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“And what did she say?”
“She was happy. Excited to be a grandmother.” He obviously had no intention of washing his hair or soaping his body. He just stood under the water with me, enjoying the comfort that surrounded us both.
“Really?” I asked in surprise. “What does she know about us, exactly?”
“Mostly the truth. We’re having a baby together, but we aren’t together.”
“And that didn’t make her angry?”
“She would prefer we were a family. But no, she’s not angry about it. I’m a thirty-year-old man, so it would be ridiculous if she threw a fit. I think she’s just excited that I’m starting a family. She wants me to settle down. She says I work too much and thinks I let life pass me by.”
“You do work too much.”
The corner of his mouth rose in a smile. “I think she’s going to like you.”
“I would hope so. I’m carrying her grandchild.”
“She wants to meet you. I tried stalling for some time, but my mother can be aggressive.”
“Well…now we know where Bates gets it from,” I teased.
Just like he did before everything went to shit, he smiled slightly. It was a charming look on him, a hint of happiness that he never showed outside the two of us. To the rest of the world, he was always deadly serious. “Strong men come from strong women. And she’s one of the strongest women I’ve ever known.”
“And who are the others?” I asked, genuinely curious to know what other women he admired. It seemed like he only liked to screw dumb bimbos who wanted to suck his dick for money.
His hands glided up my body, past my stomach and to the area right below my rib cage. His thumbs pressed against the center of my stomach while his remaining fingers dug into my back. “Just one woman. You.”
My lungs immediately sucked in a breath, making the area below my ribs rise against his fingertips in response. His thumbs pressed harder into me, hitting me in the sternum. This man said the most unexpected things, sweet things that contradicted his cold nature. That made everything he said much more potent because it was sincere. He spoke the truth no matter how hurtful it was, so when he gave a compliment, it was that much more meaningful. I moved into his chest and kissed his skin at the top of his sternum, the place where my lips naturally landed, given his height.
His arms wrapped around my waist, and he rested his chin on my head, holding me under the warm water.
This was what I missed most of all, those nights when he held me. Having a strong man in my bed became the best part of my life. The sheets always smelled like him, and he radiated such heat that I never got cold. I never worried about someone stepping inside the house because he chased everyone else away. Maybe he might kill me someday, but being by his side was also the safest place in the world.
His hand moved up the back of my neck and underneath my wet hair. “I promise I won’t let anything happen to either one of you. I let my guard down when I shouldn’t have, but it won’t happen again.”
Never in my life had I felt so safe. The second my mother was gone, I slept with one eye open. I used to think my father was powerful enough to protect our family, but then I realized he was the problem. I went on my own path, but I slept with a gun under my mattress. I constantly looked over my shoulder to see who was following me. But with Cato, I stopped worrying about that. If there was any man in the world who could keep me safe, it was him. “I know.”
We hadn’t had sex in a week.
The last time we did was when he fucked me in the ass. It hurt for three days before it returned to normal. I didn’t think it would be that big of a deal, but since Cato had such a huge dick, it was definitely a big deal.
I still had a scratch on my neck from the knife. With every passing day, it became less visible, but the scar was still fresh enough to be seen with the naked eye. Bates hadn’t returned to the house since that horrid afternoon.
And Cato didn’t touch me.
It was the last week of summer before fall officially started. I didn’t mind the fall because the temperature was mild and the colors became brilliantly beautiful, but I hated winter. It was so damn cold, my bones ached. Good thing this place had much better heating than my old house.
I was looking up different cribs on my phone when Cato entered my bedroom. I sat on the couch with my back to him, but since no one else ever stepped inside without knocking, I knew it was him. “I’m looking up stuff for the baby.”
