

Stevie lifts her head; her wide eyes meet mine with surprise. “Sebastian?”

I smile. “Hi.”

“Oh my god!” she shrieks, tears springing from her eyes. “Are you okay? How do you feel?”

I can’t even think about responding right now because all I want to do is kiss her beautiful lips. Biting through the pain, I lift my injured arm and slide my palm along the smooth skin on her cheek. She leans into my touch, closing her eyes.

“I’m so relieved to see you,” I say, then press a deep kiss onto her lips. The salty taste of her tears touches my tongue, showing how much she hurt for me.

Stevie slowly pulls back, her forehead resting on mine. “I thought I’d lost you.” The darkness inside me runs deeper than to ever leave this earth without her. Now that I’ve tasted my dangerous obsession, there is no going back to life before.

All of a sudden, and with a force I wasn’t expecting, she shoves my shoulder. “Never scare me like that again!”

Hooking my hand around the back of her head, I grip a chunk of her hair, pulling her head up. “I would never leave you. I thought I made it clear, I’d take you with me.”

“I’d expect nothing less,” she sneers.

I lose my grip slightly. “Now, tell me what the hell happened? How long have I been out?”

“It’s been three days since Silas shot you.” She pushes the hair away from her face.

Relief washes over me. Three days is a lot less than I feared.

“Did Hayden and Christian take out the rest of the members?”

Stevie nods. “They did. After Silas shot you, they sedated me to get us both back to Thornfell safely.”

A chuckle bubbles from my chest. Of course, they did. Sounds like something both Hayden and Christian would do. “I’m not surprised they did that.”

Her eyebrows snap together. “I am. I was pissed at first. But the last thirty-six hours have been a nightmare, so I’ve let it go.”

“They’ll do anything to keep us all safe and get the job done.” My thumb slides along her lower lip. “River or I would’ve done the same.”

She sighs because she doesn’t like my answer, but understands it.

“Stevie?”