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There was something about my little brother going to bat for his wife I couldn’t overlook. Cade was smart. He wouldn’t be married to psychopath without even knowing it.
“Then start talking. Because I can’t find anyone from Paige’s past that could be responsible, so who has your wife fucked over?”
He shrugged, shaking his head at me. “I honestly don’t know. I’ve been awake all night trying to get her to answer her fucking phone. Racking my brain over what is going on. I’m at a loss. You’ve been around Hayley. What enemies could she possibly have?”
Feeling completely out of control, I left him there. I needed a minute to think clearly. I was running on nothing but emotion and that was never a good thing. I didn’t recognize this man I’d become. All I knew was if something happened to Paige…
I shoved away the mere thought of it from my mind as Cade walked into the living room.
“Do your guards know she’s missing?”
“No.”
“Don’t you think that would be a good place to start?”
“No.”
“Okay, Adrian… I need you to actually answer my questions.”
“I am. If my guards were loyal, she wouldn’t be missing, Cade.”
He jerked back in understanding.
“Yeah, I have to come to terms with the fact I trusted someone I shouldn’t have with her life. I’ll deal with that shit later. Right now, we need to find her.” I hesitated for a second. “Because I can’t live without her anymore.”
“Holy shit…” he breathed out, shaking his head in disbelief. “You’re in love with her.”
“Cade…”
“No, you’re not getting out of this one.”
“We don’t have time for this.”
“Fuck you, Adrian! I’ve spent the last ten years feeling the guilt of your mistakes! And come to find out, it was for nothing? I’ve been living with this remorse of how could I let my own brother use my best friend? Like how did I not see it? How did I not stop it?”
“You saw what I wanted you to.”
“Then why the hell did you tell me you didn’t love her when you did? When you do?”
I fought to stay in the present with him.
But I couldn’t.
The spinning wheel of my memories played out in front of me and all I could do was beg for mercy.
The irony was not lost on me.
Thirty-One
Paige
Then: A few months later
“Are you scared?” Adrian questioned as I sat on the couch of their apartment.
I looked behind him through the glass sliders. “It’s really bad out there.”
“We’re in a concrete building.” He smiled reassuringly. “We couldn’t be in a safer place.”
“But we’re surrounded by windows.”
“We boarded them up.” He nodded to me. “Relax. Okay?”
I half smiled as Cade walked back into the living room with Hayley behind him.
“You still freaking out?”
I shrugged.
We were hunkered down and had been for the last couple of hours. A stage five hurricane was tearing its way through town. We were all natives of the gulf coast. We were used to storms like this, but…
This one felt different.
Or maybe it was my sixth sense knowing it’d eventually come this. To a place where Adrian and I couldn’t hide our love for each other anymore. All I was aware of was when I woke up that morning, there was a strong shift in the energy.
I felt it deep in my bones.
By the time I drove over to their apartment, most of the prep was complete. However, there was this thick tension in the air you could choke on if you paid attention.
It didn’t help we’d already lost power a couple of times, triggering my irrational fear of the dark. It wasn’t like I could jump into Adrian’s arms like I wanted to. I had to tough it out on my own.
All you could hear were the hundred mile an hour winds from the outside world, beating against the glass. Mother Nature wasn’t messing around, she was coming out swinging and taking names.
“I’ll be right back.”
I stood, hurrying toward the bathroom. Afraid to be alone. I shut the door behind me, leaving it unlocked. I think it was the fastest I’d ever gone before. Buckling up my pants, I was about to turn on the faucet to wash my hands when I heard a loud pop.
The next thing I knew, I was screaming, and Adrian was barging through the door. Looking like a mad man as he took me in arms. I immediately wrapped my body around his as if we were now one person. He carried me like that into the kitchen, and it was only then I realized my arm had a piece of glass in it.
Which only made me yell louder, crying hysterically while blood oozed out onto the floor.
“Shhh…shhh…my Cherry girl,” Adrian hushed in a gentle tone, completely remaining calm while I continued to freak the fuck out.
Gripping onto the sides of my face, he made me look him in the eyes. “Paige…” he lulled. “I need you to be my brave girl.”
