Confused, enraged, ruined—that’s how I felt when she left that day, and it took every ounce of strength I had not to go after her.
Our connection was a slow burn.
And it had begun to rage.
Until she blew out of town, with no warning, completely extinguishing the flames.
Now she’s here, standing on the doorstep, holding a piece of me I never knew existed. I should be angry. I should be hurt. But there’s no time for that. Threats have been made, and now it’s up to my team and me to bring down the almost untouchable elite coming after them.
I’ve already lost enough time, and I’ll protect them with my life before I go another day without the now most important parts of my world.
Our fire is stronger than before.
And they’re coming for my family.
But we’ll use it to burn them to the ground.
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He exhales, his hands coming up in front of him like he’s appalled by them. He shakes his head and moves around the sofa, then slumps down next to me, his head falling back against the cushions. “You know when you’re trying to prove something to yourself, trying to show that you’re better than those who think you’re not worth shit? Well, I think I proved I’m just as awful as they are tonight.”
Jerking my head back, I’m shocked. I don’t know anyone who feels that way about Noah. “No one thinks that. You’re amazing at what you do. You’re a loyal friend, an amazing father, so fucking trustworthy. You have to believe in yourself—”
He scoffs, shaking his head and interrupts, “Like you did when you walked out on me?”
It hits right where it meant to, like a sucker punch to the gut. My heart pounds furiously as I stare at him, but he won’t make eye contact with me as I try to catch my breath. Letting out a long, steadying breath, I grab the television remote and hit the power button, turning it off.
Standing from the sofa, I wipe my sweaty palms on my pajama pants and clear my throat. “I’m going to bed, there’s some leftover takeout in the fridge if you want it.”
I feel like my entire body is shaking as I go to walk off, but Noah’s hand reaches out grabbing my wrist stopping me from leaving. “I’m sorry… I had a really fucked up night.”
Turning back, my eyes shift to the bandages on his hand. Gnawing on my bottom lip, my fingers drift over his obviously bruised and swollen knuckles. “This have anything to do with it?”
He dips his chin, pulling me back to the sofa. I sit next to him and my fingers trail over his damaged hands. “By trying to gain some control back, I ended up losing control… I feel like I am just hanging on here, Molly.”
My eyes well, as I let out a small whimper. “I… I’m so sorry I left without telling you, Noah. So fucking sorry. I never meant for this… for any of this. Once I carried her to term and she was here safely I was too ashamed to come back. It’s no excuse, it’s not right, but it’s all I’ve got.”
He scrubs at his face, like he’s having trouble even functioning right now. “I’m still getting used to the fact I’m a father, let alone you being here, in my house, all around me again. I fucking missed you every second you were gone, wanting you to come back, wishing you would come back, but I never fucking heard from you, Molly. You fucking broke me!”
Tears flood my eyes, as I shift closer to him, my bottom lip trembling. “Do you want me to go? Is it too much?”
He groans, spinning away from me like he’s frustrated. “You’re just… you’re everywhere. You’re all around me, you’re all I see, all I smell, Molly.”
My heart squeezes as I sit back a little, my tears flowing down my cheeks now. “But Annamae?” I ask.
His eyes widen, like he’s almost forgotten about her in the moment. He scrunches up his face. “Yeah… Annamae.”
Well, that was like a cold bucket of fucking water.
#1 Deceit
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#2 Liberate
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#3 Revive
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#4 Perceive
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