“Well, you’re going to cause a lot of problems. Vox has never made his hatred toward you a secret, and if you do this, he’s going to take advantage of the situation. He’ll try to take the throne from you.”
He’d always been a problem, even when Balto was in charge. But I wasn’t gonna let that man change my decision. “Then let him try.” I kept my word, and maybe it was a stupid promise to make to a woman who didn’t even want me, but I’d already done it. I couldn’t take it back. “Bring me a door too.”
Steel was confused by the change of subject. “What?”
“I’ll send you the measurements. I need the toughest door you can find.” I hung up.
Six
Catalina
For the first minute I was awake, I felt peace. Memories of the last few days hadn’t hit me just yet, and it felt like a regular day, the sunshine coming through my window and heating my sheets. I stretched out as I released a deep breath and woke up.
Then I remembered everything that happened.
Wasn’t a dream. Wasn’t a nightmare.
I sat up and looked at the time on my nightstand.
It was three in the afternoon.
Damn, how long had I been asleep? Over twelve hours?
I got out of bed and pulled on a pair of pajama shorts before I opened the bedroom door and tiptoed into the living room. I wasn’t sure if he was asleep, so I tried to stay quiet.
He sat in an armchair facing the window, the sunlight blanketing his entire body. His blue eyes were bright because of the sunlight, and he looked across the city like he was entertained by the view.
When I came closer, I walked normally so he would hear me approach. I noticed his hair was different, a little flatter than normal. “Did you take a shower?”
He still didn’t look at me. “I hope you don’t mind.”
“Not at all.” I looked down at the couch to examine it, and there was no sign that he’d been there at all. Then I looked at the front door, and instead of seeing the mahogany-colored door that had been there before, I saw a gray-green barrier that looked like it was made out of something stronger than wood. There were lots of heavy bolts along the side, making it intimidating. “You did this?”
He didn’t turn to see what I referred to. “No one will be able to get through that. Will have to come through a window, but I installed an alarm system, so that way won’t work either.” He rose from the armchair and took his time walking toward me. He purposely didn’t make eye contact with me, looking at the floor or the wall.
“Thank you…” I hadn’t even asked him to do that. Now I didn’t know what to say.
“Do you want me to stay?” His voice was so deep, slightly broken, like there was emotion bottled up inside him that he refused to release.
I wanted this enormous man to protect me every hour of the day. He was the only person strong enough to guard me from everything, to get me out of that basement just by raising his voice. I wanted him at my side forever, but I knew he had a life to live. He’d already done enough for me that I couldn’t ask for another minute of his time. “No.”
He moved to the door like he’d been dismissed.
“Wait.”
He sighed quietly, like the last thing he wanted to do was be in that apartment with me. He continued to look at the door and wouldn’t turn back to face me, to have a conversation like a normal person.
“Why won’t you look at me?”
He turned my way slightly so I could see his expression, but he still didn’t make eye contact. He closed his eyes for a few seconds like he needed a moment to gather his emotions. “Because I can’t.”
When I understood how much it hurt him to see me in pain, I was speechless. If we’d never met, I might never have escaped that dungeon. I might even be dead right now…or worse. I moved until I was directly in front of him, close to his body.
He reluctantly lifted his gaze to look at my face, and when he did that, his expression hardened, his eyes looked pained, and he pressed his lips tightly together to suppress a grimace.
“It doesn’t hurt that much anymore.” It was difficult to look at myself in the mirror for the first time, to see the damage inflicted on my face. It would take at least a month for it to clear up. Right now, I wasn’t sure if makeup would be enough to hide it.
“That’s not what haunts me the most.”
I didn’t expect a man like him to care so deeply, especially when he went down there all the time to collect his money, money made off those women. He didn’t care about those other girls. Why did he care about me? “I’ll be fine. When I fall on my ass, doesn’t take me long to get up again.”