The Knight (Stolen Duet 2)

I lifted myself from the floor and decided I would need a long, soothing bubble bath in order to sleep tonight. I didn’t have the energy to talk to the others right now, so I pulled my hair up and ran the hot water.

Just as I started to undress, my doorbell rang.Chapter Twenty-NineANGELYOU DON’T BECOME a powerful man without having some strings to pull. Three years ago, I orchestrated my demise, and it had been all for her. When you fall, you want it to mean something. If you rise again, you want to know who you are. I was once the head of a criminal empire two centuries old. Now I was just a man standing on a girl’s doorstep, hoping she’d forgive him.

I was so nervous that I had missed the doorbell completely on my first try. After ringing it, I stepped back and waited. I knew she was still awake because I’d stood across the street from her and Caylen’s home—the brownstone we had grown up in together.

I bought the brownstone back from the couple I sold it to for twice the price. I could have bought any other place much cheaper, but I wanted Mian to create new memories here, so I gave it to Caylen for his first birthday. According to Lucas, Mian hadn’t bothered to open it until six months after my trial. I was just glad she finally had.

I heard her footsteps moving across the floor. They were hesitant as she probably wondered who was ringing her door this late. Michelle told me Tabitha figured out I’d been released. She and Mian had grown close over the years, so I knew she’d warn her.

A few moments passed, and I could no longer hear her footsteps. She was probably watching me through the peephole right now, debating if she should open the door.

I smiled at the peephole and heard her gasp on the other side. Another second later, I could hear the locks turn.

Nothing could have prepared me for this moment.

The door opened, and she stood clutching it, looking as innocent as she always had, with her hair pulled up in a messy ponytail. It was shorter than I remembered. Her skin was soft and slightly flushed as she stared back at me. She seemed to be just as mesmerized.

I was bigger than I was three years ago, almost matching Lucas’s bulk. I could see him playing pro football or hockey if he had found the right path. I didn’t know if he had the skill, but he definitely had the brawn.

“Angel?”

“Yeah, Sprite.”

We fell silent again as we drunk each other in. The silence became stifling after a while, so I searched for something to say, and when I couldn’t form the right words, I went for the obvious. “You used the key.”

She stiffened and shifted her weight to one hip as she crossed her arms. “I didn’t want to, but everyone seemed to think my pigheadedness was denying my son a stable home.”

I nodded, sensing it was a sore subject. Agreeing that she was, in fact, pigheaded was a sure way to get the door slammed in my face.

“If anyone deserved stability, it was the two of you,” I replied instead. “I’m glad you accepted the gift.”

“Before you get any ideas, I made it on my own, and I don’t owe you a damn thing.”

“I can see that.” I was fucking proud and trying not to let it show in the most pleasurable way.

“Can you?” Her eyes narrowed. “Then why are you here?”

“Because we’re better than this.”

“Than what?” she snapped.

“Pretending that we don’t exist to each other.”

“That’s what you’ve been doing for three months? Pretending?”

“No,” I answered while wondering how long she’d known I was out. “I was fighting to stay away from you.”

“So what changed?”

“I realized it was only a matter of time before our paths crossed again.”

“Really? I don’t see Michelle and Tim inviting you to their annual barbecue anytime soon.”

“Maybe not, but we are married.” She didn’t reply other than to purse her lips and perk an eyebrow. “Can I come in?”

“Why would I invite you into my home?”

She tensed, losing some of her bravado as I stepped closer. “So we can talk,” I answered gently. I was so close I could feel each breath she took on my skin.

“We have nothing to talk about, Angel.” Her arms loosened from her chest to wrap tightly around her body, and I couldn’t help wondering if she was naked under her green robe. “You should leave.” Her mask fell, allowing me to see her torment. She looked both surprised and wary when I stepped back.

“This is goodnight then.”

I was off her stoop, disappearing down the darkened street before she could respond.* * *THE NEXT MORNING, I made pancakes. Sure, they weren’t my pancakes to make, and I’d broken into the brownstone just before sunrise, but no one could turn down pancakes. My own stomach growled as I turned off the burner and set the table.