Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 86571 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 433(@200wpm)___ 346(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86571 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 433(@200wpm)___ 346(@250wpm)___ 289(@300wpm)
I quickly carry her out to the car, hoping none of the neighbors are going to come out and try to stop me. I’d hate to be forced to kill someone else in front of Claire.
As gently as I can, I shove her into the front seat. “If you don’t stop fighting me, I’ll tie you up and stuff you in the trunk.
“You wouldn’t…” She looks at me wide-eyed and in disbelief before I see realization settle in. I would. I absolutely would.
Crossing her arms in front of her chest, she settles into the seat while I walk around and get into the driver’s seat.
“Where are we going?” she asks as soon as I pull out of the neighborhood.
“My place, in the city,” I explain.
“What city?”
“St. Louis.”
“St. Louis? What do we want there?”
“I live there. You’re staying with me from now on.”
“You can’t—” she stops herself from finishing, knowing that I can and will make it happen. She turns her head away from me, silently signaling that she is done talking to me for now.
The drive takes only an hour and a half. We spent the entire time in silence, which I was fine with at first, but once the anger about Claire lying to me passes, something else enters my mind. I can’t get the image of Claire coming all over my hand last night out of my head.
My cock strains to get free, pressing uncomfortably against the zipper. Claire squirms around in the seat next to me, and I wonder if she is thinking about it too. Of course, I don’t even know if she remembers last night, and I’m not about to ask.
When we finally pull up to my apartment complex, I feel relieved and somewhat excited to have Claire in my space. Glancing over at her pouting and staring daggers at me, I gather she feels anything but.
“Are you going to walk in there like a normal person, or do I have to throw you over my shoulder again?”
“What do you know about being normal?” She snorts.
“I know how to act normal. I’m great at it, or I would have been thrown in prison a long time ago.”
“That’s where you belong.”
“Probably, but I can’t protect you from a jail cell, so I’ll make sure I’ll stay out of it.”
“Great. I’ll walk inside. Like a normal person.” Claire opens her car door and steps out into the parking lot. I do the same, walking around the car quickly just in case she has the dumb idea to make a run for it.
Surprisingly, she lets me walk her into the building without problems. I unlock the door of my apartment and motion for her to step in. She walks in front of me, arms crossed in front of her chest and a frown plastered all over her face. She isn’t happy to be here, and she is going to be even less happy with what’s coming next.
Walking to the kitchen first, I open the fridge and grab some bottles of water and a protein shake. From the pantry, I snag some granola bars and an apple. With snacks in hand, I walk to my bedroom, passing a confused Claire on the way.
I dump the snacks on my bed and go back to the living room where Claire still stands awkwardly.
“Come on.” I take her wrist gently and tug her toward the hallway.
“What are we doing?” I don’t miss the slight nervous tone in her voice.
“I’m sure you want to lie down a little more. You must be tired.”
“I’m fine,” she tells me, tugging her wrist away.
“Well, you’ll still rest for a little bit.” I pull her into my bedroom. “Drink a lot of water, eat some snacks.” I point at the bed. “Take a shower,” I say, pointing at the attached bathroom. “But most importantly, relax. I’ll be back in a few hours.”
“Where are you going?”
“Just taking care of something. Nothing to worry about,” I tell her, and before she has the chance to read too much into it, I leave the room.
Closing the door, I take out the key from my pocket and lock her in. She is not going to like this one bit, but this is for her safety. She’ll be safe in there. Safe from everything except me.
23
Claire
I’m tempted to get up and pound my fists against the door until he opens it. I doubt he’s on the other side, though, so it would only leave me with bruised hands.
Who does he think he is to kidnap me and bring me here? I pushed him too far. The way he attacked Carter, all because of one little lie. All I wanted to do was hurt him, but that set off a chain of events I never would have expected. I can only hope Carter is okay. Lucca proved to me all over again who he was beneath the shiny knight he tried to put on display.