Total pages in book: 146
Estimated words: 147801 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 739(@200wpm)___ 591(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 147801 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 739(@200wpm)___ 591(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
Grant grabs a gun from one of his men’s holsters and points it at me.
“My.” My grin widens. “Poked the daddy issues?”
“You know, I never liked you, Kayden.” His voice is low, simmering. “You always had things easy. Rachel was abused. So fucking what? She wasn’t driven to her death like my mom. And you always had her, didn’t you? Her and another mom. Meanwhile, Dad liked you for some reason I’ll never fucking understand. No matter what I did, he always put you first. Always. I should send you to join him.”
“Wouldn’t you be jealous if Dad and I reunited in Hell without you?” I let the smirk stretch across my face. “Though even if you joined us, he’d still like me better. Want to know why? Because, unlike you, I never begged for his attention like a desperate little bitch. I earned it. Till the day he died, Harrod respected me. He never respected you.”
The click of the gun echoes, and I close my eyes.
I guess Gareth and Jethro are far enough now.
Still, I doubt Grant will pull the trigger. He knows he can’t control my side of the business if I’m gone.
But then again, maybe I pushed him too far.
And his daddy issues aren’t adorable like Gareth’s, they’re destructive. Like the way he raised his son to be ruthless, as if Harrod’s ghost is still on his shoulders telling him exactly what to do. So, just in case, I don’t want to have my last thoughts filled with Grant or Harrod.
Bright eyes rush through my mind, ethereal green eyes that pierce through me with every look, full of life and something I could never quite reach. I picture his smile with the dimples that always tightened my heart, like he was a force I couldn’t control but couldn’t stop wanting.
I fall into the memory of how his breath would catch, a soft sigh escaping him when I ran my fingers through his hair, the way he’d close his eyes in a kind of surrender.
I picture him asleep in my arms, his face relaxed, his breathing even, holding me close like he never wants to let me go.
And I feel peace.
“Kayden!”
For a brief moment, I think I’m conjuring up his voice, but then again, he doesn’t sound this frightened in my head.
Never frightened.
I open my eyes and, sure enough, Gareth is running toward me.
What the—
My eyes stray to Grant, whose gaze shifts between us, his lips curling into a smirk as realization dawns.
He knows.
And he’ll kill Gareth, not because he has to, but to teach me a lesson. To make me feel the same anguish he endured when Dad killed his girlfriend.
“I knew you were lying! I fucking knew it!” Gareth screams, his voice raw and thunderous as he lunges for a gun on the ground.
I don’t think. I don’t hesitate.
I run toward him at full speed, my focus narrowing until there’s nothing but the need to shield him. My body crashes into his, my back to Grant as the shot rings out.
The sound is deafening, a sharp crack splitting through the chaos.
Pain blooms in my side like an explosion, radiating outward in jagged waves.
But Gareth is fine.
I’m on top of him, and he’s fine.
It’s fine.
This is fine.
My ears ring, muffling the world around me. I hear Simone’s distant voice—panicked, shouting orders. That’s good. Maybe she brought more men. She’ll protect him. She likes Gareth, enough to spill everything about me if it means earning his forgiveness.
He’ll be fine.
Gareth’s frantic tears grip my face, and salty droplets slip into my mouth as they stream down his cheeks.
“Kay…Kayde…no…no…you fucking idiot. What have you done?” His voice cracks, filled with anguish I’ve never heard before.
I love his voice. But not like this. Not when it’s laced with so much pain.
“Kay…please…fuck! You said you wouldn’t die. You promised…you promised me!”
His hand presses tightly against my side, futilely trying to stop the flow of blood. He’s shaking all over like a live wire.
“Please…don’t go…I’m begging you…please…don’t leave me. Baby, please…”
I lift a hand to his face, smearing his beautiful skin with blood as I try to wipe away the tears.
Don’t cry, I want to tell him.
But no words come out.
The world blurs, darkening at the edges as the pain dulls into a distant throb. All I can do is let the darkness swallow me whole, carrying me away from his broken voice, the tremor in his hands, and the tears that feel heavier than the bullet in my side.
39
GARETH
I’m staring at the red on my hands.
At the blood.
His blood.
My Kayden’s blood that flowed out of him persistently no matter how much I tried to stop it. I removed my shirt and pressed on it. I used both my hands, but it still soaked everything and escaped him.
Escaped me.
The crimson red is dry now and etches into the creases of my palms, tinting my fingernails, slipping under the skin, lodged there.