Total pages in book: 118
Estimated words: 108709 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 544(@200wpm)___ 435(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108709 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 544(@200wpm)___ 435(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
His brows furrow, and his head tips back against the headrest, closing his eyes as the exhaustion catches up to him. “Fuck, Menace. Don’t hit me with a loophole right now. Let me enjoy the idea of your ass before you steal it away.”
I can’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. How is this man slowly dying beside me and still talking about fucking me? There must be something seriously wrong with his wiring. “You know you’re an idiot, right?”
“Says the woman who asked a demon to whip his dick out so she could check if it was barbed.”
“Hey, that’s some important shit right there, and for a man whose prostate is in his ass, you shouldn’t knock the demon dick until you’ve tried it. Could be a game changer.”
He scoffs. “And you’ve tried a demon dick?”
A smirk cuts across my face, and I glance at him for just a moment, catching his dark stare. “You’d be horrified by the things in my bedside drawer.”
“For fuck’s sake,” he laughs.
We keep driving, taking random turns until I find some familiar roads, and the second I do, I hightail it toward the outskirts of the city, getting us the hell out of here. Nerves pulse through my veins, and with every passing second, I spare a glance at Stone before turning back to the road and scanning for any cops hiding in the distance.
For the past few days, there have been cops stationed all throughout the city, but so far, there’s not been a single cop in sight. As I get closer and closer to the road out of the city, my nerves spike, and Stone reaches for my thigh again. “Just keep driving, Menace. We’re gonna make it.”
I swallow over the growing lump in my throat and keep driving until we finally hit the city limits and sail straight into open highway. “Holy fuck,” I breathe.
The seconds turn into minutes as we sit in silence. Stone keeps his head tipped back against the headrest, his eyes closed, but he squeezes my thigh every now and then to let me know he’s doing okay.
My body aches, but I try not to focus on it, knowing how much worse he is. For now, my pain is manageable, but it won’t be for long. I’m going to have to find somewhere to stop where I can get some first aid supplies, maybe some water and food, and somewhere safe for Stone to sleep for at least a few hours. After that, I can worry about me. My ribs aren’t broken the way his are, but fuck, the deep bruising and abrasions in my skin are no walk in the park. I need some serious painkillers. We both do, though Stone probably needs a horse tranquilizer.
“You okay?” he asks a moment later, his soft tone filling the car.
I shake my head, realizing that the distance between us and the city has calmed something monumental within me. “When I was in that kitchen, I had more flashbacks,” I tell him. “Well, it’s more than just more. I think I have all of it.”
“All your memories?” he pushes, lifting his head from the headrest and holding my stare.
I nod. “Yeah.”
“Shit.”
I smile. “You really have protected me all my life,” I tell him, tears welling in my eyes again. “You were my whole world for so long. You made sure I never went without, even if it meant killing yourself to do so, and I fucked up. I should never have fought with you that day. I should have trusted you when you told me it didn’t feel right, but I was so stubborn. I wanted to feel in control of my own life, and I went with Ash, even though I knew I shouldn’t have. It’s my fault, Stone. I put myself in that situation, and it cost me everything. But you—”
“Menace—”
I shake my head, the tears rolling down my cheeks. “You gave up everything for me, to save my life, and I wasn’t there when you needed me the most.”
“I don’t blame you, Riley. You were manipulated by a weak man who wanted to use you for his personal gain. I know you were seventeen, but you were still just a child, and while you might have questioned him, you still trusted that he would take care of you because that’s what he had done since you were a child. This is not on you. Everything that happened that night is on Ash, and he paid the ultimate price for it. But know, Menace, I don’t regret what happened that night, and I would do it again a million times over, even if it meant rotting in prison until my dying days. You are what’s important to me, you always have been.”
“Shit, Stone. You make it so hard to not fall in love with you.”