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I hunched my body, trying to protect Nugget as I fell, and the impact knocked the wind out of me. I’d protected my face but had hit my head. It didn’t hurt too bad, but when I tried to get up, the world spun wildly, and I stuck out my arm to stop myself from face-planting again.
Despite the world that wouldn’t stop spinning, I felt rather than saw a man I didn’t recognize approaching. My hands went to the hoodie tied around my waist. I felt around until I found Nugget’s tiny body. I pulled her out, checking to make sure she was okay. She was uninjured.
I tossed her into the air and whispered, “Go, Nugget. Fly to Eamon.” Then I prayed that she would fly away rather than come back to me.
Please understand me.She understood words I used often and could differentiate people by name. I hoped our time at the penthouse had been enough for her to recognize his name. The building was right there in the distance. Would she be smart enough to go?
“Just give up. That stupid bird can’t help you now.” The man picked me up as easily as if I weighed nothing at all.
The movement caused a wave of nausea, and I retched. As darkness surrounded me, the last thing I saw was Seth lying unconscious on the ground.
Iwokeupina cage with Mother pacing in front of it.
Seriously? A cage? She really needed to be more creative with this whole villain thing.
“You’re awake.” The voice coming out of Dean’s mouth sounded more like Mother than ever.
For some reason, I couldn’t find it in myself to be scared this time. I was beyond that. I was pissed, livid. All I’d wanted was to enjoy the ritzy hotel brunch Seth and Liam had raved about the entire way there. Instead of enjoying my ricotta pancakes and prosciutto benedicts, I got yet another kidnapping I didn’t ask for.
This was why I had to get rid of Mother once and for all. I couldn’t live the rest of my life wondering if my next outing would be ruined again, courtesy of Mother Dearest.
“Do you know how hard I had to fight for control after our last encounter? I should’ve taped your mouth shut before you put ideas into this idiot’s head,” she snarled, then her voice turned saccharine. “No matter. He’s subdued now, and you are here.”
“I’ll never let you in, bitch.” I was all bluster. “If you think you had to work hard with Dean, you haven’t seen anything yet.”
“I’m not keeping you. Not yet. Nastafar gets you first, and then when he’s broken your spirit, you’ll come to me ready to give me what I want.”
“Never!” I struggled against my bonds, but it was no use.
“I’ll take your body, but you’re just a stepping-stone now.”
I didn’t have time to ponder what that meant because the door behind her opened, and the man from before stepped in.
Chapter 34
Eamon
ThesolutionSethandI had agreed on wasn’t ideal, but I’d live. I couldn’t wait to have Tansy back in my home where she belonged, especially now that we’d both admitted our feelings. Knowing I had a future with her in it made waiting for the daily two-hour visitation windows bearable.
Her little stunt with the purse had been cute, and it would keep me going until later tonight when I got to see her again. Until then, I just had to keep myself distracted. Hopefully in more productive ways than the last few days from hell.
It had been a shock to find out Tansy was Seth’s sister. I remembered hearing about the fiasco back in the day. Of course, they didn’t have genetic proof, but that hadn’t stopped Seth from treating her as if she were part of the family. He’d tried to get all big brother on me.
Ugh! I’d have a wizard as family. Disgusting.
Family, because I planned on asking Tansy to marry me the moment she was back. I’d even spent extra time holding her hand, kissing it, trying to memorize her fingers and guess her ring size. Now that I’d accepted that what we had was love, I wanted to lock her down in every way possible, including the human one.
I was going to buy her the biggest stinking diamond I could find. I’d seen the diamond ring Dean had gotten her. It was a measly single-carat. I could do better than that. I’d been saving much of my earnings since my freedom, having nothing much to spend it on after helping the brothers acquire the penthouse. There was my bike, and I ate well, but I didn’t need clothes since they were a part of my body.
I eyed the sparkling monstrosity on my screen. It would look great on her hand. Platinum was traditional, but rose gold would look great against her skin. Who cared about tradition? I wanted the ring that flattered her most. Rose gold it was. Complete with matching wedding band.
Was I jumping the gun? Yes. Did I care? Not at all. Tansy was mine. All mine.
A rattling at the window had me frowning. What the hell? The blur of yellow and orange confused me for a moment before I realized what I was looking at. Nugget! I was glad we hadn’t polished the glass, and she hadn’t crashed into it.
That window didn’t open, so I went to the nearest balcony and let her in. She flapped in my face, and the urgency of it had my heart sinking into the pit of my stomach. Tansy was in trouble!
I fished my phone out of my pocket and dialed Seth’s number. No one picked up. This time, I resisted the temptation to throw my phone at the wall; I’d learned my lesson.
