Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 113142 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 566(@200wpm)___ 453(@250wpm)___ 377(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 113142 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 566(@200wpm)___ 453(@250wpm)___ 377(@300wpm)
And now, he assured me he wasn’t ever leaving me again. No one would separate us. We would talk and figure everything out. Together.
My phone rang, my mother’s ring tone loud and obnoxious in the quiet of the room. When it fell silent, I looked at Adam. “She’ll call back until I answer.”
“Yeah, I remember her insistence. You should answer it. Let her know you’re safe and be done with it.”
I wasn’t sure I could talk to her without screaming. “I don’t want to talk to her.”
“Then send her a text. You left their condo in the middle of the night. Even your mother would be concerned. And you have to face her when you go back for your things.”
I shook my head. “I don’t want to go back there!”
Adam captured my hand that was rubbing my forehead. “Okay, Nightingale. Calm down. Are you in pain?”
“No. Sometimes when I get upset, my head aches. It’ll go away.” I snuggled closer. “This helps. I don’t ever want to wake up without it again.”
His lips were warm on my temple. “Not happening. Ever. I’m never letting you go.”
My phone beeped, and I shut my eyes.
Adam rolled out of bed and got my bag, fishing out my phone. “Is Emma in town?”
“Yes. She’s in meetings all day about her new designs.”
“Does Sarah know that?”
“No.”
“Where’s Ronald?”
“Away on a business trip. He’s away a lot these days.”
“Good. That’s one less asshole to deal with today.” He grunted as his fingers moved over the keypad quickly. “That’ll buy us some time.”
“What did you say?”
“She now thinks you couldn’t sleep with all the wedding excitement, and you went to Emma’s early to have a spa day so you’d look nice for Bradley.”
The phone beeped, and he shook his head after reading the screen then tossing my phone back into my bag. “She’s reminding you she’s out this evening and that you have a final dress fitting.” Then he arched his eyebrow. “You won’t need that fitting. You aren’t going to need that dress.”
I met his steady gaze. “No, I won’t.”
The sunlight coming in the window glinted off the large diamond on my finger.
“Or that ring,” he added.
Nodding, I slid it off. Adam handed me my bag, and I tucked it into the side pouch. “I have to give it back and tell them all the wedding is off.” I hesitated, pleading with my eyes. “Will you come with me?”
“Absolutely.”
“Bradley’s going to be upset. I don’t think he’s totally innocent in all this, but I don’t know how much he knows.”
“I think he knows quite a bit.” He bent down close, meeting my eyes, his expression intense. “I’ve been in hell for months, aching for you. I’ve been without you, and that bastard kept you away from me. I woke up every day thinking you didn’t love me anymore. So frankly, I don’t give a fuck how upset he is. I owe him some pain.”
“I’m so sorry. I can’t believe all this has happened.”
He shook his head. “This isn’t on you. He and your mother kept you away and let me think you didn’t love me. I’m sure of it.”
I stroked along his jaw, feeling his rough scruff under my fingers. “It’s amazing how the mind works, because I did love you. Even when I didn’t know it.” My voice caught. “My soul missed you every day.”
His face softened. “I know that now.”
“I have to face them all, don’t I?” I asked, the dread in my voice evident.
“Yes, but I’m not risking you being near them alone. We’ll face it together. Bradley, Ronald, your mother—whatever shitstorm it causes. They have to answer for their actions—not you.”
“I need you there. I need them to see they failed.”
He brushed his lips over my temple. “I’m not letting you out of my sight. It’s my turn to tell them what to do. They’ll never get close to you again.”
I let him surround me. I hated it had come to this. But there was no decision to be made—Adam would always come first. What they had done had proven how little I meant to them.
ADAM
Ally hung up the phone and smiled reassuringly at me. “My neurologist is amazed how much I can remember. He’s going to have me see a colleague of his in the next couple of days, just to make sure everything is okay. Now, will you stop worrying?”
I trailed my fingers down her cheek. “Not sure I will ever be able to stop worrying about you.” I tucked the blanket higher around her shoulders and settled back into the chair. I studied her face—she looked tired, but her eyes were clear. “Are you ready to talk? Just pick somewhere to start, and we’ll figure it out.”
She thought about it a moment, then spoke. “I was so upset after we got disconnected—”