Total pages in book: 49
Estimated words: 46967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 235(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 157(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 235(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 157(@300wpm)
I pull to the side of the road, knowing I need to pay complete and full attention. “What do you mean, disappeared?”
I can hear the anger in his voice. “I mean disappeared. Vanished. Three have missing persons reports on them. Two have shown up dead.”
“Fuck!”
He agrees with me. “My sentiments exactly, but I wanted you to know because I have someone tailing the son now.”
“Thanks, Walker. Whatever it costs, keep an eye on it for me.”
“You got it. But you do know it would be a lot easier if we knew exactly what we’re dealing with here.”
“Fuck, I know. I’ll work on it the next few days. I was hoping she’d come to me with it, but if she doesn’t, I’ll talk to her.”
“Good. I’ll keep you in the loop. Later.”
I disconnect the call and sit back in my seat. I can’t—I won’t—let anything happen to her.
I pull out onto the road, and by the time I pull into the driveway, I’m so mad I could punch something. Not knowing is the worst.
I force myself to sit here and take deep breaths. Going inside to face Ellie pissed is not the answer. She hasn’t done anything wrong.
When I've finally gotten myself together, I walk inside, toss my keys into the dish next to the door, and walk into the living room. The Italian spices hit me instantly, and my stomach growls, reminding me that I didn’t have lunch today. Ellie is sitting on the couch cross-legged, and she smiles up at me. She holds her hand up. “Okay, I know I have a surprise for you, but ever since I sent the text I’ve been second-guessing myself thinking maybe you aren’t going to like it as much as I do. I think I may have overstepped without really meaning to, but—”
I sit down next to her and put a hand to her shoulder. “You can’t overstep. You can do anything here, Ellie, and I’m fine with it. This is your home now too.”
She looks almost sad as she nods her head. “Yeah, for now, anyway.”
I’m searching her face when she stands up and holds her hand out to me. I put mine in hers, and she pulls me up from the couch. She leads me toward the office, rambling the whole way. “Just remember, we can change anything. I put your desk together and hung some things. I’m working on the bookcases next… but I can take all of it down.”
As soon as I walk into the room, I see what she’s done. My stomach turns, but I go closer, taking in the images on the wall. Faces I haven’t seen in a while, some that are hard to look at and some that make me smile. The wall is a work of art. Elle has hung my medals, pictures of my brothers in arms, and my flag, and the whole thing is mesmerizing. All I can do is stare at it in awe.
I’m lost in the pictures when Ellie comes up beside me and puts her hand on my back. “Huddy, I can take it down. I didn’t want to make you sad.”
I shake my head, unable to look away from the wall in front of me. “It doesn’t make me sad. I mean, I miss it… I miss them, but this is good. I don’t want to forget them or my time in the Army.” I turn to Ellie and look into her eyes. I want to confess my feelings to her, but she’s not ready. I know she’s not. “This”—I gesture to the wall and the rest of the room—“means a lot to me. This is a great surprise. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Huddy.”
I pull her in for a hug. It’s a temptation I don’t need, but the desire to have her in my arms is too strong. This woman gets me better than anyone. Now if I can just convince her that she can trust me with her past.
Chapter 16
Elle
The sound pulls me out of my sleep, and I lie here, my whole body tense as I try to let my eyes adjust to the darkness. I know I heard something.
I lie as still as I can and listen. The house is quiet, and I start to think that I was imagining things when I hear it again.
This time, I throw the covers off and tiptoe out of the bed. As I get to the door, I hear it again, and I make out that it sounds like a groan.
I make my way down the steps, and when my feet hit the bottom floor, I slow down. I look across the living room, the kitchen and dining area, but he’s nowhere in sight. I hear a curse from his bedroom and walk swiftly to his door.
It is slightly ajar, and I take a deep breath, let it out, and slowly enter the room. “Huddy? You okay?”