Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 96065 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 480(@200wpm)___ 384(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96065 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 480(@200wpm)___ 384(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
“For the record,” she murmurs, “I’m confused about all this too.” Her lips curl into a small smile. “I don’t hate it.”
I’m bombarded by memories of last night, how we’d made out, fooled around, and nearly had sex. Again. My cock thickens at the reminder. I ache to take here to bed again.
No.
Abruptly, I pull away from her even though I’d rather be kissing her. If she’s disappointed, I wouldn’t know because hot anger burns through her. She stalks ahead of me, hugging her box to her chest.
We don’t touch or speak the rest of the way to the hotel. I sneak a glance at her on the elevator while heading to our floor, but she won’t look at me. Her cheeks are crimson from the wind and she wears a cold expression on her beautiful face.
Once inside the suite, we find Theo and Kaitlyn watching a Christmas movie on Netflix. Kaitlyn has a blanket stretched out on the floor and has her stuffed animals all surrounding her. Theo, oddly engrossed in the movie, waves from his roost on the sofa where he’s sprawled out.
“Come watch the movie,” Kaitlyn says to us, not sparing a glance. “We’re about to see Santa.”
The only place to sit is the love seat. I can tell Romy would rather sit on the floor beside Kaitlyn, but I’m not about to let that happen. She sets down the box and tells Kaitlyn she got the treats for her, then removes her purse and outerwear. I quickly remove my coat and grab hold of Romy’s hand before she can escape. She’s silent as I pull her down to sit with me on the love seat. Her body is stiff when I haul her to my side, but after a few uncomfortable seconds, she relaxes, resting her head against my chest.
As the tension bleeds from my body now that I know Romy’s safe, my mind wanders. A song playing in the background of the movie is the last thing I recall before drifting into a memory of the long past.
I wake, soaked in sweat, my heart racing wildly. The man who adopted me—Orion Crowne—sits at my bedside, frowning at me.
“There he is. You’re awake now. It was just a bad dream.”
His calm words do nothing to soothe my erratically beating heart. Emotion sits heavily in my throat and tears prickle my eyes. I haven’t felt such despair since learning my parents died in a car accident. And then, when I was forced to leave her.
I miss her.
Orion’s eyes narrow as he studies me. “Were you dreaming about her again?”
I’m disgusted that I showed a sliver of vulnerability to this man right before Calista was taken away from me. He witnessed it as if I’d flayed my own heart open for him to see the throbbing contents of it.
“I, uh, don’t remember,” I lie, voice gritty from sleep. “I should go shower.”
Orion doesn’t relent. His frown is lined with concern for me. While I’m grateful he rescued me from that hellhole, I’m not keen on this adoption. He wants to be my new father. I already have one of those. He’s dead, sure, but he’s still my dad. This guy is a phony, a fake, a stand-in. It’ll never feel right.
“Why don’t you take something to sleep after,” Orion suggests. “You haven’t gotten much sleep since you got here and it’s been months, Son.”
I recoil at the end of his words. Son? I’m not his. I’ll never be his.
“I’m fine,” I choke out, this time the truth.
I will be fine. I have to be.
“I heard you say the name Calista,” Orion says softly. “Is that her?”
Tearing my gaze from his, I stare at my window. It’s not a window at all. In fact, it’s just a window covered with drapes just to give off the look of a window being there. The first time I’d tried to run away, I’d been shockingly informed of the wall behind those curtains.
There’s no leaving this place.
From one prison to another.
Except in this prison, Orion doesn’t force me to do things I don’t want to do. No forced therapies or medications or machines. He always asks. Since he hasn’t hurt me yet, I can’t help but ache to let my guard down. Plus, he’s been saying he should adopt another boy so I’ll have someone my age to confide in.
The thought of having a brother to get through this while I mourn the loss of my sister is encouraging.
Rather than answering the question about Calista, I toss off my sweat-soaked blanket. Orion stands from the bed and moves aside. I slide out of the bed and head for the dresser where my clothes are neatly stacked.
“I can help you,” Orion states. “Say the words and I’ll teach you this business. You’ll learn all you need to go out and get her.”