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Adam
Myweightispiledon her tiny shoulders as she allows me to use her as a brace. Catching a breath is like taking a bullet to the chest. My mouth still tastes like blood. I can’t tell if I’m still coughing some up or if it’s just the lingering flavour of before. She huffs and sweats, but she refuses to let me walk on my own. It’s adorable, but I can’t wait to relieve her of her burden.
Even though it feels like I’m dying, I pause just before we enter the stairway that leads into the house. I stop for two reasons. One to catch my breath because the journey to the bottom promises to be a long, challenging one. Two, because if I should collapse and die before we make it down, I can’t leave this earth without hearing her say those three words again.
“Are you okay? Is the pain too much?” she asks as I pull to a stop. She runs her hands over my body, checking on my injuries, raising herself on her toes and stroking my face. Grabbing her hands to keep them from shaking, I raise them to my lips.
“It hurts like I was caught in a stampede of horses, but I’ve been through worse, and I’ve survived.” I smile to reassure her before tugging lightly on her hand. She understands the gesture and moves closer to me. Running my hand across her face and smiling at her wild, tangled hair, I yearn to kiss her, but the pain is too great to lean in, and I’m too tall for her to reach up. “You said something moments ago that I never thought I’d hear you say. I’d love to hear you say it again.”
“What did I say?” she asks, leaning into my caress and using her shoulders to hold the weight of my arms.
“You said something about your affections toward me?” I clear my throat.
“Oh!” Her red, teary eyes open wide, and she smiles. “That I love you?” she asks.
Beaming from the warmth flooding my body, making the pain in the lower left side of my ribs ease momentarily, I nod. “Yes. That.” I gulp. “Did you mean it?”
Her eyes well up, and the tears overflow. She nods and kisses my wrist resting next to her face.
“So, you didn’t send all these people here to attack me and have a change of heart at the last minute?” I ask.
“No! Is that what you thought? Is that why you weren’t fighting back?” she gasps.
“Well, that and the bulky man was actually a good fighter, but don’t tell anyone I said that.” I chuckle before coughing from the pain.
She smiles a little for my benefit before curling her lips. “No, all these people came here because of that bastard who was convinced you stole me from him.”
“Well, I’d be pretty mad if someone took you away from me too.” I pinch her cheek, and it heats up as she smiles.
“Yes. But I never belonged to him in the first place. He was just delusional. Anyhow, I’d rather not spend another minute talking about Heath. He’d love that far too much,” she says with a heavy sigh and an eye roll, making me laugh and simultaneously cough again from the assault on my ribs.
“You’ve got to stop laughing,” she scolds me.
“You’ve got to stop making me laugh.” I groan as she turns her body into me and wraps my arm around her shoulders again.
“Come on, we’ve got to get you downstairs and to a doctor as soon as possible. Along with Lucian,” she says.
“Oof!” I yelp, after making a single step down the staircase. “Lucian? Is he gravely injured?” I ask, swearing at myself. I was too caught up in my own head and feelings to look out for him when he needed me to. But I also trusted his ability to take care of himself.
“He’s on the verge of death,” she admits, taking her time with me. It’s going to take a lifetime before we make it to him.
“How bad is it, Olivia?” I ask. “How many of my men are dead?”
“You don’t know?” she asks.
I shake my head, hanging it in shame. She looks at me, curiously.
“I was selfish. I couldn’t will myself to join the fight, but the noise was hard to ignore, so I moved to the roof to watch it all go down, waiting for them to find me and reach my ultimate end.” I shrug.
“Adam…” she murmurs before clearing her throat. “I saw a few of your men on the way in. Some of them were severely injured, but alive. Others managed to escape with only a scratch.”
“Good.” I nod. “I’d call out to them but…”
“Do you want me to do it?” she asks.
“Yes. In fact, run down to the ones who can manage and tell them to get Lucian to the medic immediately. Then if there are two men available after, tell them to get me. Please.” I sink to my arse, groaning and panting. “I don’t think I can make it all the way down there,” I admit.
She widens her eyes at me and shudders, before leaning forward and pressing a desperate kiss against my lips. Groaning, I reach up to hold her mouth against mine longer so I can drink her in and make this count as if this is our last kiss.
