Total pages in book: 140
Estimated words: 137144 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 686(@200wpm)___ 549(@250wpm)___ 457(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 137144 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 686(@200wpm)___ 549(@250wpm)___ 457(@300wpm)
“So you think I should just pretend she doesn’t even exist?”
“Yeah, I do. And I’m going to help you with that by not letting you have your phone back. If you need to contact someone, other than your mother, that is, tell me.”
“I can’t help but feel like you’re isolating me.”
“I’m sorry it feels that way, baby. It won’t always feel like this. One day soon, I’ll introduce you to my family, and then you’ll see how a real family behaves, how we look after each other. You’ll understand what it’s like when you have people at your back who are protective and loyal.” He sighed. “Shit. I don’t want you to think I’m trying to isolate you or taking things from you. But I also want to protect you. I don’t want you to have to deal with her. Not until you’re ready.”
“All right. Keep my phone for the time being. But I would like my handbag. It’s got some things in it I want.”
“Like what?” he asked.
Jeez, he was nosy.
“Are you always this nosy about everything?” she asked.
“Pretty much,” he said. “But I’m particularly nosy when it comes to you. What do you need from your handbag?”
She sighed. She really didn’t understand how this was of any interest to him. But if it meant she got her handbag, she guessed she would tell him. “My lip balm, for a start. My lips are all chapped.”
He frowned slightly. “You should have told me. I would have got you some lip balm.”
“I could have gotten my own lip balm if I had my handbag,” Lily told him with exasperation, throwing her hands up into the air.
Shoot. Would her exasperation anger him? After all, he’d only ever seen her the way she had been these last ten months, a zombie, compliant, obedient. Perhaps that’s what he wanted.
Perhaps that was why he liked her.
Her stomach tightened. Wasn’t it better that he found out what she was like? He didn’t know the real Lily. Hell, she didn’t know the real Lily anymore, but she did think that she’d been more spirited before.
To her surprise, he grinned. “There’s that sass. I know it had to be in there.”
What? He had?
And why was he so gorgeous when he smiled? It was killing her. She couldn’t fall for her kidnapper and let him do whatever he wanted to her.
Like tie her to the bed and have his wicked, probably delicious, way with her . . .
Brain, stop.
Lily rubbed at her forehead, feeling a headache coming on. Suddenly, he was next to her, lifting her up into his arms, and cradling her close. “Time for you to go back to bed.”
“No, I don’t want to go back to bed. I’ve spent enough time in bed. I want to do something. I want to figure this all out.”
“While I understand your need for answers. I’m not going to allow you to push yourself too hard, too fast. Understand?”
She gaped up at him. “I’m not fragile.”
Harvey carried her up the stairs. “I know you’re not fragile in your mind and in your heart, but at the moment, your body needs some care to get you up to a fighting weight. Right now, your job is to make sure you’re healthy. And to do that, you need to rest, eat, and not stress. My job is to find out who hurt you and make them pay.”
“What will you do?” she asked as he laid her on the bed and tucked her in.
“I’ll make sure that they spend the rest of their lives miserable,” he said.
She didn’t understand how he could do that, although she had a feeling that if anyone could, it was him.
“I want to know once you find out anything,” she said. “And I also want to know how you’ll make them miserable.”
He frowned, and she could tell he wanted to protest.
“This happened to me, and I’m tired of things happening to me that I have no say over. So I want you to do this for me.”
Lily wasn’t sure that she’d ever been this assertive in her life. However, she was tired of everyone else getting to make all the decisions for her.
Surprisingly, Harvey nodded. “All right. I’ll let you know what I intend to do, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be able to sway me from my plans.”
She guessed that was as good as she was gonna get.
“Now, you need to get some more rest. I’ll go get your lip balm for you. Use the bell if you need anything.” He gave her a stern look. He really was ridiculous, like she was going to ring a bell if she needed something. She’d just get up and get it herself.
But she’d run out of energy to argue, so she just nodded.
13
Harvey closed the door to the bedroom.