Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 36665 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 183(@200wpm)___ 147(@250wpm)___ 122(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36665 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 183(@200wpm)___ 147(@250wpm)___ 122(@300wpm)
“That’s how you speak to her?” Luka scoffs.
“You can shut the fuck up. You don’t speak to her at all,” I snap back at him. His jaw clenches, but he quickly masks the fact that I landed my verbal blow.
“You lied to me.” Paisley gazes down at the ground. The hurt in her voice is enough to kill a man.
“I didn’t lie to you.” I clear the rest of the space between us. I sink my fingers into her hair, tilting her head back to stare up at me. I need her eyes on me.
“It was a lie. We’re a lie.” Her eyes fill with unshed tears, killing me. I drop my forehead on hers.
“I came here for you, Paisley. Not because of your parents. When I got on the plane, it was because I wanted you for myself. I’m a selfish bastard when it comes to you, princess. I’m not sharing you with anyone.” I brush my mouth against hers. She doesn’t try to pull away. “I love you,” I confess. “And I’m never letting you go.” I press my mouth against hers.
This princess will always be mine.
24
PAISLEY
My body betrays me. As much as I know I should pull away, I can’t do it. He chased after me. I’d doubted myself when we pulled up to the plane. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to get on. There was still the pull I felt toward Jackson.
I wanted to talk to him and hear his side of things. Although I felt hurt, I couldn’t get myself to believe that what we had wasn’t real or that he would ever do anything to harm me. Everything he ever did was to protect me. Even from myself at times.
“Jackson.” I press my body against his. This feels right. The same way it has since the minute I met the man. He wraps his arms around me, holding me close. I don’t ever want to leave him. He's the one place where I've felt like I belong. The only place I ever felt as though I could truly be myself. He’s my home.
“Are you two done?” my brother cuts in. I let out a small gasp, having forgotten where we were for a moment. Heat rushes to my cheeks. It's not only my brother and June; there are other Army personnel lingering around.
Jackson takes a step toward my brother. “You and I are going—”
“Jackson.” To calm him down, I run my hand up his chest. He’s not a fan of my brother. I knew that before today. He’s made a few off-handed comments.
Jackson thinks he should have been around years ago. But it’s not Luka’s job to take care of me. There must be reasons why he stayed away. He came today, after all. That counts for something.
“I wasn’t handing you over to your parents,” Jackson reiterates, wanting to make that clear.
“But you came here for me?” I peek up at him, not fully understanding. I do know that he runs and owns a large security and investigation company. He has a bunch of employees. Jackson could have sent one of his men after me, or he could have simply told my parents where I was. He hadn’t done either of those things.
“Didn’t ever believe in fate.” His eyes soften on me. “Then your file hit my desk, and I saw your picture. I was done for.” He cups my cheek. “You just happened to land in my hometown. Actually, you ran to it.” I had. There was a pull I couldn’t explain.
“It felt right when I got here,” I admit. I can’t help but smile. Never in a million years when I left my town to escape my parents had I ever envisioned something like this happening to me. The only hope I had was to live a life free of my parents' control.
Could it really have been fate? Not only had I made Cottonwood my new home, but out of all the people my parents could have hired to find me, it was Jackson’s company. The world made sure we found each other. I kind of love that.
“It’s because you’re home, princess.” My breath catches. He’s right, but Jackson always is. It's one of the many things I love about him.
“When did my brother turn into a sappy marshmallow?” June sounds utterly disgusted.
I can’t help but laugh while my insides melt too. My gruff military man is standing here, talking about fate and loving me. He doesn't give a crap who hears. For me, Jackson is only a marshmallow.
“Paisley.” My brother tries again.
“You’re done.” Jackson levels my brother with a hard stare. Any softness that was there for me a few seconds ago vanishes. He sees my brother as a threat. One that can take me from him.
“Do you think I don’t have as much pull as you do?” My brother challenges him right back.