Shackled Hearts (Chained Hearts Duet 4)

“Go back inside… I won’t be long.”

Chanel nods and smiles at Keir. “Was good to meet you,” she says to him, and I shut the door behind her.

“Lucas,” he warns.

“Do you plan to threaten me or follow through with your previous threat?”

He glances behind me at the closed door and then toward his car. “Walk me to my car.” I follow him down. He lays a hand on the roof as he slides on his sunglasses. “You plan to make her love you.”

I smirk at his words. “Love is such a fickle word, but if that’s what you want to use. She already does, she simply needs to remember.”

“And what happens when she remembers the part where you gave her to your father?” he asks.

“Then I’ll deal with that then,” I reply, smiling.

“You paid your dues, Lucas. I won’t interfere. But don’t go making the same mistakes. I won’t be so lenient again.” Keir gets into his car and drives off, and I walk back inside thinking, I wonder how much Sailor had to do with that decision. Keir doesn’t usually forgive, and I went against his wishes. So right now, I should be dead on the pavement. I have no idea why he’s decided to change his mind about my punishment, but I am going to accept it for what it is. I want Chanel, and I am going to do whatever I can to get what I want.

When I walk inside, I find her trying to clean up the mess on the bed.

“It’s fine, sit. I got this.” She takes a deep breath, and I realize she’s out of breath and shaking. “Fuck, Chanel.”

She smiles as she sits on the end of the bed. “I made the mess, so I was trying to clean it.”

I finish tearing off the sheet and help her to stand. As soon as I get a new sheet on the bed, I help her sit back down.

“You have real pretty eyes, you know that?”

“Who are you?” I ask her, our faces close as I hover over her.

“Why?” She looks at me confused. I miss that fire from her, but I’m also enjoying getting to know a different side of her.

“You don’t talk to me like this,” I tell her honestly.

“How do I speak to you normally?”

“With venom.”

She scrunches up her nose. “But we were a thing, right?”

“Yes.” I nod.

Pulling away, I finish making the bed and then help her back in it. “Go to sleep. Tomorrow is a new day.”

Like a stalker, I watched her sleep and then eventually fell asleep next to her. I wake with her hands clutching the bedsheets, sweat on her forehead, but she’s still asleep. How is she so fucking beautiful? And the way she smells, even drenched in sweat, I would lick every inch of her clean if she asked me to.

Every. Fucking. Inch.

“Chanel.” Her eyes spring open, searching until they find me.

“I remember.” The words leave her mouth, and I wait for more because she’s sure to turn around grab the nearest weapon and stab me for bringing her here. “The accident. He was yelling, driving insanely… I told him to slow down.”

“You only remember that?” She nods at my words, and relief washes over me. “He cheated on me, got another woman pregnant, and expected me to help raise the baby. I don’t want a baby. I’ve never wanted kids.”

Her words surprise me because, honestly, I never knew that about her.

“Why?” I ask.

“Why what?” Her chocolate eyes find mine.