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Keira
I shove at his chest. “Why are you so goddamn stubborn?”
Those dark eyes turn pained. “I’ve already lost someone I care about. I have no plans of letting that happen again.”
My stomach revolts in both anguish and anger. “That’s not good enough.” I get in his face, the shower’s spray dousing my shirt, making the material cling to my skin. “I’ve lost someone, too. I know how it feels. It’s the reason I won’t let you go.”
He gives a sad smile. “Keira…”
“Don’t,” I scold. “For once, just listen.”
He sucks in a breath and straightens, placing space between us. “Fine. I’m listening.”
My heart thumps in my ears. I don’t know what to say to make him stay. There’s only hope and want and so much need spurring me to fill the silence. “Once Cole finds out about our father, he will disown him. He knows what I went through with Richard. He would never associate our name with that type of—”
“That’s not the point, buttercup. The issue here is that I’m an informant. I gave the Feds enough probable cause to wiretap your uncle’s phone. It’s only a matter of time before they take you all down, and I fucking helped.”
“You’re not the first, and you won’t be the last. People have been feeding the Feds information since before I was born. It’s nothing new. They rarely find anything that sticks. And when they do, we’ve got men on their payroll to help us out. I’m not worried.”
“Can you hear yourself?” He cringes. “I fucking betrayed your family.”
“You did what was necessary to fight for your sister.”
“Cole won’t see it that way. You shouldn’t even see it that way.”
I give him a sad smile, pouring my heartfelt affection into the expression. “What I see is someone who should be admired for their strength. You’re fearless, Sebastian. You did what was right for you and yours without worrying about the consequences.”
He closes his eyes briefly, his brows pinched. “You’re being delusional, princess.” He pins me with a placating expression, his lips pulled into a sad smile.
“No, I’m not. If the authorities had anything on us, they would’ve used it by now. There’s nothing they can do.”
“They’ve already told me exactly what they’re going to do. If I run out on them before they can make an arrest, those assholes are going to make Sarah and Hunt look like rats.” His eyes narrow as he leans close. “And look at me, already ru
He appears entirely tortured. But I still have to ask. “Are they? Rats, I mean. Are they involved?”
“No.” His response is vehement. “Why do you think Hunt tried to kill me yesterday? Nobody fucking knew except the agent I’ve been working with. And she’s going to set up Hunt and Sarah as soon as she finds out I’ve high-tailed it. She probably already has.”
My belly does that tumbling, squeezing thing again. “If only one agent knows, then maybe that’s the answer. We take her out. Problem solved.”
He winces. “You need to stop fighting. This shit can’t be fixed.”
I won’t.
I can’t.
“I’m not ready to let you go.”
He gives me a sad smile. “I wish there was an alternative.”
I inch closer, my soaked chest leaning into his, the hard length of his cock pushing into my abdomen. His jaw ticks as he backtracks, moving to the far wall of the enclosed space.
I don’t allow for any distance between us as I follow.
“You want me.” I reach a hand between us and grab his length. The hiss of his breath is sweet victory. “You can’t deny it.”
“You’re right, I can’t.” His eyes soften. “But fucking you isn’t going to make me change my mind about risking your life. I won’t be seduced into hurting you.”
“Hurting me?” I falter. I almost break.
This isn’t about my safety. It’s about his. When it comes to my family I can look after myself.
“Yes, hurting you,” he repeats. “Hunter and Cole will come after me, guns blazing. It’s too dangerous for you to be anywhere near me. I should already be gone.”
I want to shove some sense into him. But the sight of his bruised and battered body keeps me in check. “No.”
“Yes,” he growls. “I need to get as far away from you as possible.”
I crumple, my insides turning to dust with his continued protection. “I’m begging you.” My fragility is clear in the fracturing of my tone. My throat burns. My eyes, too. “Don’t run. I don’t want this to end.”
He grabs the wet material of my shirt, scrunching it in tight fists. “Give it a day or two. Once you’re back home with your family, this will be nothing but a bad memory.”
“Like hell it will.” I snuggle into him, my mouth an inch from his before dawning hits me hard in the ribs. “Is that what I’ll be to you? A bad memory?”
His face pinches, his hands still clinging to my shirt. “I’ve wanted to save you since the first moment I laid eyes on you. I could’ve run that night and not worried about Cole wasting the time or effort to hunt me down. But in the back of my mind, I thought if I couldn’t save Pe
“You have saved me.”
He reaches a hand between us, the pad of his thumb brushing my bottom lip. “It wasn’t real, remember? That defining moment for me was nothing but a lie for you. I’m not who you think I am, and you’re not who I thought you were, either. You’ll realize that once you’ve had time to think.”
“I don’t need time. Or space. Or whatever else you want to suggest next.” I clutch his wrist, keeping his hand at my mouth. “My mind is clear. My decision is made. We may have fabricated stories that brought us together, but we’re here for a reason.”
“Yeah, because I tried to take on the biggest crime family in the state and failed.”
“No. You’re here.” I tap my chest. My heart. “You’re in here for a reason.”
He cups my cheek, and those eyes fill with pity. “Keira—”
“Don’t.” I squeeze his wrist. “Don’t you dare tell me you’re still leaving.”
He sighs and tugs against my hold to lower his arm to his side. “Then I don’t know what you expect me to say.”
“Don’t say anything. Just be with me.” I pull the sodden shirt over my head to bare my body to him. “Help me make this work.”
His chin hitches. His eyes flare.
“I need you, Sebastian.” I drag the waistband of my underwear down my thighs, letting them fall to the floor. “I know you need me, too.”
He’s contemplating surrender. I can taste the sweet victory on my tongue. I can see the effect temptation has on him.
“Manipulation runs deep in those veins, doesn’t it, baby cakes?”
I guess I should be insulted.
I’m not.
I know it’s his last ditch effort to reject me. I’m wearing him down. Convincing him of what we both need. “I can be manipulative. But that isn’t what this is. What you’re feeling is a co
“That’s the thing—” He reaches around me and shuts off the water with harsh twists of his wrists. “This doesn’t seem right at all. The way I feel for you—the way I’ve always felt for you—is a fucking disgrace to my family.”
He grabs me around the waist and carries me, soaked and dripping, to the bed where he lays me down. The sheets grow damp beneath me, and my skin prickles with a harsh chill. But the worst part is the way he backs away, retreating as if he’s finally found the strength to cut ties.
“I’m going to grab a bite to eat, pack some things, then get out of here. You won’t be alone for long. Hunter will find you soon.”