Total pages in book: 143
Estimated words: 138844 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 694(@200wpm)___ 555(@250wpm)___ 463(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 138844 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 694(@200wpm)___ 555(@250wpm)___ 463(@300wpm)
He gave my shoulder a squeeze and then took a step back. “I’ll give you two some privacy.”
I waited until Cam and I were alone—actually, I waited longer. I watched him in silence, sensing his internal struggle. My sweet boy, he looked like he was trying to hold back all his heartbreak. And I knew it was there. I knew he was hurting. Hearing that he wanted to leave saddened me but was by no means a surprise.
Regardless of how I felt, I had to show him I was on his side.
He cleared his throat and tried to stand a little taller, as if he was gearing up to say his piece. Or give his defense—but he wasn’t on trial here. Whatever he needed, we’d work things out.
“You can tell me anything, sweetheart,” I reminded him gently.
He nodded jerkily, close to breaking. I saw the crack in his exterior; his eyes welled up, and his bottom lip trembled.
“Daddy, I can’t see him,” he whimpered.
Fucking hell. My vision grew blurry in an instant. He called me Daddy so rarely that when he did, it was a punch straight to the ticker. It just wasn’t our day-to-day dynamic, even though I loved the moments he went there.
“Okay.” I coughed to clear my throat, and I peered behind me, resting one of my crutches against a trash can. “Come here.” I held out my arm for him, and he glued himself to me and broke down. Christ. I hugged him tightly and pressed my lips to the top of his head. “Okay,” I repeated. “Whatever you need, baby. But can you walk me through your thoughts?”
He sniffled and cried into his hands. “He promised me—he s-said he was gonna take care of himself. He promised me.”
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.
I glanced up at the sky and swallowed back my emotions—and my frustrations toward Lucian. Goddamn bastard. I loved the man, and he had the best of intentions, but he’d acted as if he were immortal.
Meanwhile…he’d entered a total power exchange with a young man who depended on him. They’d engaged in behavioral conditioning. They were Master and slave. Their core dynamic was high-protocol. Lucian was Cam’s world. They’d fused themselves together in every way imaginable, and then Lucian had pulled the rug out from underneath them.
“He fucking promised,” Cam croaked. Hurt and anger—betrayal too—rolled off him. “And if I see him, I’m gonna break. I’m gonna do whatever he asks, and it’s gonna hurt because…because I can’t t-trust him.”
I tightened my hold on him and kissed the top of his head. “I understand. You don’t have to see him. We can go home right now and—”
“I-I talked to Archie,” he stammered. He wiped at his cheeks and peered up at me. “He said I could spend the night at their house.”
I furrowed my brow. Archie? They lived outside fucking Winchester. Cam wasn’t merely in need of a night away from Lucian; he wanted to put distance between himself and the rest of us too.
“I just need to gather my thoughts, Sir,” he said, pulling out his phone. He sniffled and wiped at his cheeks again. “I’m sorry. I know it’s selfish, but—”
I shook my head, responding on autopilot. “It’s called self-preservation, little one. You don’t have a selfish bone in you.” As much as I hated this… Fuck. He showed me the text conversation with Archie, and I nodded with a dip of my chin.
Cam had asked to come out there because he needed a “fellow slave” to talk to. I couldn’t begrudge him that, even less so since I couldn’t relate to the same degree. I could easily see that this was a painful mindfuck, but I couldn’t know just how much it affected him.
I had my limits, though. Cam had told Archie he’d drive himself, and that wasn’t happening.
“You’re not driving on your own when you’re upset, Cam,” I told him. It was too late anyway. “We’ll take your car back to the house, and then Noa and I will drive you out there.” I needed my own car for that. A regular car would send us down the nearest ditch, if I could even get my foot on the gas.
“But it’s an hour and a half one way,” he protested.
“You’re not going alone.” I wasn’t budging. I dipped down and kissed his nose. Jesus, I was already missing him, and he hadn’t left yet. It just killed me that this was something I couldn’t help him with. “If anything, Noa could use the ride to process the night. We can stop at a drive-thru along the way or something.”
Knowing my freckles, I would need to make sure his guilt didn’t linger either.
That would undoubtedly require more than one conversation.
Cam was hesitant, which was so very him. He didn’t want to be a bother—and bullshit like that. So that only strengthened my resolve. Lucian would sleep through the night; I had to focus on our boys.