Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 52338 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 262(@200wpm)___ 209(@250wpm)___ 174(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 52338 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 262(@200wpm)___ 209(@250wpm)___ 174(@300wpm)
"I don't want to talk about this anymore," I say softly. It's already been a long day, and even though I'm glad to finally hear from him, he always seems to bring bad news and disappointment along with him. I don't want to think about the dangers outside, and I don't want to have to face the truth of our current status. It's obvious that I was only a fling for him, something to do to pass the time while he did his job. And once this is over, he'll go back to his regular life of hunting down bad guys while I'm forced to continue living mine as if he hadn't bulldozed his way through it.
"I understand." He stands to his feet. "Do you want me to go?"
The smart answer would be to tell him yes, but I can't bring myself to do so. "No," I murmur. It's probably emotional suicide to spend more time than necessary with this man, but something about him makes it hard for me to turn away. "Can you stay with me tonight?"
"Do you think that's a good idea?" he asks with a raised brow.
"Probably not, but apparently, I'm all about making bad decisions lately. One more couldn't hurt," I muse.
He stares at me for a long time. "I don't want to confuse you more than I have."
I take a few steps forward to close the space between us. "I just want to feel safe tonight, that's all." I look up into his chocolate pools, a mixture of heartbreak and longing swirling in the pit of my stomach at the thought of our time together quickly winding down. "Can you just...I don't know, hold me tonight?"
He nods. "Yeah, I can do that," he agrees.
I change into a nightgown while he strips down to his tank top and boxers before getting into bed with me, his hand rubbing small circles on my stomach as I press my body against his. I have no idea what's in store for us or if there'll even be anything left to hold on to when this is over.
But for now, I'll take the safety and comfort that envelops me until the heartbreak train has reached its final destination to devastate me.
17
TRENT
Iwatch Morgan as she crosses the campus to head to another class, guilt weighing heavy on my chest. It seems like yesterday when I was on top of this apartment building doing surveillance as I prepared to take her out. She'd been so bubbly back then, so innocent. Now it kills me to see the sadness permanently etched onto her beautiful face, sadness that I put there. I haven't talked to her or seen her since that night at her house. It's better if I keep my distance. It's bad enough that I let things go as far as they had, and I didn't realize the extent of it until she'd said it out loud the other night.
She'd been right; I could've just done my job and remained friendly with her, but I didn't. I was the one who escalated it into what it is now, and it's not fair to her that I have to withdraw from her after everything I'd done to pull her in. I'd blurred the lines between what was actually needed to do my job and my own selfish, personal reasons and now, she has to pay the price for that. I have to see the consequences of my selfishness every time I see her walk past her window at home, looking out longingly to see if she can see me watching somewhere. I have to see it when she's sulking around campus, completely uninterested in everything going on around her as she constantly checks her phone.
I sigh inwardly and try to ignore the negative emotions threatening to take over my mind. While I shouldn't have let it go as far as it had, I can only keep this appropriate for now. Soon enough, I'll be gone, and she'll eventually forget about me as she finds a guy more appropriate for her life who won't put her in danger or force her to constantly leave her behind.
My ringing phone pulls me out of my thoughts and gives me something more productive to focus on. I quickly grab it when I see Natalie's name on my screen, hitting the answer button so quickly that I nearly jam my finger.
"Talk to me," I say upon answering.
"We've found the auction," Natalie states. Adrenaline replaces the previous guilt and regret that once plagued me. This is a situation I can control, one that I can handle both inside and out.
"Where?" I ask.
"It took some digging, but it's going to be in a warehouse on the outskirts of town," she explains. "It's one of those temporary ones that you're able to transport around so you actually need exact coordinates to be able to find it since it's not a permanent location. We have a team ready to take them down tomorrow."