Total pages in book: 52
Estimated words: 49989 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 250(@200wpm)___ 200(@250wpm)___ 167(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 49989 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 250(@200wpm)___ 200(@250wpm)___ 167(@300wpm)
When Cleo spoke a while later, breaking the hush and rhythmic drone of the engine, it startled him.
“You’re upset about something my father did. Who did he kill?”
“It’s a long story.”
“Why can’t you tell me? If you mean what you say and want to be with me, shouldn’t you open up more? I still feel like we’re strangers in so many ways. I’ve given you everything. My whole life is an open book whether I like it or not. I don’t have a team of spies, killers, and hackers to do my bidding.”
There was no point keeping everything from her. She’d find out one way or another. Harb already proved to have a big mouth he couldn’t keep shut. Priest wasn’t good at relationships and had never been a playboy. He needed to step up or he’d end up losing Cleo. “When my family and brothers of the church were slaughtered, I had to live with that pain. Alone. The only thing keeping me sane, giving me any sort of focus, was planning my revenge. Boss promised me the name of the man responsible for the massacre when I first signed on with Killer of Kings. The only problem was that once he actually found the information, the men had already been killed—by Target, your father.”
“Isn’t that a good thing? I mean, that they’re all dead?”
“No! It should have been me. Instead, it was just another bullet for Target, an order to eliminate the competition. Nothing more.”
He felt bad for raising his voice. She didn’t deserve it. Priest had carried this pain with him his entire life and now felt impotent, angry, and lost. He was a fucking mess. All he wanted to do was ghost and forget everything, maybe even eat a bullet.
“I’m sorry.”
Priest turned to face her, confused by her words. “Why?”
Nobody cared about Priest. He expected nothing from people, and they never disappointed him.
“Because my father stole the revenge that belonged to you. I hope you don’t blame me because we’re related. As you know, I just met the man today, if you can even call it that.”
Had he been blaming Cleo? Even Harb thought he was being too harsh with Cleo since he found out about Target. No, she was innocent, perfect, and he was lucky to have a woman like her in his life. He couldn’t screw this up. She was all he had that he cared about.
“I don’t blame you,” he said.
“Are you sure?”
He pulled over to the side of the road, putting the car into park. Priest leaned over and cupped her face. He took a deep breath before speaking. “I haven’t had much to live for since that day. I’ve been existing, Cleo, nothing more. I may have even lost my faith, I don’t know. But you, you’re the one thing I believe in. You’re the only good thing I have. You’re all that matters to me now.”
****
Wow. Priest was being one hundred percent sincere. She even noticed the glint of moisture in his eyes. He’d been through more than she could ever imagine and today had been a major blow. She wanted to heal him, love him, and be everything he needed. Could two broken souls find love in each other? She couldn’t walk away, didn’t want to walk away.
Those few words, especially from a man like Priest, made her feel special and secure.
She wanted to tell him the past was the past and it was best to focus on the future. It was the motto she’d always lived by since her childhood had been so traumatic. She didn’t let her experiences sour her, instead, she allowed the pain to inspire her to be more. But she didn’t want to sound like she was dismissing his feelings.
“Can you be happy with me, even if your revenge is gone?”
“I want to be. Living for revenge darkened my soul, made me less of a human. I don’t want to be that man, not anymore. You deserve better than that.”
She swallowed, loving the feel of his hand on her face. Cleo closed her eyes, leaning into his touch.
He ran the pad of his thumb along her lip, then bent closer to kiss her. It was soft and gentle, a promise of things to come.
“Let me make things up to you,” he whispered against her lips.
Priest hadn’t done anything wrong. He was only human, after all. Ever since their crazy whirlwind romance started, he’d only been good to her, protective and committed.
“Can we have a happily ever after?” she asked. “Or will I always have to be hidden away for my own good?”
“We’ll fix this. I’ll work with Boss, do whatever he says will keep you safe.”
“I don’t want to hide forever.” Then she thought better. “But if I’m with you, I’ll be happy.”
She remembered the weeks when she lived at his house, their time before Boss kidnapped her. They’d grown close, becoming almost domestic. It was comfortable being with Priest. She never wanted to live without him.