AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I need to get through this.
Shit,can I even get back in my truck after everything that’s happened?
“I’m going to make those fuckers pay for every bruise. I want you to know that. I’m going to make them hurt. Fuck that, I’m going to make them bleed.”
His promise is dark and tantalizing, and a small smile touches my lips before I turn and snuggle against his chest.
As I close my eyes, I wonder how far down I’ll go before the darkness swallows me whole?
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Diesel
I take a deep breath and step inside my condo, not sure if I’ll find something different than the past two days.
Cassidy hasn’t left my bed for three straight days. Under any other circumstances, I wouldn’t have a problem with it, but she’s not in my bed to seduce me. She’s there because she’s traumatized as fuck. So far, I haven’t been able to get through to her. Nothing I say has brought back the strong, sassy woman who gave me attitude within five seconds of meeting me.
Instead of being curled up in bed, she’s in the living room on the sofa with the television on, even though she’s not looking at the screen.
“Hey,” I say tentatively because I don’t want to scare her. She’s been scared enough, dammit.
Cass looks up as if she didn’t hear me come in, her gaze nothing more than a blank fucking stare as if she’s looking right through me.
“Hi,” she says in a bland tone before absently reaching for the remote to turn off the TV.
“How are you feeling today?” God, when did conversation become so stilted and difficult? We texted almost nonstop from the moment she left Angel Harbor, and now I have no fucking clue what to say to her.
She answers me with a shrug.
Okay.“Do you want to go for a walk or a ride? Get some fresh air, maybe?”
She meets my eyes—finally—and the pain and fear swirling in hers is like a kick to the chest. “I’m good.”
“Okay, well, do you want to talk? About anything specific or nothing at all?”
“No.” The word is barely above a whisper.
I sigh and restrain my frustration because I’m not mad at Cassidy, and I don’t want her to think I am. Honestly, I’m not sure I know how to deal with her. I just want to give her what she needs if I ever figure out what that is.
“Okay. If you change your mind, let me know.”
She nods, and her gaze lingers on me. It’s not much, but I take it as an opening, and I go to her. I sit on the sofa beside her with my cell phone in my hand.
“Diesel.”
“You should call your parents,” I tell her and hold out my phone to her. “They’re probably worried as fuck about you. I know I was, and they’re your parents.”
Cass eyes the phone like it’s a rabid dog about to jump up and bite her before she drops it on the sofa between us.
“I can’t.” It’s the first sign of life she’s shown since I brought her home, and fuck, but it makes me feel hopeful.
“Sure, you can. From everything you’ve told me, you have a good relationship with them.”
Her eyes go wide, and she looks at me in surprise. “You…never mind.” She shakes her head again. “I can’t. They’ll hear my voice and know something is wrong.”
I risk touching her outside our usual nighttime cuddling, placing my hand on her back. “Maybe hearing them will make you feel better, Cass. Something did happen, you know.”
Her gaze is angry when she looks up at me. “Yeah, I’m aware of that. I was there.”
