Total pages in book: 33
Estimated words: 35133 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 176(@200wpm)___ 141(@250wpm)___ 117(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35133 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 176(@200wpm)___ 141(@250wpm)___ 117(@300wpm)
My vision narrows.
That’s when I move.
Fast.
Silent.
My hand wraps around his wrist, stopping him cold.
He startles.
He didn’t hear me coming.
Didn’t expect me.
“Who the hell—”
I don’t let him finish.
I twist his wrist just enough to make him feel it, to force him back a step. A branch snaps behind me then and I see Maddie, stepping out from the evergreens.
Dammit. That woman is too stubborn for her own good.
“Stay away from her,” I say.
My voice comes out low.
Controlled.
But there’s no mistaking what’s underneath it.
His eyes flick over me, quick and assessing, and I see the moment it clicks.
Recognition.
Not of me.
Of what I am.
“Ah,” he says slowly. “You must be the help.”
My grip tightens.
“Wrong answer.”
He tries to pull his arm back.
Doesn’t succeed.
“Look,” he says, forcing a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes, “this is a misunderstanding. Maddie and I—”
“You don’t get to say her name.”
The words cut him off.
Sharp.
Final.
Maddie’s breath catches behind me.
I feel it.
Even without looking.
He blinks, thrown for a second, then recovers quickly. “You don’t know what you’re walking into here.”
“I know exactly what I’m walking into.”
“And what’s that?”
I take a step closer.
Not enough to spook him.
Just enough to make it clear.
“This.”
His smile falters.
Just slightly.
Good.
“You’ve been watching her,” I say.
He stiffens.
“And you think that gives you some kind of claim.”
“That’s not—”
“You’ve been following her.”
His jaw tightens. “I’ve been protecting her.”
Behind me, Maddie makes a sound.
Sharp.
Disbelieving.
“You call sending me pictures from outside my window protection?” she snaps.
His gaze flicks to her, softening in a way that makes something ugly twist in my gut. “You were alone. I needed to make sure you were safe.”
“I was safe until you showed up.”
“That’s not true,” he insists, stepping forward again.
I don’t let him.
My hand shifts from his wrist to his chest, stopping him cold.
“Stay.”
The word lands heavy.
He doesn’t move.
Doesn’t try to.
Because now he understands.
“You don’t get to decide that,” he says, but there’s less confidence in it.
“I do.”
“And why is that?”
I tilt my head slightly, studying him the way I study anything that crosses into my territory uninvited.
“Because you’re standing on my land.”
“And?”
“And you’re touching something that doesn’t belong to you.”
His eyes narrow.
“And you think she belongs to you?”
I don’t hesitate. “Yes.”
Silence drops.
Behind me, I feel Maddie go still.
I don’t look at her.
I don’t break eye contact.
Because this isn’t about her right now.
This is about him.
“You don’t know her,” he says.
“I know enough.”
“You don’t understand what she needs.”
“I understand what you are.”
That lands harder than anything else.
His smile disappears completely now.
“And what’s that?” he asks.
I step closer again, my voice dropping with it.
“A problem.”
He scoffs, but it’s weaker now. “You think you can just show up and—”
“I didn’t show up,” I cut in. “You did.”
“And I’m not leaving.”
That’s when I let the control slip.
Just a little.
Enough to show him what he’s dealing with.
My grip tightens on his jacket, dragging him closer, forcing him to meet my gaze head-on.
“You are.”
He shoves against me.
Hard.
It doesn’t do anything.
“Get your hands off me,” he snaps.
“Make me.”
The words come out quiet.
Deadly.
He swings.
Predictable.
I see it coming before he even commits to it.
I catch his wrist mid-motion, twisting it hard enough this time to drop him to one knee.
He curses, struggling, but I don’t let go.
I don’t even flinch.
“You’ve been watching what’s mine,” I say, my voice low enough that only he hears it clearly.
His breath stutters.
Fear.
Finally.
“She was never yours,” he spits.
“She wasn’t,” I agree.
My grip tightens.
“But she is now.”
Behind me, Maddie’s breath catches again.
I feel it.
I don’t turn.
Not yet.
Because I’m not done.
“You come near her again,” I continue, leaning in just enough that he can feel every word, see the rifle that hangs across my back, “and I won’t stop at this.”
He swallows.
The fight drains out of him in real time.
Good.
I release him abruptly, letting him drop back, stumble, catch himself just enough to stay upright.
“Get out,” I say.
He hesitates.
Looks at Maddie.
That’s his last mistake.
I step into his line of sight again.
Blocking it completely.
“Now.”
He backs up slowly, then turns, disappearing into the trees with far less confidence than he walked in with.
I don’t move.
Not until he’s gone.
Not until I can’t hear him anymore.
Only then do I turn.
Maddie’s standing exactly where I left her.
Eyes wide.
Breathing uneven.
Looking at me like she’s seeing me for the first time.
And maybe she is.
“You okay?” I ask.
The question comes out rougher than I expect.
She nods.
Then shakes her head.
Then just…looks at me.
“That was—”
“Necessary.”
“That was intense.”
“Yeah.”
Silence stretches between us again.
But it’s different now.
Not tense.
Not uncertain.
Something else.
Something heavier.
“You can’t just—” she starts, then stops.
I step closer.
Slow.
Deliberate.
“But I did.”
Her breath catches.
“You don’t get to decide that I’m yours,” she says, but there’s no heat behind it now.
Just awareness.
I stop in front of her.
Close enough to feel the shift in her breathing again.
“I already told you,” I murmur.
“That doesn’t make it true.”
I tilt my head slightly.
“No,” I agree.
Her brows lift.
“But it doesn’t make it wrong either.”
That lands.
And this time, she doesn’t argue.
Chapter 15