Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 72231 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 361(@200wpm)___ 289(@250wpm)___ 241(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72231 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 361(@200wpm)___ 289(@250wpm)___ 241(@300wpm)
“Have you ever cared for someone before?” I ask, watching his every move, from the way his hair shifts with each movement to the way his hands grip my clothes before he drops them to the floor.
“I have never, and will never again, care for a living soul the way I care for you right now,” he whispers.
And I believe him.
I hate that I believe him, but I do.
He turns me around and then directs me into the shower with a hand on the small of my back. Stepping in under the hot water, he follows behind me and then shuts the door.
I look down and see the dirt washing off my body and swirling down the drain. It’s a luxury, when you think about it, to be able to stand in the shower and wash yourself clean. I know that sounds unbelievable, but Delaney will never again be able to do something as simple as rinsing the dirt off her skin.
Actually, I don’t know what will happen to the dirt on her. Will they wash her clean? These are strange thoughts to have, but my mind is having a hard time wrapping around what happened.
“Stop,” Arlo softly orders as he rubs his soapy hands on my back. “You couldn’t have done anything differently. You did what a good friend would do, and we found her.”
“We only found her because he took me,” I reply, not bothering to move from under the water.
“No, we actually had a lead on him before that. We weren’t aware he had you.”
“You drove out there to help her?” That doesn’t seem like something he would typically do.
“I did. Now, let’s clean you up so we can go to bed. We will have to arrange things tomorrow.” Just then, his phone beeps. “That’s probably Boston. He plans to have them both found tonight so you don’t have to wait around. You can grieve without having to hide it.”
“I would never have hidden it anyway,” I tell him honestly.
“You can’t tell Sebastian. You can’t tell him what happened,” he insists.
I take a deep breath before I say, “They would kill me, wouldn’t they?” A shiver runs through my body, even just thinking about it.
“They would try,” he says, conviction lacing his words.
I lay my head on his chest, and he runs his fingers through my hair, probably removing some of the dirt that’s in there.
“Why are you here, Arlo?”
“Because this is where you are,” he murmurs into my hair before he lays a soft kiss on it and then turns the water off. He reaches for a towel and then dries us both off before stepping out and offering me his hand. He then wraps the towel around my body and asks, “Pajamas?”
“Top drawer,” I tell him, then turn to look in the mirror. What I see is a woman who looks sad. Broken. How do I fix her? Can I fix her? I’m not sure that’s even possible right now. My cheek is red from where he must have hit me when I was out of it, and my stomach is bruised from where he kicked me. I try not to think of it as Arlo appears behind me.
“Reon’s sister is a nurse, and she’s offered to come check you over if you’re comfortable with that.”
“Not tonight. I feel fine. I just want to sleep.”
“Tomorrow, then,” he says.
As he raises a shirt to put on me, I wince from the movement of lifting my arms.
“I’m sorry,” he says, and I say nothing in response before I lower my arms. He leads me to my bed, and when he lifts the covers, I climb in, then he pulls them up over me. “Do you want me to stay?” he asks, hovering over me.
“Yes,” I answer without hesitation. I want that. It’s been a long time since I’ve wanted to feel the protection of someone else. And I’m afraid that tonight, of all nights, I need it the most.
He walks silently around to the other side of the bed, dropping his towel before he climbs in beside me.
“Where are your beads?” I ask, noticing he isn’t wearing them and remembering them falling into the dirt after he choked Rylas.
He pulls me in so my head rests in the crook of his arm, and I wrap myself around him as much as I can without hurting my midsection.
“I don’t need them anymore” is all he says before he mumbles, “Go to sleep.”
And it isn’t long before my eyes, which feel so fucking heavy, close.
And all I can dream about is… her.
FORTY-FOUR
ARLO
Confidential — Personal Use Only
OBSERVATIONS:
Experienced unexpected emotional discomfort.
Felt unsettled and unsure how to process feelings…
She didn’t sleep soundly. Multiple times, she thrashed in my arms and woke up screaming. I calmed her down each time. Seeing her in pain was not something I had on my list of things to do.