Abandon Ship (Anchored 4)

Odessa heads for the stack of dishes in the kitchen and I walk around to the kitchen table. It’s covered in papers. No, it’s covered in letters.

“Odessa,” I say, picking one up. “Did you know he’s been writing to her?”

The shattering of a dish lets me know she didn’t know.

Odessa doesn’t bother cleaning it up. There will be time for that later. Instead, she comes beside me and starts to read.

“What the hell…” Her voice trails off as she looks at the paper I’m holding. “I had no idea. She didn’t tell me.”

“I don’t think she’s told anyone,” I say, looking around, and suddenly, everything clicks into place. Not only is Piper feeling totally alone and scared, but now she’s feeling threatened. Now she’s worried he’s going to come after her, and she should be scared because these letters? These aren’t anything to mess with.

“We need to turn these into the police,” Odessa says. She goes and collects a couple of zippered baggies and then begins placing each letter in its own bag. She doesn’t bother reading the others. We don’t need to. They all say the same thing. They’re veiled threats, to be sure, but Tad’s intent is obvious.

He’s going to find her, and he’s going to take care of his little problem.

I don’t know what kind of connections this guy has that he was able to locate Piper’s post office box to send her these, but if he could start sending her letters, there’s no doubt he’s planning to pay her a visit in person. Piper Queen is one careful woman. Odessa and June are the only two people who even know where she actually lives, which is why I had Odessa bring me.

When Piper didn’t show up at the club the second week in a row, we were all nervous. June couldn’t sneak away to help us, but Odessa and I decided to pay Piper a visit and find out, once and for all, what’s been troubling her.

“All right,” I tell Odessa. “I’m going to go check on our girl.”

“I can go,” she says softly, but I shake my head, and Odessa doesn’t protest. When I get into the living room, I kick off my shoes and take off my jacket. Piper’s house is warm and cozy. She’s decorated it beautifully and showcased just how sweet and special she really is. Does she even know how fantastic she is?

The shower is still running when I reach the top of the stairs, but something tells me Piper isn’t in the shower. When I push open the door to the bathroom, I see her sitting in the middle of the floor and she’s sobbing.

Piper looks up to me, and then she does something that makes my heart clench.

She reaches for me.

Piper Queen, beauty of the dungeon, tech wizard of the world, reaches for me.

I drop to the ground, and I pull her into my arms, and I let her cry on me.

“It’s not fair,” I tell her, petting her hair. “It’s not fair what he did to you, beautiful. It’s not fair, and it’s not right, but I’m going to protect you, Piper. I’m not going to let him hurt you again, okay?”

She mumbles something, but I can’t understand what she’s saying, so I keep whispering to her, keep promising her it’s going to be just fine.

“June filled me in,” I tell her. “Although, to be fair, I already suspected something like this, sweetie, and I want you to know you aren’t alone. We’re not going anywhere, Piper. You don’t have to deal with this all by yourself.”

Her sobs gradually fade to sniffles, and I keep petting her hair, rocking her on the bathroom floor.

“Why are you being so nice to me?” She whispers. “You aren’t even my Dom.”

“I could be, if you wanted,” I tell her, and her body doesn’t stiffen. If anything, she relaxes just a little bit more.

“You like me, Maddox Blake, don’t you?” She looks up at me. “Scars and all, you really care about me.”

“I really care about you, Piper.”

“Then take care of me, Maddox,” she whispers. “Because I can’t do this on my own anymore.”

It’s as if Piper Queen has given me the keys to her heart. I feel like she handed me the entire world on a silver platter. I stand, bringing her to her feet, and I place my hands on her cheeks.

“You are beautiful, Piper.”

“I’m a mess, Maddox. I’m a real, total, complete mess. Not a hot mess, either,” she laughs quietly. “A legitimate mess. I don’t even know where to start.”

“Let’s start with getting you cleaned up, okay?”