Savage Love (Ash and Innocence 2)

Cassian wanted me so he could throw me to the ground and watch me shatter to a million pieces. He just didn’t want anyone else to put chips or dents in me. Only he got to damage me. To destroy me.

I was dumb and stubborn enough that I wanted to change his mind. I should’ve been thinking of a million different things, like maybe even trying to start patching things up with my dad. Instead, all I wanted was to prove Cassian wrong.

For once, I wanted someone to admit it wasn’t my fault. None of it was.25CassianI opened Charli’s door without knocking and found her on her bed. She was lying on her side so her faded pajama bottoms hugged her ass and gave a clear view of the line of her panties. I leaned in the doorway, watching her while she still didn’t know I’d come in.

“Room service.”

She jolted, then turned around and looked at me with wide eyes. She hadn’t put on makeup and her hair was flat on one side of her head. Seeing her with her guard down made my dick twitch, and I had no idea why.

She made me crazy. That was all I knew. She made me want to break things—including my own rules. I underhanded a brown paper bag at her. It hit her in the forehead with a soft thud and bounced into her hands.

With a glare, Charli peeked inside. “A hamburger? At nine in the morning?”

I shrugged. “Your call. Starve or eat.”

She set the bag on her nightstand and sat up, crossing her legs. She didn’t bother to fix her hair, but she did tug at the section near her scar to make sure it was still covered. “Three days ago, I got a concussion. You showed up at the hospital because you claim you didn’t know how serious it might be. But then you stayed and waited for me to wake up, even when you knew it was just a concussion.”

“Just a minor swelling of your brain, you mean? No big deal.”

“And now,” she continued as if I hadn’t spoken. “You’re bringing me food and you haven’t even tried to make me cry in days. Should I be worried about you?”

A few biting comments were on the tip of my tongue—bullshit like how I didn’t want to break her while she was weak or how it’d be more fun to let her get her strength back. But that’s what it all was. Bullshit.

I walked into the room and sat in the chair by her desk. “I got a concussion freshman year. I don’t even remember the hit. But nobody told me it was a big deal, so I still tried to go to school. I acted like shit was normal, and I ended up puking my guts out every night for a week and having the worst headaches of my life. I wouldn’t even wish that on my worst enemy. In other words, I wouldn’t even wish it on you.”

She grinned at her lap, nodding. “So there’s a heart in there, after all?”

“A fucked up one. Yeah.”

“Cassian…”

Something in her tone set off warning bells. I stood, moving to the door. “Save it.”

“No. I want you to know I’m sorry for what happened that night. I don’t agree with the way you see it, but I am sorry for what happened.”

“When ‘sorry’ starts bringing back the dead, let me know, maybe then that’ll mean something.”

She stood, then her eyes fluttered, and she sat back down.

I swore to myself then went to ease her back down. “You should be lying down, dumbass.”

“You’re such an asshole,” she said quietly.

“And you’re the world’s shittiest detective if you’re just figuring that out.”

Charli laughed softly, then pulled a blanket over herself.

I stood there for a few moments, then tugged at the bottom of her blanket so it’d cover her feet. “Can’t even put a blanket on properly.”

“Can’t even pretend you aren’t worried about me for a full minute.”

Her eyes were closed, but she was full on smiling now.

I turned my back and then smiled, too.

Fucking Charli Rhodes.26CharliI knocked twice, then waited. I almost lost my nerve and ran before he opened the door, but something made me stay put.

My dad stood in the doorway, looking down at me with an emotionless expression.

I gestured vaguely inside. “I heard you didn’t end up losing the house.”

“Carl pulled a favor. Said he’d give me a month’s advance on my pay.”

“You got your job back?”

My dad nodded. I noticed he looked more put together than usual, too. His hair had been washed and his eyes didn’t have that glazed over, tired look that I’d become so used to.

“Heard you were staying at some rich asshole’s mansion.”

“Something like that.”

We both stood there, neither of us knowing what to say.

My dad shifted, then took a half step toward me like he was going to try to hug me. I stepped back, holding my hand up. “No, dad. I didn’t come here to—” I closed my mouth.