Total pages in book: 40
Estimated words: 37517 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 188(@200wpm)___ 150(@250wpm)___ 125(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 37517 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 188(@200wpm)___ 150(@250wpm)___ 125(@300wpm)
He's fucking watching us.
"Shit," I growl, yanking Thalia behind me to hide her exposed body from his gaze.
As soon as I do, he realizes I noticed him.
He disappears deeper into the shadows.
How long has he been there? How much did he see?
Did someone send him, or did he simply stumble upon us? I don't know, but worry claws at my insides, sending paranoia churning through me.
Samson is still looking for information on Thalia. We're still waiting for him to bring news about my father. We don't know if hers is searching for her. There are pitfalls and unknowns everywhere. Is someone watching us? Following us?
I'm going to find the fucker and ask. And then I'm going to kill him slowly for thinking he has any right to watch me fuck her.
"I need you to run back to the cabin and lock the door, angel," I murmur to Thalia, not taking my eyes off the spot where the prick disappeared.
"What? Why?"
I don't want to frighten her, but I can't lie to her either.
"Someone was watching us."
She goes rigid in my arms. "Do you think…?"
"I don't know, but I intend to find out," I respond, murder in my voice.
"No!" She clings to me, her hands a vise on my arms. "Please, Troy. Please don't leave me alone out here. Please!"
The panic in her voice cracks my heart in half. I've seen her a thousand different shades of turned-on and happy. I've heard her laugh and shout and moan. I've even held her in my arms when she cried, each tear eviscerating me. But I've never seen her so damn afraid.
It's intolerable.
"It's okay, angel," I murmur, pulling her into my arms, trying to soothe her. "It's okay. I won't go."
"Promise me," she pleads, clinging as if I'm her only lifeline. Perhaps that's how she feels. Out here, it's just me and her. I have Stonehaven and connections to the outside world. But she has no one but me. If anything happens to me, she's on her own out here, forced to keep ahead of her father all by herself.
I can't let that happen. Until she has my ring on her finger—until the weight of my name protects her—I have to be careful. She needs me to keep her safe. It's the only way to ensure she remains free.
"I swear to you, I'm not going anywhere," I promise, quickly tucking my dick back into my pants before I scoop her into my arms to carry her back to the cabin.
She presses her face to my throat, trembling in my arms. I take one last lingering glance at the place where the man disappeared, memorizing it, and then turn and stride back toward the cabin, my thoughts tangled up in the woman in my arms and fears for her future.
She doesn't speak on the way back to the cabin. She just rests quietly in my arm, shivers ripping through her periodically. It's a far cry from the naughty, mischievous little minx who smirked at me over her shoulder and took off running not even an hour ago, taunting me to catch her if I thought I could.
Is she simply afraid of losing me, or is there something more? Whatever she isn't telling me…I have a feeling it's part of the reason why she's so afraid. I just don't know how it's connected or what it could be.
What could she possibly be so afraid of me finding out?
The answer hits me like a ton of bricks, pieces slamming into place. She's the princess—the one my father expects me to marry.
It's the only thing that makes sense. That's why she won't tell me who she is. It's why she ran away. It's why she doesn't want to go to Stonehaven. She's my princess.
And I fucking told her that hell would freeze over before I married her.
Jesus Christ.
Horror washes through me in a flood.
What did I do?
Christ. What the fuck did I do?
I glance down at her, my heart in my throat. She has no idea that I'd drop to my knees right this second and pledge my life to her. Because I told her differently.
I have to fix this.
But I can't do it from here. At least not all of it. If her father sent that bastard, I'm the only one capable of calling him off. I need to see my father immediately.
Christ. I need to go to Stonehaven.
I stride inside the cabin with her, kicking the door closed behind us, shutting the world out. I carry her straight to the armchair in the corner, settling onto it with her in my lap.
"I need you to promise me something," I murmur, running my hands through her silky hair. "Promise me that you won't go outside without me."
Her sapphire eyes fly to mine, welling with tears. "Y-you're going after him."