Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 76396 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76396 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
“Baby,” I murmur, voice husky. “That ain’t no compromise. That’s how a mother kisses her son.”
She grins, and leans forward and then comes up on her toes again, pressing her lips to mine. It’s only a second, but fuck me if it isn’t the best second of my damned life. Then she pulls back, looking up at me through hooded lashes. “I have to go...”
“You’re fuckin’ killing me, woman. I’ll see you tonight, be ready at seven.”
She grins. “I’ll be ready at six thirty.”
I grin back.
Yeah.
Fuckin’ love her.
~11~
NOW – ELLIE
“How are things going?” Tatiana asks as we roll out the dough for the bread we’re baking, all ready for tomorrows run.
The bakery is closed, a few nights a week I work back with Tatiana and help her get everything ready, as well as learn a few new things without the daily rush pulling us down. She’s taught me a lot, and I’m loving being able to work out back with her. Erin knows I’m in here at night, and so do the members of the club, apparently they drive by every now and then. But we’re locked up, and Tatiana is always with me, so it’s relatively safe.
I think.
“It’s okay, I guess,” I tell her.
“Erin told me about Slater, I hope you don’t mind.”
“I don’t,” I tell her, smiling. “And yeah, it’s a rather complicated situation.”
“You’ve been through a lot honey, don’t put more pressure on yourself and end up sinking. You do only what you can do, and if other people don’t like it, well, you can tell them right where to shove it. You’ve had a hard go at it, you deserve to do things at your own pace, without pressure.”
Tati’s a good one.
Without a doubt.
I laugh. “Thanks, and I am pretty straight forward with Slater, and everyone else, but I guess what bothers me...is that I want to remember. I want to know who I was before. I want to find out what made me who I am, and who influenced my life. Seeing the way Slater looks at me, it makes it hard because I can see I meant something to him, and it sucks that I don’t remember any of it.”
Tati nods. “Yeah, I can imagine that would suck, but you’re doing your best. You can’t force something, especially memories, you can only do what you can do.”
I nod, and keep rolling out the dough. Tatiana’s phone rings, and she wipes her hands on her apron and answers it. She disappears into the office, and I keep working. When she returns about ten minutes later, she looks distressed and is pulling her apron off.
“Is everything okay?” I ask her.
“My son is unwell, my mom has taken him to the hospital.”
“Tatiana has an adorable little boy, and lives on her own. She’s a single mother, but she rocks it in a way that takes your breath away. She’s strong, and determined, and self-made.”
“Oh gosh,” I say. “Tati, go...”
“If I don’t finish all this bread, it’ll all go to waste and-”
“I can do it...” I tell her. “Honestly.”
“I’m not supposed to leave you here, Ellie.”
“I’ll lock everything and call Erin right to come and get me once I’m done. I promise, I’ll be fine. I’ll get it all done. I won’t leave this place until she gets here. It’s secure.”
Tatiana hesitates.
“It’s fine, please, go to your son.”
She exhales. “Okay, but promise me you won’t open that door unless you absolutely know it’s Erin. And you’ll tell her you’re here alone...right now. So if she wants to come in and sit with you while you finish this, she can?”
I nod. “I’ll ring her right away.”
She nods, and then gathers up her things. “I owe you, Ellie.”
“I hope your son is okay.”
She flashes me a smile, and disappears. Once she’s gone, I make sure everything is locked up, and then pull out my phone and dial Erin. She doesn’t answer, but that doesn’t surprise me. She’s probably at the gym, she goes on her nights off. I leave her a message to call me back, and get back to work finishing the bread.
I’m busy putting the last loaf into the oven when I hear banging on the door outside, at first it kind of sounds like an animal scurrying around, so I ignore it. I keep working, but the noise gets louder and louder, and I realize after listening for a second, that someone is trying to get in. Is it Erin and she’s forgotten her key?
No, she would have called me.
But maybe her phone is flat.
I walk over to the door, and call out, “Erin?”
The rattling stops.
And then a voice comes through, “Well, hello, Raven.”
That voice.
I know that voice.
It haunts my wildest nightmares.
I skitter backwards, heart racing, hands sweating, head spinning. He’s here. He found me. How the hell did he find me so quickly?