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"I let you inside me," she whispered, her voice breaking into a quiet sob. She couldn't yell. She couldn't scream at me.
She couldn't wake Ines up.
"You did. We were always inevitable, Tesoro. I understand this must seem overwhelming to you right now, but eventually you'll understand," I said, and my voice hardened. As much as I understood it, there was a pit of anger that raged when I thought about her not wanting me. That she wasn’t comforted by my presence and didn’t understand that I’d done what I had to do to have her in the only capacity I could.
She didn’t understand that I loved her, and I couldn’t say those words. Not so soon, because it would only drive her further away.
"I will never understand this," she growled at me. "This is-this is sick, Ryker. You're sick." She tossed the photos onto the desk next to me. Standing from the chair, she made her way out of the office. When she walked out, I didn't stop her. I merely followed behind her like I had for years, lurking and studying her every move.
It wasn’t until she went for the bathroom that I spoke. “Calla?” I called, and she froze mid-step with a flinch. She didn’t look back at me as she hummed a response.
“Hmmm?”
“I’ll break down the door. We will sleep together from now on. Understood?”
She whimpered, and her feet didn’t move in either direction. Like she couldn’t quite understand what she should do or where she should go.
Eventually she’d realize that the only place for her was in my arms, right where she belonged.
“Come to bed, Tesoro,” I whispered, but she still didn’t move.
Something in me tightened as I stripped down to my boxer briefs and stepped up behind her. The skin of her bare arms and legs felt too cold when I put one of my arms behind her knees and scooped her into my arms. She trembled against me, but ultimately let me settle her in the bed and wrap myself around her.
“You can’t do this,” she whispered finally, flinching when I slid my hand inside her shirt to rest against the smooth skin of her stomach. “You can’t keep us here. Please, just let us go,” she whimpered.
I held her tight, never letting her doubt the fact that I meant every word. “I will never let you go, Tesoro. It’s time you accept that.” Her body shook as she broke down into sobs, but her hands clung to my forearms where they wrapped around her torso. Clinging to me through her panic, her body gave me everything her heart wasn’t ready for.
“Go to sleep, Sunshine,” I murmured against her temple. One day at a time was all I could ask of her. We’d have good days and bad days as she came to terms with our relationship.
Hopefully, with everything out in the open we could move forward.
Twenty-Eight
Calla
I opened my eyes slowly, rolling to my side to face Ryker in the groggy, faint memory of sleep. It wasn’t uncommon for me to reach out for him in the night, and I’d vaguely remember it the next morning and hate myself for it.
That I couldn’t seem to resist the pull of him when my brain wasn’t engaged, and that my body gravitated toward him naturally, when it should run in the other direction.
My arm smacked against the cool sheets, no sign of Ryker’s overwhelming warmth. No light came in through the curtains or gave any sign that it might be morning. A glance at the alarm clock on Ryker’s nightstand confirmed it was only three in the morning, and his absence suddenly felt more insidious.
Like the reason for it would slither up behind me like a venomous snake and bite me on the ass. Tugging the covers back, I crept out of bed and into the hallway. The kids slept soundly in their rooms, and the office and gym were suspiciously empty.
When I snuck a peek over the edge of the loft, the sight of Dante sitting on the couch and fiddling on his phone was all that greeted me.
It wasn’t until I was halfway down the stairs that I realized I only wore my chemise, but nothing stopped me. Dante sat up straighter when he saw me come through the baby gate.
“I think you should cover up, Calla,” he said instantly with a swallow, but I trudged forward and ignored the warning.
“Where’s Ryker?” I asked as I wrapped my arms around my chest to fight back the cold.
Dante sighed as he stood, grabbing a blanket from under the cushions and wrapping it around my shoulders while taking great care not to touch me. “Work. Something came up, and he had to go. He didn’t tell you?” he asked.
I shook my head with a sad smile. There was only one reason a man might sneak out in the middle of the night without a word.
Another woman.
I shrugged off the blanket. “He doesn’t tell me much. Not really,” I said, trying not to take my pain out on Dante. He really was just doing as his boss told him, and I couldn’t blame him for my problems with my captor. “Goodnight, Dante.”
